The Bible, a Spiritual Gazing Ball

Gazing balls originated in 13th century Venice, Italy.  King Ludwig II of Bavaria, sometimes referred to as Mad King Ludwig, adorned his with lawn Gazing Balls. Thereafter, they became a fixture of European gardens and are associated with Victorian era English gardens in particular.  Today we still see them in yards and gardens all over the world and people still actually enjoy looking into them.

As one looks at a Gazing Ball it is possible to compare that process to our existence in the universe.  The Gazing Ball acts to not only show a reflection of us but, also the things that are around us.  The spherical reflecting surface of the ball creates dramatic distortion but objects around us are in the reflections we see.  We soon learn that changing our position changes the reflections that we see as well as the degree and nature of that distortion.  The time of day as well as weather, season and the entry and exit of various objects in the field of view provide an inexhaustible dynamic of change that is the appeal of the Gazing Ball!

I find it interesting that something that is essentially unchanging, the Gazing Ball itself, can be responsible for so much variety in views and inspiration.  Every time we look we see things differently.  Of course, the reason is that everything is changing, even us the observer!

The Holy Bible, particularly the essence of its message as with the Gazing Ball does not change either.  Each time we read or hear scripture and interpret the messages of The Bible it is much the same as the phenomenon of the Gazing Ball. Our experience in life has changed as we live and our minds and ability to understand has changed as well.  Again we have an inexhaustible set of interpretations and inspiration available to us. 

How many times have you read or heard a particular scripture repeated with a totally different impact on your thinking?  All of us will experience this because God’s word is written to provide a means to shape our thinking in response to His will.  The key to experiencing this Biblical Gazing Ball is to have accepted the Holy Spirit as that voice that helps us LISTEN.  Jesus, after His resurrection, sent The Holy Spirit to us to be our guide.

Use the Bible as a Gazing Ball!  Read it and LISTEN to the guidance that results.  Each time we go there our world, as well as we, will have changed providing new and fresh perspectives and experiences for Him to reflect on our consciousness.  

That, my fellow humans, is PROGRESS!   Don’t waste the opportunity!

YOU ARE THE CAMERA !

I recently received a message from a friend who had just invested in a new camera.  She was so excited that she had finally been able to get the camera that she had been dreaming about.  It had all the wonderful features that were going to allow her to take pictures like she had never been able to take before.

In the message was a picture of a small country church with a cemetery in front.

In her commentary she criticized the photo from the photographer’s perspective.  The lighting was not ideal although the depth of field was good.  She was afraid that she may be trespassing.  Sunlight was too bright and so forth.  The next part of the commentary was on the subject of what she was going to be able to do with this camera.  More lenses, filters and all of the features that would allow her to take perfect pictures.

It was at this point in reading this fantastic post that it occurred to me how similar her experience is to the way that we see ourselves and the opportunities that we are given in life.  That thought process was triggered by my simply wondering what church it was in the picture.  The grave sites in the picture were old and beautiful but, my mind went on to asking who was buried in those graves, what stories could their lives tell?  There were so many questions that I cannot list them all!

In essence we live our lives like this.  We get so excited about our camera, us!  We spend our lives trying to see everything that we can see?  Vacation planning!  New experiences!  Travel the world!  This is much like in her commentary, “How can we improve the lighting?”; “What is the best time of day to visit?”  In all of that excitement of being overwhelmed with our physical being and our ability to be in the world and interact with it, how much do we miss by not asking the right questions and waiting for the answers?  I am guilty of having pictures taken on vacations of places that I cannot tell you about!  I was there but cant remember much about it.....

Life is a similar process that tricks us all.  We can not begin to realize how short the time on earth is until we see the end.  It can happen as we get older or when we are confronted with a condition that establishes a definite end, as with a terminal illness.

As I continue to learn in my last days I am driven to share this message!  Learn to not only be excited about your ability to see and experience living but, ask the questions and #LISTEN for the answers.  What church is that?  What are the “Learning Histories” it has to tell?  Who are those people and what did their lives mean?  This concept applies to everything in the world and everyone that we meet.  Realize that there is a finite amount of time left, even if you are young and just getting started.

Yes, you have [YOU ARE] a great camera!  You can add all kinds of features to enable you to capture images of all kinds.   You can take it to the corners of the earth, and beyond.  Make sure that your perspective includes the question and answer aspect that completes the experience.  Never take a picture of a Church and not know its name and history!  Life is a “LearningWheel”  but, it is more than a fabulous camera. Ask and #LISTEN 

YOU ARE THE CAMERA!    Next SHARE your Learning!

"Shallow" and "Deep" Thinkers

Have you ever wondered about the terms "Shallow" and "Deep" thinkers?  We know that both types of people exist in the world.  Taking it to another level, I think it is important better understand why and how, even though sometimes at opposite ends of opinion, they each have a basis for having confidence in the right outcome for doing what they consider to be the right thing.

I find the visual image of a pond to be helpful in understanding this dynamic.

The picture is of a popular place in Florida called Blue Springs.  This is a clear water park that is fed by underground springs with cold clear water that results in one of the most interesting places I have visited. 

