Charles (Chuck) Kensinger

Are you more important than anyone else?

July 20, 2022

Driving through Springfield streets it can often be noticed that certain people do not obey traffic laws, signs, and stop lights. As a Christian you may wonder who these people are or, hopefully not, you may find yourself participating in these unlawful and unsafe practices. The only explanation for this is that those who ignored common sense or instruction and posted ordinances are better than everyone else.

Some examples of this observed behavior are those who do not attempt to stop when the traffic light turns yellow. When the Springfield Police cars and Greene County Sherriff cruisers do this it is common knowledge that they do not have to obey the laws they are paid to enforce. Why should they set the example by stopping just because the light has turned yellow? Those who drive through red lights must just be off-duty officers that know they won’t get any tickets. How many people are killed in accidents when the instruction of a light is ignored? No more than twenty or so each year. Who cares about that small a number?

Even worse than this are those who run red lights. I have witnessed a number of these violators. Recently I have had two different vehicles running lights as I was beginning to start into the intersection. Had I not been observant, I would probably have died. In my opinion, these actions are those of someone who does not care about anyone else on the roads. Violating this law should be considered first-degree murder. I know our legislators will never change the penalty because they are some of the worst offenders.

Another similar situation is that of driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Once again, we all have heard of government officials fighting DUI charges. A friend of mine once was talking about how he almost passed out the previous night while he was driving home after having drunk alcohol. I asked how he would feel if a drunk driver hit and killed his family. He did not like having to think about that.

A friend of my wife was killed in an accident with a drunk driver years ago. She left a husband and children. While the other driver was charged and prosecuted, the family did not feel justice was done. I was also a witness to an accident caused by a man who was drunk. The trial was delayed when he agreed to go through treatment. It was not his first prosecution for that offense.

Speed limits are the top limit set by the city, county, state, and federal governments. Many of us view anyone going under the posted limit as causing problems. A common misconception is that you can drive five to ten miles faster than the posted number and not worry about getting a ticket. This is not true. You could get a ticket if an officer is having a bad day and wants to get someone.

Missouri has laws restricting the use of cell phones by younger drivers while behind the wheel of a car. It seems that it would be important to stop all of us from this distraction. My wife and family know not to call me while I am driving. They can text. Then they must wait for me to respond when it is safe. I have done this since I began carrying a cell phone.

I could mention more things than these I have mentioned. I will stop with this list of my complaints. I know many of you do not agree with me and that is fine. I would like to hear from you if my thoughts have struck a nerve either way. We are all entitled to our own opinions.

Jesus loves me

July 20, 2022

There is a song with this title. I learned it when I was a kid. I’d like to talk to you about the words of this song. “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” This is the first phrase.

The bible does tell us that we are loved by a man named Jesus. About two thousand years ago He was born into this world just as we all are. No difference other than that his mother was a virgin and ours were not. Now that we know who Jesus is let’s look at the world loves.

Love is the verb in this phrase. It is the action word. The apostle Paul tells us that love is patient and kind. This is enough of a definition to show how His love is different from what most of us experience from those that claim they love us. Most of us are not very patient and would have a definition of kindness that probably varies greatly.

Do you know that He loves you? The Bible tells us in many places that we are loved by God and this includes His Son, Jesus. The Messiah told us many stories to explain how much His Father loves us. One of these is that of a shepherd who left 99 sheep that were safe to find the one that had gotten lost. Are you that lost one?

The next stanza tells us that we belong to him. We are told that His strength will make up for our weakness. The dependability of God and our fallibility are written all through His word. The Psalms have many verses of poetry that tell us how we can follow Him and have Him protect us.

In the second stanza, we are told that Jesus’ love is as strong as it always was. He places children on His knee and tells them to come to Him as He always has. Our Lord told us that to reach Heaven we must become like children and trust Him as they do.

He is still with us on our way is what verse three tells us. He walks with us today as He has always said He would, giving us light and love as a friend. He told us that we would be His friends forever.

Our Savior died for us to open a way to eternal life. That was His purpose for becoming human. The fourth verse tells us this and that His sacrifice was for the payment of our sins.

