Category: By Sid Fredericksen

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A tree is a tree is a tree… by sid fredericksen

The Law of Genesis

The Law of Genesis

Today would have been my dear Sid’s 80th birthday. Maybe we’d have put on a party. He sometimes said he’d like to have a big birthday party, but we never got around to doing that. His life was cut short in 2020 by cancer.

But Sid left a godly legacy in words and songs for all of us. This book was the first present he gave me, the second time we got together. He’d written it several years previously, during a period between a tree-falling career and a semi-retirement job as a commissionaire.

He had loved his years in the logging industry–out there in nature, alone with God. It comes through in his thoughts. I share with you the Introduction to the book today.

A tree is a tree is a tree… and not other than a tree shall it be.

In all the years I’ve worked in the logging industry (as a faller) I have never seen a spruce tree re-create itself into a cedar – or a fir. And if you know, or are familiar with, commercial fishermen, you know that they would know – a cod is not a salmon, nor could a salmon become a whale. Everything is designed by God to create after its kind. It’s called order.

Try to imagine… a fish jumps too high. “Oops! I landed on the beach, I must be a lizard. Maybe I’ll climb up this tree. Hey! I must be a monkey… maybe I’ll climb back down. O.K., I’m a man (not a very smart one… but a man nevertheless).” I don’t think so.

God made everything to create “after its own kind”. That’s the way it was in the beginning and that’s the way it’ll stay. No less than ten times in the first chapter of the Bible, the phrase, “after its own kind” is used. Do you suppose, just maybe, God is trying to tell us something? And then in v26-27 He decides to make man… “in His image“. Wouldn’t you say this is… “after His kind“?

So all of God’s good nature creates “after its kind“.

So-called science gone haywire.

And when roses are hybridized, they’re still roses… but the fragrance is gone. Same thing with carnations. Thanks but no-thanks. You may say, “Well they’re just for looks anyway.” Well then, let’s just get silk… you don’t even have to water those.

After God had created everything (to bring forth of its kind) and had put His man in charge, He said “it is very good.” But science (so-called) doesn’t seem to appreciate what is. No-o-o-o, they would like to change everything they can. Can you believe… men who want to be women. And women getting changed into men. What’s this world coming to?

And I think I know why these ‘so-called’ scientists like to add countless zeros onto the millions (even billions) of years they’ve dreamed it would take to put all this together. Now there’s no way for us ‘so-called’ lay people to dispute their theories. Would someone please write a book called “Zeroes for Dummies”. I’m sure they fancy to impress each other, when in actuality they make themselves to be fools. Romans 1:22. It’s amazing how a little thing like a zero [0] can negate an Almighty Creator. This gives a whole new meaning to 1 Corinthians 14:38… “but if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.” Seems to me as though they’re embalmed with speculation.

But for now, let’s take another look at this nature thing. You take a donkey and breed it with a horse. What do you get? Mule. If it’s male, it’s ‘mule’. If it’ female, it’s ‘jenny’. Either way… it’s kaput. No longer is this animal able to reproduce. When it’s God’s will for a ll His creation to keep ‘its kind’ going.

The natural and the spiritual

In Genesis 8:22 the LORD told Noah… “as long as the earth remains, there will be seedtime and harvest.” Seedtime and harvest is a Biblical principle… or law, which will work, in the natural AND in the spiritual.

First, let’s talk about the natural. 1 Corinthians 15… first that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.

A law, to begin with, is an established principle; something that works a certain way each and every time. This ‘law’ we’re talking about here is not what we know as ‘civil law’ or ‘custom’ or in the sense of ‘law of the land’ e.g. criminal law… or even the ‘law of Moses’. We’ll call this ‘natural law’… and we’ll transpose this into ‘spiritual law’.