The waters of Blue Springs sit neatly in the midst of a cypress swamp and are laced with openings to underwater caves, some never having been fully explored.  There are signs on the tress near each cave listing the number of people that have died in that cave.  The stories are told are many about those who have died exploring those caves.  I see Blue Springs as an excellent metaphor for the world that we share.  When looking at human life on earth I see an interesting comparison between what I will call “the culture of blue springs” and people living in our world today. 

These two descriptions "Shallow" and "Deep" thinkers can be compared using the Blue Springs Florida example.

Shallow thinkers are cautions people.  They only get into the water to no more that waste deep, some even less.  Many times these people have no confidence of being able to swim and/or they find the water too cold.  Some even have fears about what is in the deeper water, fearing the large fish and manatees.  In this group you will find a lot of diversity in opinion, fears, and as you would expect accuracy of information.

It seems that most people start off as shallow tinkers.  Their thinking is shaped by what they see, hear and experience but, there is that sub-group that has the drive to learn.  They venture out.by learning to swim, learning to use SCUBA technology.  With these more advanced abilities they get to experience Blue Springs as “Deep Thinkers.”  They experience seeing the fish and caves firsthand and become sources of information to some of  the reluctant “shallow” thinkers. 

In this dichotomy of experience we run head on with the problems that have plagued the world since the beginning of history. 

• ·         How accurately can we observe and capture an experience? 
• ·         How accurately can we articulate or share our experience? 
• ·         How accurately can a listener or learners hear and comprehend others? 
• ·         And finally, how accurately can a learner convey their knowledge to others?

On top of these problems add the complicating factors of language, culture, age, context and receptivity we start to see the reasons why we pass on corporate knowledge so slowly. 

Note that mankind’s progress relies on corporate knowledge gained through knowledge and the history of man being passed on to aid our understanding of reality. Looking at a pond we can see an example of a world of diversity and at least partially get the idea that it is knowable.  By adding the human aspect and the diversity brought by that human aspect we can start to appreciate the differences in understanding and opinion of that reality.

Step back and replace the pond with God’s Cosmos.  Then bring in our human diversity.  In that vision we can appreciate the “Shallow” Vs “Deep” thinkers.  We can appreciate the diversity in abilities to comprehend, observe, understand, communicate and share our experiences.  Realize too that we each are on a life-long learning adventure, then add the limit of our lifetime that limits our opportunity to observe and share and you have the metaphor.

The only way to survive and progress is to live what you know!  You may learn more tomorrow but always live what you know.  Do not let the deep thinkers confuse you.  Jesus said it when he spoke of the faith of a child.

Remember this quote: Luke 18:16

But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

We are always children in life living that point in time of always being the oldest we have ever been and the youngest we will ever be again.  DO NOT TAKE YOUR OPINIONS TOO SERIOUSLY, THEY WILL IMPROVE!

Life is a “Learning Wheel!”  We must continually work toward perfecting how to use it!

Seeing the End of the Tunnel

It was 50 years ago in March of this year that I lived in a rented room in the home of some of the wealthiest people in Lexington County, South Carolina.  

I had just moved from Sumter, South Carolina and started my new job with WABCO in Batesburg, South Carolina.  I was an electronic technician on an assembly line doing trouble-shooting and final alignment of 2-way FM VHF radios sold to the railroads.  My career was just starting!  Going to school at night and working in my field by day.  WOW, talk about an Individual Training Plan!

The room cost me ten dollars per week and it was provided by the man that had donated the land to the Town of Batesburg that was the home of the WABCO plant.  I was engaged to be married to Sandy the following June and only needed the room for the time needed to get an apartment.  The Collum family did this as a favor to the WABCO management as they had done for other new employees that the company recruited over the years.

Each week-end I would go home to Sumter to be with Sandy but, during the week I would have the opportunity to sit in the den of Cora and Uriah W Collum and watch TV.  The conversations were wonderful as they enjoyed my naiveties looking forward into my future and I enjoyed their encouragement and advice.  I think they enjoyed living the anticipation with me.

It is because I remember so well one of the conversations with Mr. Collum himself that I write this piece. 

We were outside one afternoon and he had just offered me an invitation to fish in his private ponds any time I wanted.  He promised that I could catch all the bass I wanted as his ponds were fully stocked.  It was in that conversation that he really caught my attention.  The moment is still so memorable!  He looked at me straight in the eye with a serious demeanor and said these words that I have never forgotten.  “David, I would give everything I own to just have your youth!”  That was quite a statement because at that time he owned over 90% of the timberland in Lexington and Aiken counties in South Carolina.  He was truly a millionaire but his life had ceased to be about possessions.

I was only 21 at the time and did not fully understand why he said that to me but, did get the seriousness from his tone and body language. I have remembered those words all these 50 years and have thought about the conversation many times.

Today at the age 71 I think I finally get it.  Mr. Collum actually died in 1969, just four years later, at 70 years old.  At the time of our conversation he obviously knew that he was in poor health and was looking at me through eyes that had learned that lesson of life that many of us learn too late. “Life is not about stuff and status!”

