I’m a Facebook Freak

Okay, I admit it. I’m a Facebook freak. I love it. 

Since I joined Facebook I’m more in touch with our daughters and with our grandchildren. I’m better in touch with my siblings who are on Facebook and I’ve learned to know nieces and nephews better and even know what’s happening in their lives. I have somewhere around 95 first cousins, although way too many have gone on to heaven already. (My mom had eleven siblings and dad had six and all except one of Dad’s (a brother) lived to raise their own families). In addition to all these first cousins, all of whom I know and love, I now know my cousins in the second and third generations that I never knew before, but have become their friends on Facebook.

Of course, one reason is that Carol and I have such wonderful families! We are so blessed to have two wonderful daughters, their spouses, and four wonderful grandchildren. We keep in touch so much better through Facebook and added to that, I love being able to email back and forth. This is an amazing time that we live in. I love the information age. I think it’s the best “age” yet!

But we also enjoy our extended families—the Blumenbergs and Aringtons, (my family) and the VanScoiks and Hiatts (Carol’s family). Many of them are on Facebook—and probably many more are on, but we haven’t learned about them, haven't found them and haven’t yet become their “friends”.

I also love families. The family is a creation of God and he liked what he did there so much that he modeled the church after it and made the church just a great big extended family that includes all the “saints” in every state, nation, culture, continent, and every era of time.

I also like that fact that Facebook is a good place for a prayer meeting. I don’t know if Mark Zuckerburg is a praying man, but his Facebook invention now makes it possible for prayer requests, praises, prayers and answers to prayer to skim across the internet almost at the speed of light. I once placed a prayer request on Facebook and had a commitment to pray within two seconds from a niece who lives over a hundred miles away. Thank God for Mark Zuckerberg!

Just yesterday I had a Facebook conversation back and forth with Tammie Tregellas, our Missionary in Malawi. Several months ago, once again through Facebook, I became friends with Emmanuel Masamba, one of our pastors in Malawi, Africa. What an incredible time to be alive!

There are some things I don’t like about Facebook. I don’t like farms, factories and games and if any of you asks me to be involved I just klick on “Hide”. Sorry, but I’m just being honest.  If it was up to me all the Facebook farms, etc. would just disappear. But not the people who farm those farms or run those factories—I still love all of you! I just don’t want to visit your farms, factories, etc., unless they’re real and you’re there to greet me.

I'm Rick Blumenberg . . . and that's My View from Tanner Creek.
:)

A Nod to Heroes We’ve Met

Recently the nation of Chile became the focus of world-wide attention when it was discovered that thirty-three miners who had been trapped a half mile underground by an explosion, were alive. This event and the success of the effort to rescue them caused the word “hero” to be tossed around indiscriminately and I would like to consider the various heroes and heroines involved in this amazing rescue.

Heroes to consider:

-the miners, who stayed strong emotionally, physically and mentally and who helped with their own rescue.

-the world mining community who joined with their cohorts in Brazil to bring together all the knowledge, skill and equipment possible and who worked as an international team to pull it off.

-perhaps even the newsmen and women, who left homes and families to go to Brazil to show and tell the world what was happening.

-certainly the families of the men who never gave up hope and who prayed for their safety.

-But also, the prayer warriors around the world who did not know any of the men or their families, but who, nevertheless, prayed consistently through the many weeks of the rescue effort. They were the unsung heroes and heroines—faithful persons of great faith, from a multitude of church groups and even different religions, who prayed for the miners, their families, the rescuers and all those involved.

But mostly, praise be to God, the greatest Hero of all. Who is present wherever we find ourselves and who is always available when we open our hearts to Him.

I'm Rick Blumenberg . . .and that's My View from Tanner Creek.