The LORD had told Noah… “as long as the earth remains, there will be seedtime and harvest.” Then when we come over to the New Testament, we hear Jesus saying in Mark 4:26… “the kingdom is like if a man cast seed into the ground.” Cast seed. How does one cast seed? What does it even mean… cast seed? We know that if we sow a natural seed, the ground will cause the seed to grow. And that seed will produce what it is. After its kind. This is a ‘natural law’. Let’s call this “the Law of Genesis“. The ‘law of Genesis’ is such that everything creates after its own kind.

But Jesus wasn’t talking about natural seed… in natural ground… with a natural harvest. He was talking about ‘seedtime and harvest’, but He referred to it now, as how it worked in the kingdom. When Jesus talked about trees, houses, lands or mountains, etc., He was usually talking about kingdom stuff.

First, we have natural… now we have spiritual.

Words are like seeds.

Words are like seeds. That can be sown. Sown in the heart of man. Received and conceived in the heart… to be brought forth ‘after their kind’. Law of Genesis.

Thoughts and knowledge work the same way. Thoughts create ‘after their kind’. One may think they’ve come up with a briliant revelation, but the Spirit of Truth will never ‘bear withness’ to perverted knowledge.

Let me give you an example from Genesis 6:4. Someone picked up a thought, went along with, and expanded upon the idea that sons of God (angels) came in unto the daughters of men (women). Angels and women? Spirit and flesh… reproducing? When God had already said “everything will produce… after its kind“. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Spirit can motivate, influence, even possess, but could never create. Without blood? Give me a Pentecostal break. No blood, no sperm, no way. We know, of course, that there is life (zoe) apart from the blood, but Satan doesn’t have that kind of life (or his demons) because he’s a DEAD spirit. Not dead as we think of, as in graveyard dead, but dead in the sense of being cut off from God. Even Adam, and we ‘in him’ (Adam, that is) were cut off until Jesus made a way BACK. There is NO WAY back for Satan… or his own.

It never ceases to amaze me how a story like this can take on a life of its own. Sounds like a bad plot, for an even worse movie.

There is nowhere that I’m aware of, that anything like this actually happened. There were instances in the Bible where demons possessed people, and angels visited (even to this present day), fought for, and even protected ‘heirs of salvation’, but never even once did a spirit being create a body of flesh. With the exception of Jesus, being born of the Holy Spirit. God is the only One capable of doing such a thing. God is life; Satan is death. God is a creator; Satan has no creative ability, so can only pervert what is already there. Satan can only counterfeit and/or destroy.

This has to be a real stretch for even the most graphic imagination–to suggest that a ‘fallen angel’ would have (or ever has had) creative ability.

We’ll stay with the word of the Lord, that… everything creates ‘after his kind’.

This goes for natural AND spiritual.

EVERYTHING CREATES… ‘after its kind’.

A tree is a tree is a tree…

Me-thinks this may border on poetic… perhaps even prophetic. “A tree is a tree is a tree… and not other than a tree shall it be.”

Let’s get back to what Jesus said when explaining the parable of ‘the sower and the seed’. Jess said, “If you don’t understand this… HOW WILL YOU UNDERSTAND ANYTHING.” (Concerning the kingdom.) Illustrations of the kingdom of God were always given in parables. We need to understand the principle of ‘sowing and reaping’ or shall we say, ‘seedtime and harvest’.

The seed is the word.

The sower went forth to sow.

The sower went forth to sow “the word”.

The word ‘brings forth’… ‘of its kind’.

Our words will bring forth… after their own kind.

This is the purpose of this writing. I’m hoping to bring something forth… after its kind.

So, let’s work at keeping things running parallel. A continuity of thought. As the law of seedtime and harvest applies to the natural… the same law (sowing and reaping) or we could say, ‘saying and doing’, applies to the spiritual. First natural… then spiritual.

Don’t mix it up. Keep it straight. The LORD is very straight-forward when He says in Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.” And back in Leviticus 19:19 we read… “don’t sow your field with mingled seed.” I understand this to be natural but we’re remembering the words of Jesus, when He said… “the KINGDOM is as if a man were to cast seed.” Cast seed where? Into your heart. Your heart is your field, and the type of seed (good or bad) determines the type of harvest. And we don’t need a P. D. in Plant Biology to realize that the ‘growing’ will be greater than the ‘sowing’.