I have now been diagnosed with a terminal disease and likely have less than a year to live. I do not write this in a spirit of having regrets, I do not.  I just feel driven to convey that lesson-learned to those who are in the GO-GO Phase of their lives cautioning to not forget that living is a blessing regardless of what you have.  Love what you have!  I have heard it said, “It’s the journey, not the destination!”

In the end, our relationships will be the possessions that matter.  Treat others the way you should treat yourself and the rewards will not be physical but, spiritual.  God will take care of our physical needs but, only our behaviors toward others can provide for our spiritual needs.  #LISTEN and #DO

Has Mankind Lost the Magic of Oral Traditions?

So much of the essence of human life was initially handed down through the generations by way of oral traditions.  It is a fact that many stories in The Bible, as well as other knowledge, were not written down for generations.  The invention of the Gutenberg Printing Press is heralded as a major positive event in the evolution of knowledge management and I agree; but, there may have been a negative impact as well.  Is it possible that the printed word triggered the death of Oral Traditions?  The magic of the oral tradition is that the stories spoke to the moment and situation at hand.  Books may in fact act to separated us from that important point!

Look at what happens when a story is finally written down. First, the writer has to decide what the story means.  They then have to decide on how they are going to say what it means.  The filtering that takes place at this point of the process acts much like an optical lens.  The story is interpreted to focus on a particular meaning.  Once written, each eventual reader must do a reverse process to extract meaning from the written word with the risk that the original range of possible meaning be lost   Just look at the amount of time and effort that has been expended just discussing, arguing and translating the written documents discovered and preserved over the years.  E.g. At the extreme wars have been fought over what the Bible means to say.

When we apply oral traditions directly the ideas and lessons in a particular story event come to the surface as the stories are told.  Even in cultures where formal language skills are almost nonexistent, deep and complex meanings survive. 

Story telling is an art that is difficult to explain.  The most effective communicators and teachers are masters of this art; Jesus was a master of it.  Just study the parables that he used.  Use caution, they have been written down.

In summary we must never lose sight of the fact that knowledge cannot live in a book and many times it is not expressible.  Until it is understood by a human mind and usable it is not knowledge.  As you develop your communication and teaching skills remember that the best communications are done on the fly.  Learn to understand the other.  Learn how to help the other understand you.  Remember that the truth is not found until you find it together.

3-D Printing: A peep through the Key-Hole at a Perfect Supply Chain

As the technology of 3-D printing progresses the number of ideas on how to use these new devices grows exponentially.  Just recently we saw a 3-D printer delivered to the International Space Station.  Yes, the idea of printing tools on demand in space will soon be a reality.  Supply Chain design impact will take the form of a shift to forecasting need driving creation of 3-D print item files vs actual inventories of Stock Keeping Units in the right place at the right time.

The idea of material items being realized at the time of need has been an idea only realized in Science Fiction since the replicator in the Star Ship Enterprise.  Remember the food replicators and Captain Pilchards Earl Gray Tea?  

Today we are seeing the emergence of 3-D Printer technology and where it stops, no one can say.  In this new reality as long as there are materials and compatibility between the technology and the materials needed, the only remaining element required is the program file, or one could say, “The idea.”

I see a metaphorical resemblance between 3-D Printers and the Cosmos.  Everything that we can see and touch in the Cosmos is the product of a similar set of circumstances.  The difference is, the Cosmos has no time limitation.  The Cosmos’ 3-D Printer can take all the time it needs.  In this mental model of the Cosmos the ideas already exist in the form of possibilities that simply wait for the materials and compatibility conditions to become present.  The old adage “If it can happen, it will” applies. We just need to add, “as soon as it can.”

In our lifetime we only see a glimpse of the magnificent process that is literally taking place before our eyes.  For example, we can only imagine the collision that will take place between Andromeda and the Milky Way galaxies.  We will not see it happen.

Nature shows us many examples of this time frame limitation phenomenon.  E.g. Dragonflies only live a few hours but, play a part in the big picture.  We live longer but are here through the same process and also have a time frame limited impact.

In summary, I see us all as being a part of a Perfect Supply Chain.  We can ask the question, are we an idea, a material or a finished product?  The answer is not important.  What is important is the fact that we are one of God’s possibilities and I am sure that he will use us in his plan, “as soon as He can!”

The Infinity of Nature

As you read the following, think about this question:  

"If this idea of the Nature of Infinity is true, how would you explain it to a people who had no scientific understanding of anything?  How would you impart the concept of the quantum nature of reality to a people who only have knowledge of themselves and the small part of the world to which they had access?"

The Bible is sometimes described as the story of God revealing Himself to man.  To have been effective from the time it was created it had to be written at the level of knowledge and terminology that the people of the time could understand.

The Old Testament reveals The Supreme Being.  (first words: "In the beginning God....." (KJV)
The New Testament demonstrates supreme being.   (last words: "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen." (KJV)

With our current level of understanding of science, I think that some of us are ready to start understand the current known facts and theories in a way that ties everything together.  

To do this I will divide our thinking into two systems.

System of Simultaneity  (Quantum View - in which time does not exist)

Infinity is not conceivable by the human mind.  In order to be a viable concept characterized as not having a beginning or end, it must be defined as a timeless domain in which all possibilities exist at once.  Such a state of being I define as the "System of Simultaneity." In this system time does not exist and all things and events are expressible only as possibilities. All of these possibilities are conditional because they are linked and interdependent. In the quantum view all things are possible and they exist simultaneously.