The fifth and final verse tells us that He will stay close with us on our way, and we promise that we will live for Him as He died for us. This song is considered a children’s ditty. By looking at the words I want you to see that it is a confirmation of what Christians believe about the creator of the universe and His plan for our redemption.

He did what was necessary to bring us back to fellowship with Yahweh. This was done to show that He loves us and always will. From the mid 1800’s this poem has been around to remind us of what was done for us and why.

Crippled made straight

July 19, 2022

Luke 13:10-17 tells the story of a crippled woman who was healed by Jesus. There are many points of interest in this portion of scripture that bear looking at. The first is that it happened on Saturday. This was the Jewish Sabbath day. All you were supposed to do was go to church and hang close to your home.

The original Levitical reference says to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. Holy means separate. You have six days to work. The seventh is a day of rest and renewal. Jesus was in the synagogue teaching when he saw a woman that was crippled so badly, that she could not stand up straight. She had been this way for eighteen years.

He calls her to come to Him. He simply touches her and says that she is cured of her illness. She stands up straight and walks home as any normal person would. No sit-ups, pushups, or ropes were not used, and no elaborate ceremony. She was bent over, and she straightened up. Nothing wrong with that.

The leader of the synagogue did not agree. He vocalized his distress at these proceedings. My guess is Jesus would not be invited back next Saturday. His words were to come Sunday to Friday to be healed. Who would spend their time healing folks on the day of worship?

Have you seen a preacher get upset because someone came into their church and did something good? I hope you have not. I witnessed a local minister berating a waitress on a Sunday because she was working. The work she was doing was serving his family. I was the dishwasher and busboy. I was also beginning ministerial school in a couple of months.

When I returned to my station behind the kitchen, she was there and very upset. I told her that I knew the man and did not think much of him as a preacher or a man. She recovered herself and returned to the floor to continue taking care of the customers.

A few months later I received an invitation to speak at this Pastor’s church. I preached on this passage of scripture. I emphasized Jesus’ response to the synagogue leader. Jesus called him a hypocrite. How can a minister that works more on Sunday tell others that their jobs should not be done on that day? I did not mention the scene I had witnessed. The pastor and his family were gone that Sunday. I don’t know if he was told about my message. I was not asked to return for a second time. Probably just a coincidence.

Let’s pursue that word hypocrite a little more. It is a transliteration of a Greek word. The word means an actor. A synonym is thespian. It is also defined as a fraud, fake, or deceiver. The modern definition is someone who does not practice what they preach.

The question should be, “Am I a hypocrite?” Yes, I am. I attend a church that is a hospital for hypocrites. The seats are full of them and so is the pulpit. The difference is that we are trying to be healed of that affliction. Unlike the Synagogue leader in this story who was offended by the words of our Lord. His words should inspire and energize us.

Systemic Racism

July 16, 2022

This word confused me when I started to hear it in connection with George Floyd and other stories about police abuse. I have researched the word because I am a writer. Words are my brushes and paints in the artistry of my writing. Other writers know what I mean. I must understand what my and others’ words are supposed to mean.

A word or phrase that is used is not always the correct way to express an idea. I work hard to make my words understood. I am as dedicated to being sure of what your words are supposed to mean. Often this process is difficult.

Such was my problem with the phrase “systemic racism”. Finally, I determined that it is the prejudice that is built into our laws and rules. Usually, it refers to civil rights violations against a minority group. Racism is currently being exhibited publicly on television and in other media.

Putin is shown as being against Ukraine. They have been enjoying freedoms that the Russian people are not given. Their economy is blossoming, and it makes their time in the USSR seem to be a block of wasted time. Their success is a black eye for the founding country of the United Soviet Socialist Republic. They are the target because they have not joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization yet. One of the Soviet leader’s reasons that were voiced before the invasion was that he did not want Ukraine to join NATO as Poland and other former USSR states had.

Is this “systemic racism”? I think it falls in that category. The USSR as an entity is opposed to former member nations making their own choices. The resources they lost when the Berlin wall came down and former leaders allowed the Soviet Union to break apart have damaged the ability of the communist party leaders in Russia to maintain their extravagant lifestyles.