So, we translate or transpose, from the natural to the spiritual. We can do that. Jesus did it all the time. And the Apostle Paul said that the things that happened to Israel “in the flesh” happen to us “in the spirit” and again in 1 Corinthians 15:46… “that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.”

Think about it. Disobedience will lead to defeat and captivity, while obedience will lead to victory and liberty.

EVERYTHING CREATES AFTER ITS OWN KIND.

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A Year now

I still sense your presence in our favourite places.

Dear Sid, It’s been a year now. I made it through. So much to share with you. I’ve spoken aloud to you and wept many a time as our dear little Bear and I walked through mist, snow, or welcome shade in our favourite dog forest. Your stick still awaits you there, up against the fence.Sid's favourite dog forest

I stopped walking there every day because it made me too sad. Besides, in spring we went more often to Sebastian Beach to be warmed by the gentle sun. So glad you requested your ashes to be sprinkled there, where Bear and I go often anyway because it’s so near and dogs can run free. The scenery amazes me every time. If there’s a place on earth both of us would like to be forever, it’s there.

In winter I walked the beach listening to the crashing waves and sobbing, pouring out my heart to you in starts and stops. Sometimes I sat in the car observing the tumultuous sea and sky and letting the driving rain on the windshield wash away my sorrows. As summer came on, when the tide was out I walked barefoot on the sand as Bear ran back and forth, and then when it got really hot, I swam and thought of all the times we swam there together. You dove right in, urging me to join you. I still make my way in ever so slowly. But once in, it’s sooo nice. I remember all the fun we had together frolicking in the water and I miss you.

Plenty of love and support

You had lots of friends. The church people showered us with kindness, sending cards, emails, and calling with love and support from when you got that first spinal tumour, through the year and a half of pancreatic cancer, and even now a year later. Friends and relatives from afar posted notes and prayers on Facebook. Your biker friends (especially Dwight) offered many times to help. Nathaniel and I so appreciated him rounding up the gang to bring trucks and deliver boxes and smaller items to our new home (It’s a comfort having my son around. He misses you too.). Dwight is keeping your memory alive with an annual motorcycle trip to Osoyoos. You guys loved that route. Lake Chelan is still a no-go because of covid-19. Good thing you took those trips to the States while you could.

Your Viking dream finally came true.

A year now. Your childhood dream was to explore the world and discover new places (Viking heritage!). Disappointment struck when you learned the entire world had already been discovered. But a year ago you embarked on the greatest journey of discovery–into the heavens. What is it really like, Sid? I thought I might see you zooming from cloud to cloud on your motorcycle, but all I see is airplane trails. I wonder what you zoom around on up there in that realm that we can’t see from here. Angels have wings, right? But ghosts don’t need them. And what kind of musical instruments have you learned to play? Do you still have the warm singing voice that I loved? So glad to have those videos I can watch any time–almost like having you here for a moment. Watch “Sid Fredericksen, Father of Love” on YouTube

I’ll join you before long. Love and tears, Pearl

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Sid Fredericksen’s Heartfelt Musical Legacy

Sid FredericksenSid Fredericksen’s musical legacy began at an early age. He had music in his heart. In primary school, whenever the class lagged, the teacher asked, “Who would like to sing us a song?”. Sid jumped up right away, glad to entertain.

At home, his oldest sister, Marilyn, played the piano while the family gathered around to sing Christmas carols. His sisters had a phonograph and collected popular songs of the 40s and 50s.

As a teen, Sid got himself a guitar, and asked a lady who played to teach him. After a few lessons he was off and away, teaching himself. Eventually he and a few friends formed a band and played at dances in their little Norwegian settlement of Hagensborg in the Bella Coola Valley off the West Coast of Canada. One of the other players, Danny Epp, became a life-long best friend.