System of Sequence  (Our Time-Line in which Cause and Effect exist)

We live and exist in the "System of Sequence."  Humanity and we individuals, have a past and a future, but are continuously in a place called the present that I have named "the moment of now."  We all, in our moment of now, are the expression of one event possibility that is a function of all that has happened to us, around us and before us until now.  I am talking about all history from The Big Bang, and probably before, to what you decided to have for breakfast this morning and even the decision to read this article this far. Our current state of being is truly governed by the rules of cause and effect. Our every decision or response to our environment branches us into another set of possibilities in that infinite list of possibilities. Each decision and action taken enables the next set of options available while closing the door to others. The rules of cause and effect tell us that our actions also interact with the sets of possibilities for other people as well. (For a simple example: If I decide to write a book and do it, then others will have the option to read it. If I decide to not write that book, others never have the option to read it.)  Once a possibility is achieved it becomes a part of history adding to the list and order of events that actually happened.  This history is continually being created and is the basis for the "System of Sequence."   In such a system the Who, What, When, Where and Why of all history can be questioned, possibly discovered and maybe understood.
Science is in the business of attempting to do just that.  The fact is, sequence requires the notion of time; therefore, a part of science is stuck in the System of Sequence and will forever be incapable of dealing with the full understanding of infinity.

So what does it mean? 

For the Universe to be more fully appreciated and understood it must be seen as the manifestation of an interplay between these two systems.  Since we are the observers it must be seen by us from our perspective, the System of Sequence.

The Bible offers some helpful clues to observers from the System of Sequence! In Genesis God defined Himself to Moses as "I AM."  Interesting that the quote uses the verb To Be!  Could it mean, The I Am, the sum of ALL in the System of Simultaneity.  We are made in the image of God because we each represent one event solution from the System of Simultaneity in which all things are possible.

Realize that everything that has happened since the beginning of time is in our System of Sequence.  This chain of events brings me to writing and revising this and you to reading it; ONE possibility, ONE event.  This is your moment of NOW.  Everything that exists and has happened until now, no matter where or when in the universe(s), is a part of this event.  How each moment impacts you will partly determine what you do next.  Every Moment of Now has the same power to influence action, action becomes history and history becomes us, and we are the result of creation.

Summary

It must be understood that the System of Sequence is made possible by the System of Simultaneity, not created by it.  The rules of cause and effect direct what actually happens.  We individuals are actualized possibilities, free to make decisions in our moments of now impacting future options for ourselves, others and countless other variables in the System of Sequence.  In essence, the System of Simultaneity "God" has made all possibilities and we make the decisions that have impact.  All decisions produce outcomes, all outcomes are possibilities, but we have the power and responsibility to choose well and do right or not!

Knowing right from wrong choices is a function of our ability to hear that smallest voice in our consciousness that gives us the answer.  If you are wondering "what small voice?" it is that voice that is asking "what small voice?"

LISTEN!

As I say in the header of this Blog:

“The space between yesterday and tomorrow, the only lever that we have!” 

As I live my day to day life the question can only be: "What am I going to do now?"  I must remember that even inaction is a decision.

By: David Connor Mims Sr.

The Bible seen as Intellectual RNA

No DNA is any better than the RNA that interprets it into actual life and physical reality. 
(See tutorial on DNA/RNA at bottom)

Truth in concept is so easy to convey in stories without the need for scientific detail. The Bible demonstrates this fact perfectly.  The concepts in the Bible function like RNA in our lives (DNA) to convert our potential to reality.

As I revisit the origin of the story of Noah and find that it and similar events are represented in many cultures.  As I look at the Creation Story and also see the scientific evidence of a Big Bang event that actually took more than seven earth days I can be confused.  My thinking can be further complicated by the undeniable truth of evolution, of dinosaurs and of extinction events in our past.  I find that these contradictions and articles, like many done by NASA and other scientific initiatives, cause me to not doubt the truth of concepts conveyed, but to realize that the stories must be true in ways that most of us are not intellectually prepared to consider.

Sadly, the current diversity of thinking and confusion causes more and more people to doubt the concepts of truth conveyed by God through his age old medium of communication.  More and more are discrediting the history of His Self-Revelation in The Bible in favor of the scientific debate of the mostly unknowable.  I know that we all need to learn; however, life as individuals is not long enough for us to wait on the scientific puzzle to be completed.  Thankfully through God's word, the truth of concept is in front of us and knowable now!

In today's reality we, who currently believe, must be prepared to maintain our faith in God as science continues to find more explanations.  The challenge is and always will be about what we do not what we know and understand!  Denying the scientific side and the intellectual evolution of our understanding of the universe, only serves to discredit our intellect thus making us ineffective as proclaimers of His word.

In our opportunities to witness to others who may be confused by this flood of scientific discovery and evidence, we believers must mature our conversation to aid others in seeing the big picture of truth.  My analogy of the interplay between (Concept=RNA) and (Our Individual Lives=DNA) is only an example of how there can be a need for two separate functions in reality.

