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I saw this headline on a social media platform today: Podcast Host Calls White Evangelical Christianity a Cancer – And I could not believe how badly they misspelled the word blessing. I mean, cancer doesn’t even remotely look like blessing. So how could they mix those words up so badly?

Because I’m sure they meant to say white evangelical Christianity is a blessing.

At least if they really wanted to share the truth. But I know that’s a rare commodity in journalism these days. So, now that I think about it a little bit more, maybe they actually meant to write the word cancer.

No. Could that possibly be it?!

But could someone actually study the overwhelmingly positive influence of white, evangelical Christianity and actually come up with this illogical, incorrect conclusion? Absolutely they could. Because people who hate God, the one true, living, loving creator of the universe God, will say anything against Him and His followers.

Jesus said that would happen, by the way.

So, if you’re a Christian, and the color of your skin is what the world call white (even though it isn’t), and you share the truth of God’s word and the power of God’s love, you might as well face it. You, my friend, are a cancer in this world.

But never worry, never fear. Your buddy Tony is here. And here are some white evangelical Christianity lyrics to help you deal with it:

In This World But Not Of It

I’m in this world but not of it.
I like this life but don’t love it.
My Savior rises above it.
I’m in this world but not of it.

This world can beat me up.
But this world is not my home.
I have a finer place where I will forever roam.
This world’s no easy street.
This world is not so nice.
It costs a lot to leave,
But my Father paid the price.

So…Chorus

This world has lots of love,
But this world is filled with hate.
One day it won’t be so,
And so I can hardly wait.

This world has moans and groans.
This world has aches and pain,
But soon even this shall pass,
Jesus the King will reign.

Chorus…inst…chorus 3 times    © TF 2008

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I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. Spend your time reading, listening, and watching good stuff based on the power of God’s love instead of looking for it. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to music and The Very First 6 Days (a rhyming book for kids about the creation week) right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies. Just add your email to the form and let’s connect right away.

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Tony Funderburk Posted on by

Here’s a misdemeanor definition from the dictionary on my computer: a nonindictable offense, regarded in the US (and formerly in the UK) as less serious than a felony. A nonindictable offense is one where lawyers and law-enforcement don’t “formally accuse of or charge with a serious crime.” And just to clarify a little bit more, here’s a definition of the word felony from that same dictionary: a crime, typically one involving violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or by death.

So, I hope that helps you understand the two main different levels of crime.

And that misdemeanor definition doesn’t say that it isn’t a crime.

OK, now that I’ve cleared that up, let’s all go enjoy our day. Shall we?

Hang on a sec…

I brought that up for a reason. Now, if I could just remember what it was.

Oh yeah, misdemeanor criminals don’t tend to think they’re criminals. And I could’ve ended that last sentence after the word think. Because they don’t tend to. Not with their actual brain anyway.

And that reminds me of why I brought this up. You might’ve seen or heard or read the news story about a group of criminals who interrupted a church service to protest the pastor. Yes? In case you aren’t familiar with that story, the group included former CNN personality (and homosexual), Don Lemon.

And there’s a video circulating that shows “Mr.” Lemon as a man on the street explaining to passers by how a misdemeanor is not a crime. In fact, he shared his misdemeanor definition with a couple of those people who actually, without really even trying, cornered him with the truth.

One guy, off camera, explained how there’s different levels of crime, and that a misdemeanor is still a crime. And Don show how incredibly stupid he is by continuing to say that people who come across the border illegally don’t commit a crime. They only commit a misdemeanor.

And I thought the lady, he spoke to on camera, made a great point when she asked, “Well if a misdemeanor isn’t a crime, then why charge anybody with a misdemeanor?”

You could see the truth churning in Don’s head by the goofy look on his face. But as all leftists do, he continued to attempt to defend his indefensible position. Because he is void of wisdom, and…

He’s just one example among millions of why wisdom is the principal thing.