Sid traded up his guitar from time to time, and owned several over his lifetime. It was through his guitar playing, in a round-about way, that he became a Christian as an adult. As a child he had accepted Jesus at Vacation Bible School, but had not continued in a Christian lifestyle until in his thirties he was asked to play his guitar for a small church that had no musicians. The pastor was a co-worker with Sid on a road crew in a small interior community. While he attended church to play his guitar, the sermons went straight to Sid’s heart. Soon both he and his first wife, Elsie, committed themselves to Jesus. Sid wrote a couple of songs expressing the joy of his Christian life.

Later in life he bought a ukulele, which he loved to play for passersby on the Nanaimo sea walk to accompany his singing, alternated with a kazoo. Coffee houses for songwriters were popular on Vancouver Island, and for a few years Sid regularly played and sang at several of them. Later he joined a small group of musicians to sing and play hymns and choruses at Senior homes.

At the age of 76, Sid was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. With the end in sight, it became important to Sid to leave his signature on the world in the form of the musical gift God bestowed on him. He continued to learn more guitar fingering and to perfect his songs until he finally faltered.

You can listen to some of Sid Fredericksen’s musical legacy on YouTube, under Sid Fredericksen. Watch the spelling of Fredericksen–three ‘e’s and no ‘o’s.

Here’s a link to one he wrote, with wishes from Sid that you may also come to know his Father of Love, our Creator: https://youtu.be/oRmbqWbt_lo.

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Sid Fredericksen, Canadian Army Veteran

Sid Proudly Displayed His Veteran’s Plates

I sadly removed the veterans plates from my Ford Escape last month when I renewed my insurance. Veteran’s widows are not allowed to keep them on the car. But I only had to turn in one of them, so I have the other as a souvenir of Sid’s three years in the Canadian army.

Signing Up; A Life-Changing Commitment

In the late ’60s Sid and his brother worked on their cousin’s ranch in the Chilcotin Valley, a vast scenic plain between mountains in mid BC. Taking a break to sit on the fence and chat, their cousin noticed and came over to scold them.

“What are you doing sitting on the fence when you should be working?” he said.

Without thinking, Sid responded, “I’ve decided to join the army.”

His brother went along with it. “Yeah, me too.”

They shoved their few clothes into bags and off they went, south to Vancouver, to enlist; a life-changing commitment made on the spur of the moment. At the enlistment office, next to a beautiful beach, they went in separately for their individual interviews.

The officer scanned Sid’s application. Noticing his unstable, rather wild history, he looked dubiously at Sid. “What makes you think you want to join the army?”

Again Sid surprised himself by replying, “Because I need to learn discipline.”

That was just the right answer, and the officer signed him up on the spot.

Discipline; Physical Training as a Gym Instructor

Sid told me lots of stories of his army days. I suppose he learned some discipline (haha), but some of it was learned in the detention centre. Yes, my Sidney was about as wild as the horses that roam the Chilcotin.

They discovered that he had an interest and aptitude for learning about the physical body, and started him on training in medicine. He enjoyed learning all about muscles and bones, but beyond that he lacked academic discipline to study books.

So they put him in the tank division. He had very good aim for firing tanks and enjoyed that until he got bored of it.

One day he complained a little to the right person, who told him they needed someone to be a gym instructor. This was perfect for Sid. He proudly trained soldiers who subsequently fought in Viet Nam. He thrived on it, and was respected and well liked.

Sid loved to demonstrate to me how he ordered those guys around in exercise routines. He definitely had a knack for it. “Don’t ask the dog if he wants to go out! Tell him. Out, Bear, you little maggot!” he said when I asked the dog, “Do you want to go outside, Bear?”

They offered Sid the opportunity to go to Cypress, but he liked being a gym instructor and he liked Canada, so he passed up on that adventure. Later a friend who went to Cypress told him how he got bored there and shot at sheep on a hillside for something to do.

