News

Oh look, Chicken Thursday.

I want to thank everyone for your kind and caring words after I shared the news of my dear friend's passing. I did not fly back home for his service, but did deliver his eulogy via video. I hope to have that ready to share as I collect the other parts of his service and edit them together.

I also want to thank you all for your fun replies to the "Birds Aren't Real?" video I shared 2 weeks ago. Yes, of course it was satire - though at the same time it isn't any crazier than some of the conspiracy theories out there that people are actually believing and allowing to shape their lives!

Enjoy the rest of today's mailing.

~ Pastor Tim

Sunday greetings everyone!

Today's news is going to be a bit disjointed because I am too. So, I'm just going to let things tumble out and I think I'll get to where I'm going anyway.

First of all, I want you to know that I try not to make the Cybersalt News section really heavy. I know the each week different of you Cybersaltines are going through hard times and seasons in life, so my goal  for this newsletter is that it be a "pick me up."

With that in mind, if this is a hard time or season for you - especially if you have lost someone to COVID - and you do need a pick me up, I encourage you to skip this news today. I don't mind at all and completely understand.

There was no mailing last Chicken Thursday because last week my childhood and lifelong friend, Darrell, was on life support. So, I scaled back on my week to make room for self-care.

Once it was clear that Darrell was gone and it was time to take him off the machines, his wife learned that he was an organ donor. This led to a couple of more days on life support while as many matches as possible were made for organ transplants. Once off the machines, Darrell's passing completed after 18 minutes. His lungs, kidneys, and liver are now, hopefully, giving others a new hope for extended life.

It was a very hard week. Grandma Cybersalt and I are OK.

I once sat days with a family from my church as they waited for a liver to become available for transplant for their daughter/sister. One did become available, but sadly she had deteriorated too much to receive it and she died. In another case, a mentor of mine did receive a liver in time and he continues to enjoy life today with his wife, kids, and grandkids. Darrell's being a donor forced me to experience a different side of organ donation. I have many things to share from that side, but I think I'll leave them for another time and maybe another forum.

However, one thing I will speak of now is how gripping it was to realize that somewhere out there a few people were about to receive something life-saving and life-changing that they had been holding out hope for for a very long time. I didn't know where they were, who they were, or what their stories were, but I felt so invested in them. I prayed for them and in my heart I was cheering for them that it would work out well for them.

Along the way I recalled a powerful video I watched a couple of months ago. It was a video I immediately knew I wanted to share with you all, however, I set it aside for a different time because I knew it could be very sad and/devastating for anyone who has lost (or maybe is losing) someone to COVID. It's a video of a transplant patient taking her first breaths with her new lungs.

I hope and pray my dear friend's passing, and his wife's sacrifice of honouring his wishes and prolonging the agonizing process of losing him, has lead to someone experiencing a new beginning like this woman and her family.

I don't even know how to put into words the possibility that you or I being indicating we want to be organ donors could so the same thing.

Click here to watch the video.

Enjoy the rest of today's mailing!

~ Pastor Tim

Sunday greetings everyone!

I don't want to burst anyone's bubble today - but if I do, I think this is a good bubble to burst. And please note, this time I am going against Grandma Cybersalt's advice and writing this.

I am part of a refugee sponsorship group in our community. We are currently having a silent auction to raise money in anticipation of caring for a refugee family who are cleared to come to Canada as soon as they move up on the travel list. Some of the items being auctioned are the same worthless 1, 5, and 10 billion dollar Zimbabwean bills that you can get through the Be A Billionaire fund raiser here on Cybersalt.

Yesterday, I called one of the successful bidders to let them know they had had won a bill and to make arrangement to drop it off. They were quite excited and said, "I'm a big believer in the 'law of attraction' so this will be good to stare at and maybe attract much more money for sponsoring refugees."

Now, the Law of Attraction is not what many of us observed in our high school days: attractive girls get asked out on more dates. 

No, the Law of Attraction is a New Thought philosophical belief that we have "the ability to attract into our lives whatever we are focusing on." I would try to explain it in more detail but my mind is still a bit fried from trying to wrap it around Qanon. (That's the part when Susan said "Oh, I don't know, honey.") But, basically, the Law of Attraction says you can have what you want if you try hard enough to picture having it."

Now, back to the lady on the phone; I want you to know that I know she was being sweet and kind in her excitement about winning the prize. I get that. I don't think she is a terrible person.

That is why I very kindly pointed out that staring a devaluated currency that could not even buy a loaf of bread before it was decommissioned and abandoned altogether, was not going to attract any real money. I also pointed out that if the Law of Attraction worked, all those starving people focused on food would actually have food by now and would not be hungry.

When you think about it, the idea that simply being hyper-focused on something will bring it to you is a cruel philosophy that makes us each our own god. It gives us a false sense that we are all we need in order to have everything what we want. It also leads to a self-righteous attitude toward others in tough situations, blaming them for the bad things they have in life - or the lack of good things as the case may be. Logically and empirically, it simply cannot be a law or else the poor would be rich, the sick would be healthy, and all high school students would be asked out by their crushes! 

Today's video share is one that our good list friend, Walter Mc. shared with me a few weeks ago. He teaches Spanish to English people (and maybe vice versa) and he said he likes to share this with his students.

Click here to watch the video.

Enjoy the rest of today's mailing!

~ Pastor Tim

Oh look, Chicken Thursday.

I'm a little unsettled, this chicken Thursday. After giving chickens their own special day for years, I just heard that "Birds Aren't Real!"

You can help me through this difficult time by clicking on the following link, watching the video it points to, and letting me know what you think:

Birds Aren't Real?

Enjoy the rest of today's mailing - if you can.

~ Pastor Tim