Isn’t this the same situation the African Americans experienced after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed? They fought for over a hundred years to gain the freedoms and rights of other American citizens. The Black Lives Matter movement claims that the racism that exists in the U.S. comes from our existing laws.

I do not believe that their conclusion is the correct one. George Floyd was killed by one man. He was a police officer who violated the rules that are supposed to protect all citizens from excessive force by law enforcement. We hear of these cases from time to time between not only police but individual citizens or even military or other officials against each other and civilians. A few of these reports are picked up by the media because of the racism that is assumed to be involved.

Another ongoing story of blatant bigotry is being played out in our country. One man verbally promised to show racial favoritism should the opportunity arise. That chance has been given to him and he is following through on his pledge.

President Joe Biden nominated Ketanji Brown Jackson to replace Stephen Breyer as Associate Supreme Court Justice. He stated that he would nominate a black woman to this body if he was elected president. I agree with him that the Supreme Court should be more racially and gender-specific in its makeup. I disagree with his method.

I am not saying that his nomination is systemic racism. I am saying that we allow individuals to make decisions based on race and gender in a process that is legal under our laws. There is no statute that says that the President of the United States cannot choose whomever he wishes for this position.

If he had promised the next nominee for this position would be a white man, that would be considered biased. Why are we accepting his refusal to consider any candidate who was not African American and female as acceptable when we have Americans of all genders, races, and backgrounds protesting for equal treatment for all people?

We as freedom and equality-loving human beings want Putin to stop his war against Ukraine based on his soviet prejudice against a free nation. We also want every American with the experience and qualifications to be able to fill a position on the highest court in the land.

The question is “Did the president look at all of the Federal Justices in the same light when he chose Justice Jackson?” She is undoubtedly qualified to be on this august body. Did everyone else get the same consideration? What about the lighter-skinned African American women Federal Judges?

Can you still kick the can?

July 15, 2022

In 1962 an episode of the Twilight Zone was entitled “Kick the Can”. It is the story of a group of old people who live in what was called a nursing home. Sixty years later we need to look at this story and remember what Rod Serling was trying to tell eight-year-old boys like me.

Charles and Ben have been life-long friends and are now roommates at Sunnyvale. Charles has decided that he is not as old as everyone thinks he is. While watching some kids playing in the street, he begins to believe that he only started to age when he quit playing games like hide and seek and kick the can.ch for kicking the can. It was always a game I played by myself when no one else was around. I preferred to sit under a tree with a book when I could. My first love was Cowboy Sam and as I became able to read more advanced literature I read “Podkayne of Mars” by Robert Heinlein. That was my introduction to Science Fiction.

My dad never allowed me to watch Twilight Zone or other Sci-Fi Shows. I watched them in reruns while in college. My brother bought a TV for our room, and we could watch anything we wanted. The late show was my friend.

Science fiction, including The Twilight Zone, deals with possibilities. That is what Charles was talking about. Is it possible that man’s thinking about aging was wrong? Today we have phrases like, “you’re only as old as you feel,” and “think young, act young, be young.” This episode of the show deals with our constant desire to stay young.

When what is now called America was first discovered by the Europeans, they wondered at the longevity of the natives of certain areas in south and central America. Rumors of a fountain of youth were frequently told. These stories were taken back, and more money was spent for further exploration.

In this story the idea of regaining youth is simple. After being separated from the others because he is called senile, he decides to make a break at night. Some of the others from the home go outside with him. Ben does not want any part of trying to become younger. The end of the show leads us to believe that Charlie was correct in his thinking.

What makes you feel younger? My grandchildren both make me younger and wear me out at the same time. What we eat can help us stay healthy and act younger. Proper exercise and healthy living practices can also extend our years.

The point made by Rod Serling is that we can make our years worse by simply thinking older. Think younger and be younger. Play can help us feel better. Take time for fun.

The class of 1972 had its dreams.