My prayer: "Thank you God for the Bible since, through it, we have a way to know truth in concept now not requiring us to wait as science continues to search for the details.    Amen"


Tutorial on DNA vs RNA:
There are many types of RNA, mRNA, tRNA, rRNA - the major one being translated into protein once it copies its complementary DNA strand (mRNA). 
The process is basically: DNA-->transcription-->RNA-->translation-... 
Since DNA does not leave the nucleus, it is the messenger RNA (mRNA) that brings the DNA signal out to the cytoplasm where Protein synthesis begins. Once in the cytoplasm, mRNA binds with a ribosome (which is comprised of ribosomal RNA or rRNA) and prepares for the mRNA sequence to be translated into protein. 
Transfer RNA (tRNA) brings in nucleotide sequences (anticodons) to the ribosome that are complementary to the mRNA. These tRNAs also carry different amino acid side chains which link together when the correct anticodon sequence is met - and will then translate into a protein.

Mankind is like a Magnet

When studying basic physics we are taught about the fundamental structure of magnetic iron.  We are told that a piece of iron contains countless little molecules of iron that form dipoles.  These dipoles are each a molecule sized magnet.  If one could isolate one of these dipoles it would align like a compass with the magnet field around the earth.

The difference between a magnetized piece of iron and one that is not a magnet is the randomness of the orientation of these dipoles.  It is much like a democracy, each dipole votes for a direction to point.  In a true random piece of iron there is no magnetic field produced because the dipoles cancel each other out.  For every dipole pointing in a particular direction, there is another pointing in the opposite direction.  If we can influence this random arrangement, the piece of iron becomes what we call “magnetized.”

I find a striking similarity between this fact about iron and magnets and mankind.  We too can each be seen as a dipole.  We have our opinions, beliefs, needs, tendencies, etc.  Our direction regarding such things is based on the influences that we have met during our time alive.  The dipole metaphor can be extended to include the fact that our opinions are always changing.  From day to day or even minute to minute our ideas evolve.  The question, as it pertains to mankind, becomes a question of majorities over time.  Our small life (approximately 100 years) has a very small influence on the true nature of mankind.  Our individual correctness is always a function of the direction we take in the moment of decision in everything we do.  Decisions cause results and create impact on others.

The overall nature of mankind is a function of the net sum of our individual orientations.  Over the history of man we can follow the influencers that affected our politics and religious beliefs.  The history of God revealing himself is told quite completely in the Bible.  The gift of instructions on how to live our lives was perfectly demonstrated by Jesus the Son of God and the inspiration available to us at every minute we live in the Holy Spirit.  These are without doubt primary influencers of mankind today.  Even the dialog offered by those claiming to be atheist for the most part is biased toward respect for each other and life.

The fact is that God has biased us toward love regardless of our beliefs.  We are in His image!

It is not possible to understand the big picture in our lifetime and probably in the time that our Universe has remaining.  The only thing for sure is that each of us has to decide moment by moment which way to point. 

I choose toward God as I understand to be correct.  I accept the lessons taught by Jesus and the guidance offered by that small voice inside my head, The Holy Spirit.  At least my dipole is influenced to help as much as possible.  Now, you the reader must make your choice.  No, you cannot choose to not be a dipole!

By: David C Mims Sr. 

God's Investment Plan

107,602,707,791 people are estimated to have lived on earth since 50,000 BC. Each one has played a role in the history of man and the evolution of our knowledge and understanding of everything.  Each person wants to understand their purpose in the big picture of God's plan, but none are able to do it with total confidence.

To improve our ability to grasp the magnitude of the problem, a comparison with the human body can be made.  We have learned that our cells all have unique purposes and, based on their type and location in the systems of the body, each have a very important contribution to make.  As with people, cells live different lengths of time.  There are about 200 different types of cells in our bodies, but there are 100,000,000,000,000 eukaryotic [living, individual, reproducing] cells in the body.  That number exceeds many times the total number of humans that have ever lived.  Realize that the body as a whole lives many times longer than most of the individual cells that define it.  In this mental model we must imagine ourselves as individual cells in the body of humanity.  The mystery of life then becomes analogous to the pondering of any single cell on the impact that it has on the overall mission of the body in which it lives. Imagine answering the question asked by a single mucous cell as to how it is going to contribute to any achievements that the body itself will realize. 

As with the mucous cell it is not possible for any one of us to understand the mission of the body that we compose.  The body of humanity, as far as we know, has lived for over 52,000 years, but we as individuals are privileged to have contributed a mere single human lifetime to God's plan.  The Bible is a history record looking back without revealing the future plan in detail.

Not knowing the big picture creates a problem.  It means that we must have an action directive in order to honor our best potential.  God provided this directive in the best instruction possible through the demonstration of His nature through the life of Jesus Christ.  Jesus showed us how to act and as importantly, how to LISTEN!

Jesus said on the cross, "Father forgive them; for they know not what they do."  It is obvious that we do not have the capacity to understand but we are forgiven!  We must LISTEN to that smallest voice in our minds for the guidance that we need to choose well at each moment of our lives,  If we do that, we will make the correct choices and not be a wasted resource in God's investment plan.