So kids, if you’re gonna get sent to the principal’s office, make sure it’s the wisdom principal. OK, I realize there’s no such thing as a wisdom principal. But I realize that because I done went and got me some wisdom over the last few decades. Yeah, I’m one of those wackadoos who wasn’t born wise

Thank goodness, I haven’t had to rely only on the education (or should I say information) I received from those government indoctrination camps way back when. And thank goodness I’ve lived in a country with enough freedom to allow me to read God’s word without fear of execution by my government. Who knows how much longer Americans can say that? But I have had that advantage.

And even though my accumulated wisdom is still a drop in the bucket, several decades of living in America have provided me with experience and access to excellent Biblical teaching. Thankfully, that helped me discover and understand much more of what God has done for us all. His sacrificial love is unsurpassed.

And it always will be.

That’s why I say, as often as opportunity permits, that the whole universe runs on the power of God’s love. And knowing that helps me have the wisdom to know the correct misdemeanor definition. It would be a crime of stupidity and willful ignorance to not be able to know. Here’s the little rhyme I share to help remember:

Would you like to live forever
Under bright and blue skies?
Then go get some understanding
In God’s word and be wise.

Now that you know the correct misdemeanor definition, go share the power of God’s love wherever you can today, while it’s still not a felony in America. And before you go…

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I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. Spend your time reading, listening, and watching good stuff based on the power of God’s love instead of looking for it. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to music and The Very First 6 Days (a rhyming book for kids about the creation week) right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies. Just add your email to the form and let’s connect right away.

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You might not believe it. But America was actually debt free one time. It was way back in 1835. And it happened thanks to President Andrew Jackson. He was the first and only president to pay off the national debt completely. One biographer wrote that the former president “viewed debt as a ‘moral failing,’ a sort of black magic.” Tragically, America is now trillions of dollars in debt and congress acts like it’s just the cost of doing business.

But trillions of dollars of debt is actually evil.

Because the root cause is the love of money. Not money. The love of it. So when a government collects trillions of dollars from its citizens, and still manages to run up trillions of dollars of debt, something ain’t right. To say the least.

President Jackson understood how debt enslaves you to your creditors. And he knew that being debt-free helps assure American independence. Thankfully most Americans agreed with him at that time.

There were some who did not agree. And President Jackson had to endure an assassination attempt. I read this account about how that went:

While campaigning against the evils of national debt and central banking, Jackson miraculously survived an assassination attempt when an assassin’s two pistols both misfired. Shadowy interests tied to the central bank were almost certainly behind the effort.

However, Jackson survived and went on to “End the Fed” of his days. He successfully bested the central bank. And the powerful interests behind it, and shut down the Second Bank of the United States.

After that, he also repaid the federal debt in full, which was no easy task.

But he couldn’t do it with an increase in federal income tax. Because it didn’t exist at the time. Matter of fact, it would have been unconstitutional.

These days, the Federal Reserve just prints more currency. But President Jackson couldn’t do that to pay off the debt. He got the money to pay off the debt mostly from. import tariffs and excise taxes. And he did something outlandish. Would you believe he cut federal spending? Yeah, by a lot. And he even vetoed spending bills. Now that’s crazy talk.

Crazy like a fox.

Because it worked. In January 1835, America was debt-free for the first time. And only time. But since too many people have an unquenchable love for money, America was in debt again and only about a year. And it has never been debt-free since then. I bet President Jackson would be appalled at our debt load now. But not surprised.

Because I also bet he understood the Biblical teaching on the love of money.

Most people, today, hear the phrase, trillions of dollars, And don’t really have a clear idea of how much that is. I saw this interesting breakdown:

Suppose you had a job that paid you $1 per second, or $3,600 per hour.

That amounts to $86,400 per day and about $32 million per year.

With that job, it would take you 31.5 years to earn a billion dollars.

With that job, it would take you over 31,688 YEARS to earn a trillion dollars.

Now, multiply that by however many trillions our national debt adds up to, some say up to 30 trillion, and you can see what an evil thing it is. Because it enslaves every man woman and child in America for who knows how long. There are only a couple of ways out of it. But I don’t see politicians willing to go in those directions at all.

Even if you earned one dollar every second, it would take you over 1 million years to pay off America’s debt. And that’s if it never got any bigger. And hopefully you can see that wouldn’t be very likely.