July 14, 2022

Do you remember the Statler Brothers’ song “The Class of Fifty-Seven”? I’m from the class that has celebrated our fiftieth reunion this year. I also have two grandsons in the class of 2022. Fifty years is half of a century. That is a long time.

Things get complicated when you get past nineteen. But you and your class had your dreams. Stop for a minute or two and remember those dreams. My dream was to become a journalist. I am now a columnist. I’ve not worked as a reporter.

Many of my classmates had dreams of becoming mothers or fathers and raising another generation of decent human beings. At our reunion in June, I visited with many of these classmates and talked about their children and grandchildren. These dreams seem to have been fulfilled.

A few of our class members joined the military and I have not discovered any that died during their military careers. We did lose over forty in the last fifty years. The toughest were the ones that had passed before we even had our ten-year reunion.

I don’t have a count of the number of my classmates that are in ministry. I am sure of at least six and probably more that I am not aware of. Some are retired and others have gone home. Others are just now accepting the call to something beyond themselves.

I spoke with many of these graduates and reconnected with old friends and some that I never knew in High School. We saw improvements that have been made to the building. We heard of other details of construction that should be completed this year.

Almost all of us are retired or will be joining those ranks in the next few years. At least one is starting a new career as a servant of Greene County. He is running for an office and is unopposed. We have decided to start new careers or projects. All are embracing being grandparents and like my mother believe grandkids are so great, that we should have had them first.

Some of us have reached our goals and have created new ones. Life may continue for some of us to see another thirty or forty years. We still have time to accomplish our dreams. I wish to lead as many to Christ as I can before I enjoy my life with my Heavenly Father.

That is the goal I have had for almost fifty years now. I write to educate and to encourage. We must become the followers of Christ to accomplish the dream of reaching as many as we can for the Kingdom. I hope you have joined this dream.

EMPLOYEE RETENTION

July 13, 2022

One of the greatest problems in the business world today is keeping qualified and trained employees. This is not restricted to any industry or type of business. It affects Food service, retail, wholesale, manufacturing, banking, and other service companies. Before proceeding with this discussion, some terms need to be identified and parameters put in place.

An employee is someone who works for you. For the purposes of this discussion, this includes hourly, salaried, commissioned, and contract-type workers. Anyone that receives money from you or your company for products or services. Admit that it costs money to retrain every person that works for you. Even if you will not acknowledge this point, it does.

Qualified workers are those that will come to work, spend the full business day concentrating on your business, not their own, and not complain about everything that a customer or fellow employee does or says. They are qualified to be productive and efficient and not waste time and money.

Training costs money. The fast-food worker who fries the hamburgers has to be trained. It may not take as much time and money as the machinist or the surgeon, but training is still needed. Constantly replacing and training workers is an expense that cannot be eliminated. However, it can often be reduced by keeping good people.

The main criteria for employee wages are, how much are they worth to you? Many times, this is not determined when they approach you about leaving your company. They have an offer from another firm and the pay is more to start than you currently provide them. You should rarely have this kind of conversation with the people that you desire to retain. I only left a company because they did not treat me properly. Those were not financial concerns. Only those that do not operate to your high standards should be looking or considering leaving.

What are some of the questions that need to be asked to determine what an employee is worth to your business? Management or ownership may forget some of these factors.

What is the total cost to the company for this employee? Wage, training, benefits, and other standard costs are often all that are thought of. What about the cost associated with lost time, accidents, sick days, theft, and other intangibles that may be difficult to count?

Can this employee do more than he or she is currently responsible for? When a worker is responsible for little, they may appear not to be worth as much as they could be. What if this person was given the opportunity to be a lead worker, supervisor, or manager? This can often be determined by trying them before promoting them.

My first position as a purchasing agent was on a six-month trial basis. My pay was not increased, and I was told I would receive an increase after the six-month period. I agreed to this. At the end of six months, the owner of the company that had made the agreement with me told me I would be given a pay raise as usual on my employment anniversary. I left there four weeks later for another purchasing agent position. I was with that company for twenty-five years.

This brings up the question, how much would my competition pay to get this person? I later met my old boss and his current Purchasing Agent. I had hired and trained that man.