Learning Wheels - Published August 2013

"Learning Wheels"

Living in the world today, each of us is challenged with the need to learn and teach, but waiting for others to provide for our needs in these areas is not a wise strategy.  Learning Wheels merges systems and learning theory to provide a new way to deal with this challenge.

Learning Opportunities are easy to see, but they are normally in a state of chaos and rarely fully exploited.  The mental models presented in this book can act as a vaccination against that chaos and provide a springboard to getting more out of every learning opportunity.  Note that only you need to change in order to benefit from these concepts. 

The thesis of this book is; “If we as individuals can learn to be aware of learning opportunities and if we can couple that awareness with the skills required to adapt to the situational nature of each opportunity, we can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of learning for ourselves and others.”

The Continuum Concept

I love the continuum concept.  When we create continuum we define concepts in terms of extremes. (“Warm” --- “Hostel”) or (“Dominant” --- “Submissive”) 

These models are easy to visualize and are excellent ways to create behavioral models used in teaching and group facilitation.

In the context of God it is not quite the same.  In that context a continuum, to be accurately expressed can only be (“God” --- “Absence of God”).  Sin is many times defined as “Absence of God”

A trap is created when we replace “Absence of God” with another entity such as Satan in that it gives equal power to that named entity.  The entity is then inferred to have a conscience and maybe even an agenda.  

How many times have we found ourselves trying to balance “Good” with “Evil?”  The false continuum I describe here sets us up for many mental errors.  The result is that many times we become confused and turn to blaming God for allowing His Absence to rule.  It's not even logical!

The fact is that it is our individual responsibility to recognize that we are in God.  His voice is there to help us in the form of the Holy Spirit that Jesus taught us.  

Forget Satan!  He does not exist if we face reality, all of the possibilities, including the universe, God, the "I Am."  Facing God we can live the model that Jesus created when he said, "Get thee behind me Satan!"

"I Am" Face to Face

The beauty of God’s world is revealed by the mathematical principle of multiplication.  For example: One God = 1 Holy Spirit x 1 Father x 1 Son, the one in Three.  The equation can even be extended to include each of us as 1 x 1 x 1 x 1 still equals “The One”, the I Am, The Living God.

The problem with us as individuals is that we see with a finite ability to understand reality.  Our understanding is based on the mathematical principle of addition.  We think in terms of 1 + 1 + 1 = 3.  We count things, time and people and see multiplication as a more efficient way to add.  As we add our diversity of opinion the numbers increase with time and imagination approaching infinity.  The more we learn the more we realize we do not understand.

At some point in our lives we realize that one number is constantly decreasing, the number of days until we return to the way it was before we were born. 

Pondering the end of life we again are offered the opportunity to see “I Am” face to face.  Once we start to see the true nature of God we can see the “All in One principle” again.  What we do and believe matters, but in the big picture it changes nothing.  In God all things are possible including the Good and Bad acts and events of life, but in the end God remains the one, “I Am”

The perpetual presence of God's Grace. . . . . .

Some say that blessings come one day at a time. I have found that they come much more frequently than that!

Are We Returning to the Middle Ages?

Educators have known since Socrates that maximizing exchange with and between students while encouraging conversation and debate, to be a key to improving learning.  

Today's teachers are frustrated by the fact that they cannot pursue those and other effective approaches because of a myriad of reasons.  The bottom line is that we do design Learning Events, but they are only partially effective at allowing or encouraging learners to function interactively.  

Students all too often, aside from their immediate circle of friends, are not involved with nor do they have any desire to know what their classmates are interested in or what they have found to be easy or difficult.  In college lecture settings with lecture halls full of students, Learning Events are more like concerts than classes.  In those settings learning is very much an individual affair.  

The current trend in education is toward less emphasis on dialog between learners.  Teachers today must rely on what test results tell them.  Some experimental schools are taking this model even further as they encourage independent study and self-paced learning.  Computer Managed Instruction models use algorithms to make decisions as to what the student needs next and when they have reached competency in a particular subject.  Technology has allowed teacher span-of-control to increase reducing costs, but with a corresponding reduction in time available for one-on-one instruction.  

In these new schools teachers use their time to manage learning problems, as signaled by the Computer Managed Instruction algorithm.  Typically small group sessions are only conducted with groups of students having similar challenges. 

I find it interesting that in this model the students who have the easiest time learning the content are the ones that get the least opportunity to work in groups, a destructive archetype.  

Yes, our current education systems and new innovations do create "Learning" although more self-contained.  

We need to look very carefully at the impact being made in the area of Online Education. 

Albert Einstein said: “I fear the day that technology will surpass or human interaction.  The world will have a generation of idiots.”

Each new program struggles with Einstein’s humorous insight currently being demonstrated by the contradictions being created.  For example; How to be online or distant and meet the need for contact with the teacher and other students?  Such contradictions create complicating concepts and new terminologies emerge in the vocabulary of training design.  We now have descriptive terms like Distance Education, Residency Requirement, Asynchronous and Synchronous Learning, Online Education, E-learning, Computer-Based Training, Computer Managed Instruction all provided to help describe available options.  