Yeah, I read this little factoid that backs that up:

The US federal government has the largest debt in the history of the world. And it’s continuing to grow at a rapid, unstoppable pace.

There is a such thing as debt forgiveness. But that’s almost definitely never gonna happen in this evil world. And we probably can’t count on Congress or the president to do the right thing. So I sure hope there’s another solution somewhere. Don’t you?

Oh wait. I just remembered….

Our God Is LPRGL

The world is…obsessed with death and dying.
They’re drowning…in bitterness and crying.
It’s such an awful shame.
They could call upon the name of Jesus.
As followers we say
We know He’s the only Way that frees us
From the sins we hide deep inside. They… can’t please us.

Our bodies…become the dust that scatters.
If that’s it…then nothing really matters.
We may as well give in
When we feel the world begin to seize us.
Who needs all that guilt and blame
You get calling on the name of Jesus?
But it’s not like that. It’s a fact…Jesus sees us.

He’s living and He’s life…He’s personal to talk to…
Relational with every son and daughter.
He’s good and so much more…. He’s loving to the core…
Jesus is the Living Water.
And each time a soul is saved all the angels above sing….
Our God is living, personal, relational, good… and loving.

Our souls know. infinity is calling.
But temptation…can keep our spirits falling.
So we need to fix our eyes
On the true eternal prize of Jesus.
When we stand before the throne,
He knows our lives, alone, won’t appease us.
No, we need the blood of the lamb…we need Jesus.    © 2008 TF

Get Tony’s Daily Devotional delivered to your inbox for free. I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. Spend your time reading, listening, and watching good stuff based on the power of God’s love instead of looking for it. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to music and The Very First 6 Days (a rhyming book for kids about the creation week) right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies. Just add your email to the form and let’s connect right away.

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Last Sunday, Elgielene and I spent some time with my brother. And he told a story about a trip he took to Alaska. And his eyes lit up when he mentioned the boat ride through the blue water of the “inside passage” en route to his destination. Because he saw all sorts of wildlife and marine life, including whales, all sorts of birds, and more.

You won’t find a big blue whale there.

But, according to a travel website, “the Inside Passage winds through fjords, glaciers, and islands along Alaska’s southeast coast. It’s one of the most scenic cruise itineraries in the world. And if you’re lucky, you’ll have humpback whales as your traveling companions.”

So, here’s my guess. Visitors who see the humpback whales probably won’t be disappointed that they didn’t see a big blue whale. Because once you’re up close to a sea creature that big, the largest creature on our planet, I’m sure you’re satisfied with whatever version you get. I know I would be.

Anyway…

My brother wrote a song called Inside Passage. It’s an instrumental, and I don’t have access to it. But his memories and the fact that I’m in the middle of Friday vibes as I write, this brought back my own memories of a song I wrote about island life. Here are the lyrics. And if you’re reading this on Friday, have yourself a big, blue whale of a weekend where each day is an…

Island Day

Over in the mango tree
Toucan looking straight at me
Starfish in the ocean waves
Dolphin, laughin’, misbehaves

Oh, oh, oh, it’s an island day
Oh, oh, oh sail your cares away
Oh, oh, oh, cross the seven seas
Oh, oh, oh, on a clear cool Breeze

Parrot is a private eye
Big Blue whale don’t tell no lie
Swordfish out there watching you
Wonders what you’re gonna do

Chorus

If you want to roam,
Just bring a little note from home.
We’ll chase the rising sun
Never will the fun be done…

King crab with his mighty claw
Claims that he’s from Panama
And he invites Electric eel
On a quick trip to Brazil.   © 2008 TF

Get Tony’s Daily Devotional delivered to your inbox for free. I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. Spend your time enjoying the entertaining words and music I share instead of looking for them. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to books and music, right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies. Just add your email to the form and let’s connect right away.

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Computing at the speed of light, but is it good? And is it right? Well, to jump on this topic,  here’s a little information I read and saw in a video clip. It said:

We’ve hit a wall with silicon chips. Electrons can only move so fast and that’s what limits how quickly today’s GPUs can train AI.