It was a Significant Phase of Sid’s Life

Just as suddenly as he joined up, three years later Sid quit the army. There was no apparent reason other than that it was time to move on. He returned to his cousin’s ranch. His three years in the army was a significant phase of Sid’s life; an integral part of him. His brother stayed in the army and had a lifetime career in refrigeration, which served him well.

On a sad note, Agent Orange, a deadly chemical, was released at the army base in Ontario when they were there. Many soldiers contracted various types of cancers as a result, which showed up later in life. His brother has suffered several types of cancer, but has had them removed and still lives. Sid was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in early 2019, and passed away from it July 28, 2020.

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Sidney Gordon Fredericksen March 17, 1943 – July 28, 2020

My dear Sidney passed away nearly a month ago already. I loved him so much, from the moment I first saw him.

Not that our relationship has been smooth–no, it’s been rocky. I could never have married a boring person, nice though he may be. Sid was the complete opposite of boring! Never a dull moment. Peaceful moments, yes, many. Our favourite times were mornings to ourselves in our quiet living room, with God and our little dog, Bear. We read our Bibles, often aloud to each other, discussed scripture and whatever else was on our minds. Sid played his guitar or ukulele and sang hymns and choruses. He didn’t mind my joining in although I was usually off key. He just made me feel good if I actually got it right. We praised God together, prayed for each other and others as God laid on our hearts.

I miss him so much. It’s still hard for me to come to his page on my website and write about him because his passing is still so recent. I will add more to his story in the future.

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Old People Can Forget Things; Sid’s anecdotes of Anahim Lake legend, Lester Dorsey

This story was told to me by my husband Sid, that was told to him by Lester’s oldest boy, Dave.

The weather has turned balmy, from 40 below to 20 below. Lester is fully dressed as he leaves the house to feed the cattle. Warm toque, woolen coat, woolen mitts. After the first stack yard, off comes the toque. After the second yard, off comes the mitts. After the third yard, off comes the coat. So after the cattle are all fed, he’s back home. Next day, same thing all over again, new hat, new coat, new mitts. End of the day, back to the house; next day he knows he’s gonna have to go through all that again, but now there’s an additional problem: where’s my teeth? Lester always kept his teeth in a glass beside his bed. So Dave tells me, when Lester got riled, you didn’t want to be around. So, as Steve and Mike were looking for Lester’s teeth, Dave walks out on the porch, and there’s the dog–munching away on Lester’s top plate! So Dave says to himself, “Yeah, I mean, I think I’ll go shoot some squirrels!”

Sid has related lots of Lester Dorsey anecdotes to me, and he says there may be more to come, if only he can remember them! He says, “They don’t come any tougher than Lester! He could take a boiling pot of coffee off of the stove and drink it right down!”

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From Trees to Pulpit in the Chilcotin Valley

It was quite a chilly morning as we stepped back out of the ‘bunk house’ and walked toward the pick-up truck to head out into the hills that day.

October in the Chilcotin is cool and crisp and when there’s a little frost at night the trees glisten like hundreds of candled Christmas trees as the rays of sunlight come streaming through the forest.  I had to smile to myself just a little as I thought how loggers are supposed to be so tough, and that only sissies and tourists are supposed to enjoy beautiful scenery.

George and my cousin Randy and I had been cutting trees for the local mill (actually it was Randy’s mill) and that day was especially exciting to me as I had run across a gorgeous clear ‘yellow cedar’ without knots, that I had a special plan for.  This was fir country and this ‘cedar’ was a long way from home.  I was some excited to discover it the day before.

It was common knowledge that our pastor was in need of a new pulpit as the old one had been pounded so much that it was developing a strange lean to it.  Both the pastor and the pulpit leaned to the same side so you never really knew if you were sitting up straight or not.  Something had to be done as some of the people were staring to complain of having a sore back.

I began to realize that there was no point in rebuking the devil for something that could be fixed by some ‘good ole’ common sense.  I myself was tired of tipping my head to one side so took it upon myself to rectify the situation.  “New pulpit,” I said.  Said it to myself that is.  Not everything has to go through the church board.

