Ben C. Eder

@MWellertXc "After all, tomorrow is another day." - Scarlett O'Hara

Dare I say it, friends…? I LOVE Scarlett O’Hara. The majority of you urged me to keep reading and I am so, so glad I did. Now I’m desolate that I don’t have another page of Gone With the Wind to read. But I won’t think about that now. I’ll think about it tomorrow…

@drewdyck In my case, 70 is the new 50. Encouraging.

The hardest transition is from 25 to 40. It’s only 15 years but you go from being a kid (at least in our culture) to being squarely middle aged. Devastating.

@tracesoffaith My observation from afar: you're doing a great job!

I don’t know how I’ll look back on these last few years of parenting a young adult. In the midst of it, there are some really hard days. It’s taking more trust and surrender than I feel I have at times. Truly a season of prayer and self care as I release my hold.

What have I been up to lately? Living the retired life, apart from preaching (almost) weekly this summer. I’m energized by visiting different congregations and sharing the Word with them. Some say to me, “Aren’t you retired?” Writing a sermon weekly is not a hardship, but a joy, and I still have plenty of time to do other things.

@meetuatthefence @JoshHoller I'm sure there are some as you say, however I have also encountered pastors on Medicaid and receiving EBT. It's shameful how some congregations treat their pastors.

@BenCEder @JoshHoller I know many, many pastors who’ve had this experience and no, they’re not from mega churches. At our old church the pastoral staff would go on months long sabbaticals which would often include very nice vacations paid for by parishioners. Then post about it on FB.

I don't understand these pastors who use sabbaticals to take an egregious amount of time off of work. Stop complaining about how hard you have it. I have two elders who work 6 days a week and have to work by 4:30am, sometimes earlier. One drives a truck and another works at a concrete plant. How could I possibly look them in the eye and request time off for months on end? Outrageous. -Man up. - 1 Corinthians 16:13 -Fight the good fight. - 1 Timothy 6:12 -Do the work! - 2 Timothy 2:15 -Remember Paul's afflictions when you feel sorry for yourself - 2 Corinthians 11:25-33 -Don't succumb to "Elijah syndrome." You aren't the last prophet (pastor) of God and you're not alone. -Reclaim the Lord's Day rest. It's a gift from God! Not just the morning hours - all day! "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 3:14 Press on, pastor! Remember the Lord and how He set His face like flint to the cross (Isaiah 50:7).

@JoshHoller And no, I never took a sabbatical in my 40 years of pastoral ministry. My congregation was generous with my vacations and time off in general, so I guess I never felt like I needed one. Not all pastors have that luxury.

@JoshHoller Ministry is not heavy lifting, but it can be stressful. Many can clock out after a long day at work, but not the pastor. We deal with matters of life, death, and eternal salvation. We endure spiritual attacks and struggles. What you suggest here is a recipe for burnout.

@meetuatthefence @JoshHoller In 40 years of ministry I have never had a parishioner (or anyone else) pay for my vacations, and I don't know any other pastors who did either. You may have in mind megachurch pastors and celebrity TV preachers, but not the rank and file pastor in the trenches.

@JoshHoller Not only that, pastors will often get luxury trips paid for by their parishioners. And then post the photos on Facebook. Meanwhile Joe Schmoe truck driver has never taken a vacation that didn’t involve a campground but he sure is getting to see where his tithe dollars are going.

This month's issue of The Atlantic has the article, "The End of Reading is Here." It's not that people don't read, it's that it's mostly texts and posts and not the longer form in books. What do you think? Do you read for pleasure? Are we in a post-literate society?

@JamesDaleWilso6 @redeemed_zoomer Well played.

@redeemed_zoomer On the other hand, once I was discovered emerging from the room, taken into the best office, handed a nice bourbon and ice, and a cigar was being lit for me before I could tell them I wasn't there for the senior vice president position. Laughs all around, and they let me finish

Does anyone else try to find the most hidden least-used bathroom in places or is that just me?

@greg16676935420 Which one?

Getting my haircut in 26 minutes

'She loved the Lord Jesus': Bonnie Tyler remembered as a humble star whose faith shaped her life - Premier Christian News | Headlines, Breaking News, Comment & Analysis premierchristian.news/us/news/articl…

@BethMooreLPM I find that as I get older (and I'm the same age as you), I just want peace in my life. I've been in the church battles, and looking back they were not helpful for me or those I engaged with. I do want people to know the love of Jesus and the salvation he offers.

A few practices that have increased my joys on here and decreased my entanglements in useless debates in case any of these are helpful: * I completely ignore insults and foolishness from people who don’t show their actual faces. (I get why some people don’t want their picture on here. I’m talking about insulting individuals who hide behind, for example, Martin Luther’s picture or a cartoon character.) Some of you are arguing with accounts that only exist to get you to stay on here. Look on their pages and see if they leave any evidence of their real selves besides a bio. Is there anything identifiable in their feed? City where they live in or where they work? Anything personal or non-platforming about them? If not, you’re engaging with a fake. If they can track you down but you can’t track them down, they’re suspect. *As for those who are clearly real but post outrageous things (like women shouldn’t get a vote), except for rare occasions, I don’t engage them nor circulate screenshots of them. Why? Because they want us to. They want to build their platforms and get attention. Even negative attention keeps people active on their pages. It’s like a really outrageous tv series we can’t look away from because we can’t believe people are really like that. Don’t let these jokers on here use you to get notoriety. That’s what they’re after. *I stick with people I enjoy or learn from or with whom I share interests or with those who differ with me but in good faith. * I can’t deal with people who constantly rant even if I agree with them. Just can’t do it. I’ve been that person and I’ve engaged with that person and having my say rarely made me feel better. Someone who rants on occasion is different but I now guard my peace from those who only get on here to do it. Lastly, i’ll say this. The people you’ll enjoy most are not the celebrities. The ones I enjoy most are everyday people who post about a variety of things. That’s how I hope you see me. When I act all celebrity-ish, ignore or unfollow me. I see people talk about how awful this place is and I’ve felt that way, too, but these decisions cut out most of that for me. I love it here. This is my favorite social platform. I’ve made real friends. Come to really care about some folks. Love them. And when I’ve met them face-to-face, loved them even more.

@TimGCarterSEEK Just a suggestion: pay for Premium. I recently did and it makes a world of difference. I feel seen and heard again, just like in the early days of Twitter. Try it and see what you think.

Years ago I had so much fun here when Twitter was really a free thought forum and ur thoughts were neither encouraged nor discouraged but just shared with ur followers. Too bad they can't just be an honest social forum & allow u 2 share with those who follow u like they started!

@MWellertXc I'm going to wait for the movie...

I’d never read or seen Gone with the Wind, so I started reading it last week. I am to a part where I hate Scarlett so deeply I’m not sure I can go on reading. LOL Is it worth it, people? Because she’s an unlikeable beast and Ashleigh’s a stupid fool. I’m not sure about Rhett.

@jdbalart @HallieJackson @NBCNightlyNews I like how you always call her "The great Hallie Jackson." So true, and you both deserve the title!

What a treat to be with the great @HallieJackson. Saturday and Sunday @NBCNightlyNews together!

@JoshuaBarzon Fourth generation American here.

How many generations back has your family been in America?

Looking at the Emmy nominations released today, almost all of them are from streaming. I have to admit I hardly watch any scripted programs on network TV.

A few years ago I created another X account because I was having trouble with this one. When I tried to post on this account, the post instead went to my secondary account. Very frustrating. So, I deactivated it. Glad I'm back here.

IKEA is bringing a store to Western New York. The downside is the customers have to assemble it.