So researchers are building optical neural networks processors that compute using light, not electricity. They replace transistors with photonic circuits made of waveguides, mirrors, and modulators. When beams of light intersect, they perform calculations…addition, multiplication literally as light waves interfere.

But how can light actually do math? Each laser pulse represents a number. When two pulses overlap, their amplitudes combine the foundation of matrix multiplication in neural nets.

Companies are already building these chips that can train AI a thousand times faster with a fraction of the power.

So, computing at the speed of light certainly sounds doable.

Because using a fraction of the power makes sense. But for the purpose of training, so-called AI, I think is small minded, actually. Which is ironic, of course, since so-called AI is supposed to be all about big minded stuff rounded up and delivered up to your computer screen super fast.

But here’s the thing. Regardless of how fast so-called AI is, it’s still man-made technology. And that means it still infinitely pales in comparison to the one true living, loving God of creation.

I know those who don’t believe or trust in God, especially when you mention Him using the name, Jesus, just had a huge eyeroll moment. But so what? I couldn’t care less. Because if it wasn’t for Jesus, there wouldn’t be any eyes to roll anywhere.

OK, here’s the reason I brought any of this up today.

because it feels like (and I say feels like for a reason) the culmination and curation of knowledge is reaching a reckoning point. I don’t know if that’s equivalent to what Paul called “the fullness of the Gentiles.” But I won’t say it isn’t. Because it feels like a digital version of the Tower of Babel.

And if you’re familiar with that part of history in the Bible, you know that didn’t end well for humans. Because God knows how despicable we can be individually. So He also knows how exponentially more despicable we would be as a unit.

Anyway…

When I read or listen to technology information like this, I still don’t worry or fear. Because God says, don’t do those things. And I have enough faith in Him to know that if He says do not worry and do not fear, then I shouldn’t. Because I trust that He has my best interest and health in mind.

But maybe that’s just me.

Maybe you just can’t bring yourself to trust God that much. And maybe you’re gonna find something to worry about or fear regardless of what God’s word says. If so, I hope you at least keep it to yourself and don’t mess up someone else’s day with your fears and worries.

At least care about your loved ones that much. Because remember, your worry and fear comes from YOU. Not God.

As for me, I choose to smile, trust God, and keep my…

Faith Over Fear

Faith over fear,
Like a rainbow, landed here
As I navigated through the stormy skies.
I could feel eternal love
From the One, so far above,
Who created such a painting for my eyes.

Get Tony’s Daily Devotional delivered to your inbox for free. I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. Spend your time enjoying the entertaining flashes of light instead of looking for them. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to books and music, right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies. Just add your email to the form and let’s connect right away.

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This is something I share on January 7th of each year. Because that’s the day that marks the anniversary of the birth of the woman who birthed me. It’s a short story, and I hope you enjoy it.

1938. It was a cold day in January. In rural Oklahoma. FDR was in the first year of his second term as president of the U.S. And a second daughter was born to a young couple named Lee and Syona. But it was also a time when America was still struggling to recover from the Great Depression. So, when the little family was ready to travel, they piled into their sedan and headed west to California.

The cold day in Oklahoma turned to west coast warm.

And the young couple went to work, as countless other migrant workers did, picking produce and fruit from the fertile California farms and orchards.

But times were tough.

And even the Golden State didn’t provide enough work and wages for Lee and Syona to take “proper care” of their two daughters.

So, they sent Donette, the oldest, and Doris, who was 2 years younger, back to Oklahoma to stay with their maternal grandparents. And Poodle and Poppy, as the kids called the old couple, were happy to take them in to their home “on the farm.”

There would be multiple trips back and forth between parents and grandparents. And there would be hardships far beyond what many Americans would call hardships these days.

Hunger from sometimes only one meal a day. Worn out clothes. Barefoot walks to school because there wasn’t enough money for shoes. And every day life in shantytowns.

But, as life often turns out, the young sisters made it through those hard times. With the loving help of Poodle and Poppy. But both girls yearned to venture out on their own. And, while they were still kids (young teens) themselves, they both married and started having children of their own.