So as we drove into the hills that bright October day I had a special feeling of being personally involved with at least one of the trees I was going to fall that day.

As all the logs were loaded out and were slowly pulled off the mountain, it was hard to tell which one was special and I alone knew that one of the logs on that truck had a bright and eventful future, as it was going to be ‘in the ministry’.

A new, brightly varnished pulpit, for our pastor, in our little country church.

All that needed to be done now was to have this special log cut into special dimensions, have a skilled craftsman fashion it together… contrasting the glowing red fir (not too gaudy) with the warm yellow cedar.  A nice conservative pulpit for a nice conservative preacher (only a joke); yellow cedar with rich red fir trim.  Right on!

So in a few short weeks our pastor will be so blessed to have a beautiful desk to stand beside to bless his people with the ‘word of God’.

Be patient with me please, as I go along, dreaming of how splendid this piece of work will be.  I think that God–our creator–must be like this.  Planning our lives ahead of us.  Philippians 2:13 “for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.”

I’ve been thinking about this pulpit for some time now.  A place on the top for drinking water; maybe some flowers; also a drawer for pencils or whatever.  A small lip to keep Bible and notes from slipping off.  Alright already.  Enough already.

So here we go to church this one Sunday morning and… hey… new pulpit!

Do we see a tree here?  No way.  This is not seen or even thought of as being a tree.  There are no branches, no leaves, no nests, no bark, knots or pitch.

We never gave it a thought–that this was once a tree.  And if someone even suggested “what a lovely tree” you’d really wonder what ‘tree’ they had fallen out of.  This is a pulpit… no doubt about it.  Beautifully constructed, sanded and varnished; with our smiling, shining pastor standing erect, ready to bring us ‘the word’.

This is a pulpit, no doubt about that!  And we are also a ‘new creation’ in Christ, no doubt about that!

This pulpit is still wood but no longer considered to be a tree.  We are still human but should no longer be considered ‘sinner’.  Not by nature.  Not since we have been given a new nature.  II Peter 1:3-4  “according as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that has called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature…”

Man was created by God, in the image of God.  He was like God; and then fell.  At that point his nature was changed to a different nature.  He took on the sinful nature of Satan himself and needed not to change his mind but to change his nature.

Most houses are made of wood.  Now if you stood on the outskirts of town and looked this way: forest.  Then you turned and looked this way: house.  Is there a difference?  But because we can’t see into the spirit we don’t see change.  We look at a sinner and we think: sinner.  We look at a Christian and we think: sinner.  We don’t see a change on the outside so we don’t see that there has even been one.  Believe me (believe the Bible) there has been one.

Having our wrong nature (Adam’s) changed back into a right nature (Jesus’) is at least as different as a pulpit is from a tree.  II Corinthians 5:17-18  “therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new and all things are of God… ”  Read right through to the end of the chapter.  We can plainly see here that as surely as Jesus was made ‘to be’ sin, we have been made ‘to be’ righteous.

How was I made right by not doing right?  Well let me ask you this.  How was Jesus made wrong by not doing wrong?

I was born wrong–in Adam; and then was born again (right) in Jesus.

Jesus did no sin but received my nature (sin) that I might receive His nature (righteous).

How was this pulpit made into a pulpit?  Easy: by a carpenter.  Did this house just up and decide one day that it got tired of being a tree… standing in the cold and heat, day and night, with bugs and woodpeckers boring holes in it?  No; the carpenter made the decision and it was he who made the house.  It was he who made the pulpit.  It was He who made us.

God made you and I.  If we’ve been born again we’ve been born from above; born of His Spirit.  Quickened and made alive.  Not healed; raised.

We need to begin to see ourselves this way.  The way our father in heaven sees us.  Not to judge others ‘after the flesh’ or to even judge ourselves ‘after the flesh’, but to see things in the spirit.  “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the spirit is spirit.  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”  John 3:6-7