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    Grandpa Jack's Book: A Nonagenarian Minister’S Wit and Wisdom
    Grandpa Jack's Book: A Nonagenarian Minister’S Wit and Wisdom
    Grandpa Jack's Book: A Nonagenarian Minister’S Wit and Wisdom
    Ebook103 pages1 hour

    Grandpa Jack's Book: A Nonagenarian Minister’S Wit and Wisdom

    By John Lane Williams

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    About this ebook

    They just no longer make them like John Lane Williams, who spent seventy years of his life as a Methodist minister, sixty-five years in a happy marriage, and his entire life trying to understand lifes guiding principles.

    Heres what he found out: times may change, but whats important in life does not. While this may not be anything new, it is important sometimes to verify the truth, especially when so few people value what makes life worth living.

    Follow Grandpa Jack, and discover whats important. Along the way, youll begin to understand the profound changes in society over the years, which encompass:
    Living conditions; Transportation; Money and the workplace; Computers and technology; And much more!

    Acquire the wisdom that Grandpa Jack spent more than ninety years learning. Find the strength to be a better person and be a better friend to others. Be entertained with a series of personal stories and examples in Grandpa Jacks Book: A Nonagenarian Ministers Wit and Wisdom.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisheriUniverse
    Release dateJan 7, 2009
    ISBN9781440110849
    Grandpa Jack's Book: A Nonagenarian Minister’S Wit and Wisdom
    Author

    John Lane Williams

    The late John Lane Williams, a Methodist minister known to family members as “Grandpa Jack,” wanted to leave his family a book conveying life’s greatest truths. He left grandchild Erin D. Williams a series of cassette tapes, videos, and letters, which served as the basis for Grandpa Jack’s Book.

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      Book preview

      Grandpa Jack's Book - John Lane Williams

      Grandpa Jack’s Book

      A Nonagenarian Minister’s Wit and Wisdom

      By John Lane Williams

      iUniverse, Inc.

      New York Bloomington

      Grandpa Jack’s Book

      A Nonagenarian Minister’s Wit and Wisdom

      Copyright © 2008 by Erin D. Williams

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

      The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

      iUniverse

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.iuniverse.com

      1-800-Authors (1-800-288-4677)

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any Web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      ISBN: 978-1-4401-1083-2 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4401-1085-6 (dj)

      ISBN: 978-1-4401-1084-9 (ebook)

      Printed in the United States of America

      iUniverse rev. date: 12/30/2008

      This book is dedicated to my wife, Ruby, whose life was made memorable by her wonderful Christian spirit, which caused her to find her deepest satisfaction in helping other people.

      Also, I would like to express my deep thanks to my granddaughter, Erin, for her diligent work in editing this book.

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      WHAT IS THIS BOOK?

      Foreword

      I. DAD WAS DIFFERENT

      A goodly heritage

      II. DRASTIC CHANGES

      Change: a permanent feature of life

      III. IS YOUR I TOO BIG?

      Unselfishness and Service, Mistakes and Forgiveness

      IV. STRUCTURED FREEDOM

      Democracy, Laws, and Religious Aspirations

      V. IT DOES NOT COMPUTE

      Spiritual life and the material world

      VI. POT-SKA SKE-ZYM

      The importance of reading, thinking and study

      VII. IT’S SIMPLE, BUT IT

      AIN’T EASY

      Aah, sweet mystery of a fulfilled life

      VIII. STUFF THAT INSPIRES

      Sharing some final thoughts and that which

      has uplifted me

      GRANDPA JACK, HIS BOOK,

      AND ME

      Editor’s note

      WHAT IS THIS BOOK?

      Foreword

      Greetings! I am pleased that you’ve picked up this book, and hope it will enrich your life. I’ve written it with care for you, and also for my grandchildren. Please indulge me for inserting this personal note to them, explaining why I want them to have this book:

      First -- I’ve lived a long goodly life, and I want the same for you. I have had the great privilege of more than 90 years of life, 65 years of married delight, and 70 years as a minister (about 1/3 of the time as a retired minister). All of that got me to thinking that some of the important things that I have learned about living might be helpful to my family, for whose members I pray by name every night.

      My wife and I came from families that were very close, and we tried to make our own family the same. During the early years of our two boys’ lives, we spent a month each year in Canada in a cabin that we built together.

      Together, we worked and learned. We chopped and sawed wood. We built fires for the cold nights and colder mornings. We hauled drinking water from a well a quarter mile away. We lit our way with coal oil lamps, and cooked our food on a wood stove. We learned to handle a canoe, row a boat (or to use an outboard motor), and even how to build and use a sailboat. It was fun! It helped shape the attitudes and lifestyles of the kids, and enhanced our closeness.

      We are delighted that our boys and their wives did such a remarkable job in their own lives and in influencing yours. They’ve created lives of significance with their high standards. They and you render unselfish and loving service to others without thought of gain or reward. We’re proud of our sons, but we did not have the same closeness with you, our grandchildren, that we did with them. So, I want you to have this little book.

      Second -- times change, but what’s important in life does not. The world has transformed during the course of my lifetime. Yet the guiding principles of life, those things that give it meaning, are constant. I am writing this book for you, not because I have discovered something new, but because I have verified something that is very old in the way of truth.

      Now, all of you grandchildren are college age or above. As young adults, you are in the process of making some of the most telling decisions about the style and standards of your lives. I want to share the enduring truths that I have come to recognize over the course of my lifetime about my faith; approaches to differences of opinion; contemplations on realistic and thoughtful religion; and the simplicity of the aim to love God and all of our fellow human beings. My hope is that this might help you to follow the highest principles that there are, and help to strengthen you. After all, I love you.

      Best Wishes, Grandpa Jack.

      I. DAD WAS DIFFERENT

      A goodly heritage

      It says something about our times that we rarely use the word SINFUL, except to describe a really good dessert.

      --Willard D. Ferrell, Reader’s Digest

      Lo, children are a heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

      --Psalms 127:3, King James Bible

      It has been said that even as a good teacher inspires students to read, to learn, to create, to share and to act kindly, so a good parent is close enough to share devotion. I am 91 years of age. I have had a long ministry and a satisfactory retirement. I am a Grandpa, the oldest remaining member of the Williams family, and the oldest that there has been in probably four generations. And now I have a desire to help my grandchildren in every way that I possibly can, and maybe other grandchildren as well.

      I would like to start by telling you a bit about my family and myself so that you can understand my perspective. I want you to see the ways in which dad was different, and also the ways in which dad was just like you. In speaking about my (or our) heritage, I think it is fair to say that we were most fortunate, my wife and I.

      In all of their actions and choices, both my wife’s family and my own were motivated by the desire to perform honest service to other people as well as to make a decent living. This is very significant, because it helped to form the foundation of a rich and deeply satisfying life.

      Both of our families were deeply religious, thoughtful and, very, very active in the life of the church. The church gave us a sense of purpose. It taught us what to do, and surrounded us with a loving family.

      Our families also shared one other important characteristic. They based some of the most important decisions that they had to make, particularly on

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