(You might be thinking, “What’s this got to do with the happiest birthday?”)

OK, from this point on, the story will focus on Doris.

She married a young man named Dwight who attended the same school as her in Norman, Oklahoma. And, before long, they had two boys. They were the typical young couple adding to the baby boomer population. But their own youthful inexperience proved too much of a hurdle. And they divorced, after only 4 years.

So, on another cold day, Doris started looking for her next step.

After some bumps and stumbles, she found and married a young man named Bill. And after a stint in the Army, Bill went to work for General Motors in the Kansas City area. He and Doris also had two kids. A girl and then a boy. Plus, the two boys from Doris’ first marriage would join the four of them each summer.

And that life went on for several years until the two older boys had graduated high school and left to start their own lives. Sadly, Bill and Doris began to drift apart till one day they also divorced. They worked out the details for the care of their two younger kids. And they went their separate ways.

Once again Doris faced a “cold day” on her own.

I’d like to tell you her life rebounded onward and upward like a comeback story in an old Hollywood movie. But, for years, quite the opposite was true. And I won’t dwell on the dreary details. Just know that there were considerable obstacles for her to overcome. Some she created with her own choices. And others were thrust upon her.

After a couple more seriously broken dreams, Doris trained for restaurant management. And she worked her way through Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Kansas. Either as a manager or assistant manager for restaurants like Village Inn and Sambo’s.

Usually it was to be near one or more of her kids and grandkids.

After years in the restaurant business, Doris became a dispatcher for a transportation company based in the Kansas City area. And she lived and worked there until she retired and moved into her tiny, one bedroom apartment in the small community of Gardner, Kansas.

And she remained in Gardner until late in 2020.

Her health declined for several years leading up to that time. And, on a walk from her bedroom to the living room, she fell, injured her head, and required several stitches.

She bounced back somewhat, but dealt with more frequent bouts of headaches and dizziness.

Then, on January 8th of 2021, one day after her 83rd birthday, Doris suffered a stroke. And her health and stamina began to slowly deteriorate until she died in her sleep in her daughter’s home.

She is survived by her four kids, 10 grandkids, 6 great-grandkids, and 4 great-great-grandkids.

And her story is something I share with you because she was my Mom. She died February 11, 2021. And today would have been her 88th birthday here on Earth. But she’s in Heaven. And that’s why I say it’s her happiest birthday ever.

Dorsie, as she was affectionately called by family and friends, will be remembered as a Mom, Memaw, Great-grandma, sister, aunt, and friend who always finished her good-byes with “I love you.”

And we all love you, too.
Your gracious love shone through
The darkest days, like songs of praise,
To those you loved and knew.

Get Tony’s Daily Devotional delivered to your inbox for free. I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. Spend your time enjoying the entertaining flashes of light instead of looking for them. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to books and music, right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies. Just add your email to the form and let’s connect right away.

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Happy new year 2026. Yep, this is the last day of 2025. And this year will never, never, ever, ever happen again.

I’m sure I’m not the first to say happy new year 2026 to you.

Especially since most people who read this will do so after the new year has already begun. But I didn’t want to miss an opportunity to tell wish you a blessed and safe year.

I pray that this year many people will come to know, understand, and trust their Creator. And I have faith that no matter what challenges we face in 2026, we still can always lean on the One who overcame the world. Because we’re told by God that He gave us a “spirit of power and love and a sound mind.” So, since fear doesn’t come from God, so don’t let it have any room in your life.

When you say “happy new year 2026”, remember it’s a year you’re talking about. Not just a moment. Each year is connected to the one before it and the one after. Time keeps moving on. And you don’t have to be defined by the tiny moments, the tiny glimpses of your life. Identify yourself with the One who created you and knows the number of the hairs on your head.

Always remember, when you’re a child of the one, true, living God, you’re bound for an eternal life of freedom.

That beats anything your government, your country, or this world can ever offer.

OK, happy new year 2026, ya’ll.

And cheers to infinity and beyond.