The process of choosing a college or degree program has become more complicated than ever.  Those in the process of making those decisions today have begun to realize that having a degree means little if the holder does not have true competence in the subject.  No successful company is going to compensate us for incompetence, at least for long.  

It is true that technology has opened many new avenues in education, but has also impacted the quality of training effectiveness and the dynamics of interpersonal relationships. 

Impact of Human Capital

The importance of having people in the right assignments cannot be over stressed.  Developing and positioning people are key responsibilities for all managers.  When we focus on “people” we learn quickly that it is important to see them as “individuals.”  Successful companies have started to look at the competency requirements in their organizations and matching the competencies of its individual people to those roles.  The result of this approach is predictable in that each person is found to have a unique set of abilities and learning needs leading to establishment of individual training plans with ownership and responsibility for execution of those plans being shared between the employee and their manager.  Today’s managers many times do not have the time or expertise to handle these new important responsibilities.  

Transitioning to this type environment and making it work is extremely difficult, particularly for older well established organizations.  Training and development organizations also are challenged to change and must adapt to a model resembling a cafeteria format from what was probably more like a home style restaurant.  The need for competency evaluation becomes critical and those evaluations must be timely and accurate.   As the need to create Project Teams, Change Management Teams and other small organizations with specific progress missions emerge we start to see the importance of accurately understanding the learning needs of each individual and how to balance their abilities and needs within each organization.  The question becomes: “Does the team have the balance of skills needed to accomplish the mission?”  Each person is actually a unique System offering unique sets of explicit and tacit knowledge that ultimately define their ability to add value.  The ultimate question becomes, "What can you do?” not, "What can you discuss?"  Adding value is the ultimate requirement of us all. 

Value Creation is the joint responsibility of each employee and management.

We used to think that the best way to train people was to make them all alike.  We would test against a standard set of criteria and then train to make everyone equal.  We would not focus on what we already knew, but work diligently on what you did not know.  Everyone would work on things that did not know or like while and not devoting time to work on the things in which they excelled. 

Imagine an orchestra being managed in that manner.

Variability in knowledge is one of the components of diversity.  The question becomes: “Is diversity extra weight or GOLD?”  We must not forget that with great diversity comes great opportunity. 

Essay on Technical Education

On Sunday (13 April, 2008) I watched the show "Awareness" on WISTV and was inspired to share with you some of my ideas in this short essay.

During that program it was stated that we have approximately a 25% drop-out rate at about the 9^th grade level in South Carolina. The entire first segment Sunday was on the future of these drop-outs, particularly as it relates to their future job availability. The thing that I think was missing in the discussion during that show was any articulation of why these people tend to drop out at about the 9th grade level. There continues to be a need to work on the "before 9th grade" part of the problem.

Our current system of education in South Carolina in some cases is simply functioning as a filter, not an educator. The majority of the dialog that I have seen in the media recently was between college graduates that, to that 25% group, appear to be the academically elite talking about how to go to college and how to persuade or enable everyone to be like them.

It is evident, even when shown as good examples in the media, those that do go back to school and earn their GED and even beyond, are put in a special and separate category.

The SC Technical Colleges are spinning themselves as a means to get to and through a four-year college degree. I have watched the process over the last forty years that have led to the SC Technical Colleges current success of now being acceptable for college credit for most of the major universities.

In my opinion this success has come at a price regarding the original focus and even the current Mission and Vision of Technical Education in our state.  The 25% that are dropping out of school early are the ones that today, for multiple reasons, cannot see themselves surviving in an academic path. Humiliated, maybe even covertly, they just give up. There is truly no path obvious to this group that makes them want to continue. We need a means for these people to know about and see as viable the other options available to them. They need to be able to "drop-into", a different path of education.

When the Technical Schools were created in the 1960s, they did a better job of representing an alternative path. One could actually build a Life Strategy that ended with developing and applying a marketable skill obtained at a SC Technical school. It was possible to choose that path and not be seen as some sort of non-performer.

Presently some of our Technical Schools seem to be "Want-to-be-Universities". In this current environment I wonder what the ratio is between time/resources spent negotiating with the universities to achieve transfer accreditation and time/resources spent in working with industry to determining curriculum changes needed to stay in touch with industrial needs.

And even further, the loss of agility to make desired/recommended changes due to the impact on previously achieved agreements on accreditation. Do we even have the knowledge base or time availability of staff to accurately assess the industrial need Vs current curriculum?

Today, advisers at all grade levels must be aware of the message that is received when the student that they are helping make life strategy decisions realize that they, the adviser, and most these recruiters and professors that now work in the Technical School organization chose the four-year (or higher) degree path. There is a need for mentors to be examples of where we are advising the student to go. One problem is that we almost hide our non-four year successes. Pure Technical School Graduates are not celebrated. They, the graduates, in many cases are not proud of the source of their education.

To be effective as a mentor to that target 25% group one has to be able to show how they did it without ever having achieved that four year degree. A mentor holding a Ph.D. cannot do it!

In summary, the current risk and reality is that the Technical Schools are being sold largely as another bridge to the place that 25% group, cannot see themselves going. The feeling is that if they go to Tech and do not eventually achieve their four year degree they risk never feeling the pride of success.