Does this employee have training or knowledge that would be difficult or impossible to find in others?

Is there a way that raises and increases in benefits can be tied to increasing productivity? This is done in sales and other professions. Can you use it for office employees or other staff that normally do not receive incentive-based wages?

Are there values gained by working at your company that is not shown on the check stub? Is your management staff easy to work for and with? Do your workers think of their supervisors and bosses as friends or just the one that is always on them? Are the communication lines wide open? Can complaints and suggestions be made easily?

Remember the company I stayed at for twenty-five years? I began as PA and was promoted to inside sales, office manager, outside sales, and left as operations manager. My boss, the Branch Manager chased off many good people in the twenty years she held that position. I worked with her for twenty years. What would I have been able to accomplish if I had not been forced to leave after she died?

I managed people, documents, departments, and even branches. Over the decades I was chased away and terminated by many poor managers and owners. I asked for pay increases when they were promised and not given, and never threatened to leave. When I gave my notice, it was because I had not been treated as I should have been and already had another position.

My experience and talent were well rewarded when I left my long-time employer and returned to purchasing. I began as a buyer. Three months later I was promoted to Purchasing Supervisor. When I retired, my title was Purchasing Manager. I tell people that I have occupied both sides of the purchasing desk.

Answer each of the questions I have asked. Don’t assume that employees are leaving because the pay is low. Avoid the reputation of a company that matches other offers. Avoid rehiring former employees that left you for better pay. They almost always leave again when there is another better offer.

I had one employee that I rehired three different times. He was a hard worker and only wanted to work part-time. We laid him off each time because my boss thought someone else that would work full-time would be better at his job. This was never the case. I’ll talk more about my management philosophy in another column.

How do you pronounce your name?

July 12, 2022

Are you as fortunate as I and have an easy name to pronounce? Or do people sometimes fail to correct it because it is so simple? If you open your eyes and are familiar with the English language. I have been called Kissinger, Kingsinger, even Kaiser. It is of Germanic origin but that is stretching it a little much.

At a speech tournament in High School, I wrote my name on the blackboard for the Judge. I also had my school code and speaker number written there. We used only our last names. My name showed Kensinger. I used the appropriate spacing and only used capital on the first letter. After three preliminary rounds, our speech coach came to me and asked why I had not given my speech in the second round.

Another student from our school had spoken after me and was in the room for my speech. He or she confirmed that I had been in the correct room and gave my speech after the person listed before me. Mrs. Wiggins returned to the counting room and returned with the information that the Judge had recorded my name as Singer on the ballot. When questioned he replied that he thought my first name was Ken.

My Dad and his older brother Raymond worked together for around thirty years. Dad was a truck driver and Raymond was the dock superintendent. When I was in my twenties and working in sales, I called on the company. My Dad had taken disability, but Raymond was still there.

As I was talking to the truck mechanic, I mentioned that Ken was my uncle. I knew this man had been a friend of my Dad. He looked at me and asked who my father was. Raymond also had an older brother. I replied, “Evan”. “I don’t know him” was the reply. When I mentioned Dad had driven one of their trucks for almost thirty years. he looked at me quizzically and said, “Oh, you mean little brother.”

I have had similar problems with my first name. I receive letters for Chas Kensinger from time to time. Chas is an abbreviation for Charles. I prefer to be called Chuck and have used that name since entering college. A new employee at the company I worked for answered the phone and proceeded to tell the person on the line that Charles did not work there. He received an earful from my mother because she did not like my using Chuck. “You do have a Charles there and you call him Chuck which is not his name.” I apologized for her outburst and was told he did not know Chuck was a nickname for Charles.

I met myself while I was working that job. A gentleman named Charles Kinsinger came in and when I wrote up the ticket for the items, he was buying I asked how to spell his last name. He told me and I took out my business card and handed it to him and told him he was the guy that made people spell my name wrong.

If your name is more difficult than Jones or Smith, I sympathize with you. The more syllables the more difficult it is to spell and pronounce.