So, think of the life you’ll live,
Of the smiles you’ll give,
And remember love to all you know.
For years come and go so fast,
Present fades to past
All that’s left is pastel afterglow. (excerpt from Laughter and Love)

Get Tony’s Daily Devotional delivered to your inbox for free. I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. Spend your time enjoying the entertaining flashes of light instead of looking for them. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to books and music, right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies. Just add your email to the form and let’s connect right away.

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I want to share my Spotify stats, for 2025, with you. Because I want to thank you, if you tune into The Power of God’s Love podcast. Because you helped my podcast, do these things:

  • 575% total audience increase
  • 7% increase in followers
  • 45% increase in listening time
  • Distraction dance while you’re in a trance was the number one podcast episode of 2025
  • The podcast reached 41 countries
  • The top five tuned in countries were the United States, the UK, the Philippines, South Africa, and Australia
  • My podcast is a top 10 show for 15 fans
  • A top five show for 11 fans
  • And the number one show for three fans

And of all the Spotify stats, I think this might be my favorite…

My podcast outpaced 96% of all the other shows on Spotify. And I have to add that. I don’t do anything at all to focus on Spotify. Because I’m actually not a fan of that platform. But The Power of God’s Love podcast is syndicated to a whole lotta platforms, and that includes some I don’t even pay attention to.

Anyway…

Thank you so much, if you’re a listener. But also a great big 2025 year end thank you to all my readers. Because, according to numbers provided to me by Google, visits to and views of tonyfunderburk.com increased exponentially in the past year. I’d like to think it’s because people appreciate how I show that the power of God’s love isn’t just about a group hug or a superficial kumbaya.

Yeah, I’ve shown how the power of God’s love created the whole universe. And it provided a world we can live in that’s perfectly designed for an enjoyable existence. Fresh air, plenty of water, too many tasty foods to even name, and an ecosystem set up to function in a way we continue to learn from.

But above all the things we can be thankful for is how the power of God’s love made THE way for us to live with him forever in spite of the fact that we deserve infinitely worse. And that way is Jesus.

And it certainly took the power of God’s love to do what He did for us.

He’s the only one, the only way anyone on earth has any hope beyond this life.

Hopefully these most recent Spotify stats and Google Numbers reflect that I’ve connected with an audience who isn’t offended by this “exclusive” message.

Whatever the reason, I’m grateful and blessed to be a servant to the one true, living, loving Creator. The one described in this song that’s not a song…

All Of Creation

All of creation points to the Savior.
We are all here by design.
All the environment and complex behavior…
The Glory of God makes it shine.

All of creation holds information…
Encoded within every cell,
All of the best minds in each generation
Won’t banish what Christians know well.

That…

(Chorus)

All of creation is here by the Word of God.
And all of creation mirrors His mind.
All of creation is saved by the Love of God
All of creation…Jesus defined.   © 2016 TF

Get Tony’s Daily Devotional delivered to your inbox for free. I share it with believers who want to focus on the power of God’s love and rightly divide the word of truth. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to books and music, when you add your email to the form to connect right away.

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I did a quick search for a definition or description of an autistic savant. And here’s something I found:

~ An autistic savant is an individual with autism who possesses extraordinary skills or talents in specific areas, such as music, art, mathematics, or memory, while also experiencing challenges in other areas of functioning. This phenomenon highlights the unique abilities that can coexist with autism, although not all individuals with autism have savant skills. ~

So, no, I’m not an autistic savant.

And I don’t even play one on YouTube. So you can just keep your snarky remarky to yourself. But I watched a heartwarming video, a few days ago, about a young boy who’s autistic but can do something very amazing.

He chirps.

OK, that’s not exactly the best way to put it. Actually, he’s only 11 years old, and he can perfectly imitate the sounds of about 50 different birds. The video I watched showed young Samuel standing at the boundary of the school play yard practicing his bird imitations. And if you didn’t see him making the sounds, you would absolutely believe you were listening to the birds.

The reporter who shared the story mentioned how Samuel’s bird sounds went largely unnoticed by the other school kids. And they mostly avoided him. Until something happened that turned it all around for the Bird boy of Choctaw, Oklahoma.

