The Uplifting Word with Rick Patrick

The expression is impossible to mistake. A downward glance. A vacant stare. Eyes with no light. Lips with no smile. A mind consumed with all the things that could go wrong, perhaps mixed with a few of the things that already have.

Motivated by greed, countless people have ruined their lives pursuing get rich quick schemes. Like carnival games at a State Fair, the system is stacked against the fool hoping Lady Luck will reward his gambling at lotteries and casinos. These places can only survive by consistently removing money from your pocket and placing it in their own. This is the recipe for poverty, broken homes, and neglected children.

God treats people with equality and impartiality when it comes to their immutable or unchanging characteristics. In other words, He treats us the same whether we were born male or female, tall or short, with skin that is lighter or darker. Specifically mentioned here are people from every ethnic group on earth.

Two thousand years ago, the time had finally arrived. God saw we were too far apart from each other and from Him. He did not create us to be distant and isolated. He wanted us to be close. Concerning cleanliness, He washed our sins away. Addressing sickness, He healed our diseases. Overcoming poverty, He provided for us.

In the late nineteen eighties, the New York based computer hacking group Masters of Deception engaged in dumpster diving activities to discover passwords and illegally access computer databases. Today cybercrime costs the American economy one hundred billion dollars every year. Although most people would never claim the title, we are all, undoubtedly, masters of deception.

This year, government officials in California have issued guidelines for Thanksgiving. Three households only. Two hours long. Eat outside but go inside to use the restroom. Leave it to 2020 to turn the outhouse into the inhouse! Singing, chanting, and shouting are strongly discouraged. In my family of origin, we might forego the singing and chanting, but shouting was a venerated tradition, though usually directed at athletes on television.