THE STAPLER

July 8, 2022

If you have seen the movie “Office Space” and you know the character Milton Waddams and have seen photos of me, the humor in this will not be missed. If you do not have these three elements, do not read further. Stop and find photos of me on Facebook or elsewhere and go to IMDB and look up the movie and character. Only then will this story become funny.

After I had started at Positronic Industries in the Purchasing Department comments began to be made about me that I did not understand. I was asked if my stapler was missing and from time to time it would disappear. I would be jokingly told that I was being moved downstairs to a different office. I took all of this in stride and knew the joke was on me because I did not understand what the joke was.

One day Gary, the Purchasing Manager, my boss, caught me in the central purchasing office and presented me with a red Swingline stapler. The rest of the department broke out in hysterical laughter. I smiled and thanked him. Once again I was the butt of the joke and did not know why. I put my black stapler in my desk drawer for a spare and put the red one in its rightful place.

It disappeared almost immediately. Every few days it would reappear through no effort on my part only to disappear later. Each time the red would be filched I would retrieve the black from my drawer. With the return of the red, the black would hide again.

The mystery was revealed when a co-worker from another department noted my red stapler and that it was a Swingline. She asked where I had gotten it and when I told the story of its presentation to me, laughter filled the plant. Cautiously looking around she leaned across my desk and told me about Milton Waddams in the movie “Office Space”. When she asked if I had seen it, my answer was no. After promising to get the movie and watch it she left still laughing and went next door to talk to Gary. More laughter came from his office.

That weekend I found a copy of the movie at a video rental and watched it. I was not especially pleased with being compared to Milton. He comes off as whiney and the type that can easily be abused. I did see the physical resemblance. The character traits of Milton did not appear to be those of myself. Until the end of the movie.

If you have not seen the movie yet, I don’t want to spoil it for you. All I will say is that I looked at this character in a new light after the end of the movie. When my red Swingline Stapler would disappear, I would announce to the entire office that it was missing and ask if anyone smelled smoke.

When I left that company, Gary made sure I took my stapler with me. Here it is in front of me on my desk in my office at home. No buildings were burned when I left.

Are you a reader?

July 5, 2022

For those who know me personally, you are aware that I am an avid reader. My Goodreads account shows the number of books I have read for five years. I joined that online group in 2017 and read ten books. My goal was three volumes per month. I was working and failed to meet my goal. In 2018 I had no goal. In 2019 I set my goal at twelve. Because I retired in the spring, by the end of the year, I completed 26. I doubled that amount the next year for my goal and finished 76. Last year I set the amount I wanted to read at 100. I surpassed that number. This year my goal is again 100.

Next year I will set my sights on publishing my own books. I have five that I am currently writing. One is finished and has been published on Facebook in small sections. My goal is to complete a shorter volume to publish on Amazon followed by the first one which is my memoir. By this time next year, I hope to have at least four books on Amazon and other e-book sites. These will all be self-published.

I am not sure which ones will be ready. I have no problems with writer’s block. As I am working on a manuscript, if I have a block I jump to another idea. That explains the number in process.

Are you a writer? Or are you content with reading what others create? My desire to write began in junior high school. While my lifework changed from writing in college, I have maintained that desire to record thoughts and feelings. Much of what came from my pen was used in classes I have taught at church.

I was laid off during the downturn in 2009. As I looked for a new job, I discovered a new website called Examiner.com. They were looking for writers. I applied and began writing columns for them. After a few years, they went out of business. My desire to write had been energized. Some of those articles were the basis for Doulos, my memoir.

I created this website to replace that means of sharing my work. I want to continue with the process. My books are something I desire to contribute to the reading public. If you are not a reader but just a scanner, you may not consider what writers produce as worth investing in. For those of you who are writers or wish to share your own stories, some of the things I will be publishing will be techniques for improving your ability to pass on your knowledge, stories, and creations.

I enjoy a good story. Whether I am reading, writing, or sharing it. Subscribe to this page and you will be e-mailed as each new article is posted. Be watching for my premium content which will cost you a little. The annual subscription will increase as the content multiplies. This will enable you to watch as my books are written and prepared for publication. Thanks for your support.

Walk With a Servant