If we continue on our current path our Technical Schools will simply blend into the higher education landscape without being distinguished as that much needed alternative path.

As with all progress we must plan strategy from where we are. The answer is not to undo all of the good things that have been done, but to restore the good part of our history that has been abandoned.

Essay by: David C. Mims – Sr.

AAS/EET Midlands-Technical College, Columbia South, Carolina (Honors 1970)

An Irony of life! The Paradox of Willingness to Share Vs Willingness to Receive

As we live our lives we gain experience.  Everyone agrees that at the end of life we have had the opportunity to see, hear and experience a unique set of lessons that each of us own and want to share.  Yes, it can be said that life is a learning event.

The paradox lies in the fact that our ability to be respected for what we know diminishes as one reaches the end of life.  Others see us through their eyes making assumptions that our life long developed beliefs are not credible because of our age.  Statements like, “I’m not buying it, that old fool only believes that because s/he knows that they are getting ready to die!” become common.  This issue only gets exaggerated in cases where there has been a diagnosis of a terminal illness or confrontation with certain near term death. 

To find disesteem by those that we want to help the most creates a sense of helplessness.  In these cases the result is that a possibly most credible resource is treated with the least respect.  What a waste!

Mitigation for this risk in life is to follow the following model:

• .      Learn from your elders early.  You never know when they will be gone.
• .      Develop your firm beliefs early in life so that you will not need to change as you get older.
• .      Pray for guidance as often as you can.  

The possibilities in life are ever changing and you will need to make choices continually.  Never forget, it is possible to choose wrong!

Managing the Project of Life

In the business of Project Management as an engineering science the challenge is to obtain a defined result by a specific point in time and for a predetermined budget of resources.  In the methodologies that aid in managing projects there are many techniques aimed at identifying risks, deciding which risks are most likely and their impact.  Then discovering and putting in place mitigations that improve the probability of the project being successful.

Project risks are always problematic because of constrained time and resources. 

Imagine how we could operate if there were no limits in time or resources.  What if the project objective was defined by an infinite set of resources and outcomes? 

In God’s infinity we have such a paradigm.  In quantum world all things are possible and all things exist.  The fact that I am sitting here writing this is one of those possibilities and the fact that you are reading it is yet another.  I have no way to know either who will eventually read this or what impact it will have.

Humans like me, and I suspect you, experience a limit to being able to fully understand God's plan.  In the history of His revelation of Himself to us we find expansive amounts of time and generations of people who lived to create conditions needed for His lessons to be taught to humanity.

The concept of the Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit) stands at the center of all lessons taught to date.  The “Father” represents the Love and Grace of God, the “Son” was the demonstrator and Teacher of how we are to behave in life, and God the “Holy Spirit” is the infinite nature of God that spans all time and creation.  All three are with us as we live our lives.

It is our impatience that makes the lessons taught to date ineffective.  We want our lives to matter, We want instant gratification, we want our Church to be successful, and we want to see our understanding of the plan completed in our lifetime.

As we live our lives and eventually die we must take comfort in knowing that whatever happens, God’s plan has already succeeded.  Our contributions may not be obvious as we live our lives but be assured that our contributions do matter. 

We must remember that Gods patience is unlimited.  In essence there are contingencies and resources in His plan to mitigate any risk that our decisions may create.  When time is unlimited all things are possible.  God already has results as He exists in the infinite. 

As we live our lives all action possibilities are known before we choose; however, the evaluation of our actual choices is knowable in the context of the quantum plan as soon as we make them.  There are no choices that we can make that will cause God’s plan to be ineffective; but, there are choices that we can make that are considered wrong. We can and do impact each other.

At the end of our individual lives our evaluation will be based on the choices we made.  Did we appreciate the Grace and Love of God the Father, did we follow the example of God the Son, Jesus Christ and did we follow the inspiration of God the Holy Spirit? 

Someone once said, “Did you love?”

As I say in the header of this Blog:

“The space between yesterday and tomorrow, the only lever that we have!” 

As I live my day to day life the question can only be, what am I going to do now?  I must remember that even inaction is a decision.

After all, I am a Project Manager and must do something!  

By: David Connor Mims Sr.

At the Moment of Death

It is said that at the moment of death we see our whole life pass before our eyes.  That we will see everything that has happened to us since the day we were born.

I think that it is true.  As we stand at the point of death we will be confronted with our first experience with life after death which almost certainly is infinite. We in fact will see God for the first time.

In the context of infinity time does not exist meaning that all things that can happen do.  In physics this is known as the state of singularity.  In quantum mechanics a singularity is said to possess the properties in which all things are simultaneously possible. All calculations in this realm are in the form of probabilities.  Our lives make real those things that were not only probable but in fact happen.  At death our lives are seen in the context of NO TIME; hence that movie in review.

The warning that we can understand in realizing this is that we must be aware of the importance of our opportunities and choices made as we live.  The consequences of our choices are so interdependent with all others living their lives.  Choices, once made, can not be undone.  Our choices impact the opportunities of others, positively and negatively.

Choosing well at each decision point in life ultimately results in having lived well.

My prayer is, "God please be with me at each decision point in my life and help me choose well!"