The school put on the talent show, and Samuel actually wanted to compete. But you know how school talent shows are. Mostly singing, dancing, band instruments, piano playing. That kind of stuff.

Certainly not bird chirping.

Samuel’s mom was nervous that maybe some of the kids would make fun of him. But his teacher convinced her that he should do it. So mom encouraged him to go ahead. And when his turn arrived, during the talent show, he nonchalantly got on stage and did his stuff.

The rest of the kids in the audience didn’t know what to think at first. Samuel reached into a paper bag and grabbed different stuffed birds, and then made their sounds in the microphone. After only a couple of imitations kids started to clap their hands and eventually even cheered.

One girl said, “It sounded exactly like there was birds in the room.”

Another boy said, “Exactly like the real thing.”

Several other kids mentioned how brave and talented they thought he was.

And these days Samuel is kind of a rockstar on the playground. He shows the other kids how to make bird sounds. And they seem to like hanging out with this bird boy TV star.

I love stories like that.

Because they show a glimpse behind the veil of our human brains. Brains that were designed from the power of God’s love. And even though our sin caused us to be able to use only about a fraction of what God wants for us, a story like this shows what should be possible. And what WILL be possible for those of us who love Jesus and want to live with him forever.

Work of Art

Nobody looked through the crystal blue sky
And ever saw a single frozen word.
But there were songs and a story up high
And they were sung by a little blue bird.

The little bird with its feathers of blue
Sang all the notes that ever could be sung.
And every note was fastened to the sky,
And from each one bright, silver words were hung.

Now lie real still on the darkest of nights
And listen close with the ears in your heart.
You’re bound to hear, when your story is sung,
The little blue bird who sings every word
And tells the whole world you’re a work of art.  © 2022 TF

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Of course, I don’t know what your preferences are or your taste in design. But I’m pretty confident you’d have to agree there’s nothing quite like neon trees.

What’s that? You’ve never seen neon trees?

Oh Matilda, say it ain’t so. Because, especially around this time of year, neon trees are almost everywhere. Not so much here along the Emerald Coast but certainly in many other places around America. From the Smoky Mountains to New England, from the Ozarks to the Rocky Mountains, and from the great Southwest to the vast Northwest. Beautiful neon blowing in the breezes.

OK, by now (or even sooner) you probably figured out I’m talking about autumn art as the leaves change from different shades of green to the bright, fiery colors of fall. I hope you make time to get outside check out the change. Because not only is it a blast, but it’s just plain good for you. It’s a great way to reinforce and reinvigorate your brain to remember how it’s all part of God’s design and intentions.

In His bestselling book of all time, God inspired Moses to write:

“While the earth remains,
Seedtime and harvest,
Cold and heat,
Winter and summer,
And day and night
Shall not cease.”

That should bring you comfort, if you need comforting, that this planet isn’t gonna be destroyed by so-called climate change or whatever other knucklehead scheme they come up with. God’s word and His promises always bring me comfort. And I believe he indirectly inspired me to write about neon trees.

Well, maybe not neon trees specifically. But I do believe He gave me a creative mind that I can use to write rhymes like the following two. They were written years apart. And I didn’t realize how connected they would be until this morning. As I read the words out loud to myself I get the same visual I did when I wrote these…

Singing silent solo songs…
Looking up redeems the poorest.
Don’t doubt where belief belongs.
Threaded through the days of living
Light librettos linger low
Thankful to be sources giving
Blue, green, orange, red, and yellow. © 2022 TF

AND…

Walking in the woods of wonder…
Leaping off a limb of lights…
Slipping down a secret scots pine…
Kiwi trees are flying kites.

All around are dancing aspens…
With their white and wondrous wings…
Bristling branches and sweet breezes…
Where a speckled sparrow sings.

Rainbow redwoods rake the blue sky…
Mystic music mingles in…
Dragons drift by in their dreamboats…
Lemon larkspurs live within.

Walking in the woods of wonder…
Thinking thoughts of thrilling things…
Life’s a lilac filled with lightning…
We’re all wearing water wings.  © 2013 TF

I hope you get inspired in some way to use your creativity and express your delight in God’s design.

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