9/29/09...A day to remember

Yesterday was a wonderful day for a number of reasons. First, the weather was about as close to perfect as it could be. The early morning temperature was around 60 and it stayed in the mid to upper 70's for most of the day with a beautiful blue sky and low humidity. Second, my time in the office in the morning was unusually productive. Sometimes when I sit down to study and write, the ideas are as hard to grab as a greased pig at a county fair. At other times, everything flows like a beautiful mountain stream. Fortunately, it was the latter for me yesterday. Third, in the afternoon after lunch I had the pleasure of visiting in the homes of two of our older widow ladies from church. Being able to do this is one of the things I like best about my work as a minister. Of course, God says this is part of pure religion in James 1:27. But I just enjoy being in their homes, hearing their stories, getting to know one another better, and giving them some encouragement. Fourth, it was a great joy for me to assist a young couple in obeying God's will for their lives. They have been attending regularly and the husband called me yesterday to say that they were ready to obey the Gospel. At a little after 4 p.m., I baptized them both into Christ. His parents are long time members of the congregation. Everyone in the church family will be rejoicing when they hear. Fifth, I had the pleasure of accepting an invitation on Sunday from one of the couples in the church for supper last night. She prepared an excellent salad that had lettuce, sliced strawberries, almonds, avocado pieces and poppy seed dressing. I could have made a meal on that! But there was also baked salmon, baked potatoes, dinner rolls and homemade brownies with ice cream for dessert. It was excellent! I stayed and visited with them until 9 p.m. Sixth, when I left this couple's home, I checked my cell phone to find that I had missed a call from a couple who are great friends of our family from when we lived in Alvin, Texas. I called them back and they are going to be up here in Dallas this weekend for a wedding so they plan to come to Ennis to worship with us this Sunday morning. Also, the Arkansas Razorback vs. Texas A & M football game is at the new Cowboys Stadium in Arlington this weekend and several of our church friends from Springdale said that they would try to come to worship with us while they are here for the game.

So, 9/29/09 was an outstanding day. But then, every day is an outstanding day when you are in Christ and you know that you are part of the family of God. Hope everyone has an excellent day today!

Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1)

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1)

Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift! (2 Corinthians 9:15)

Exciting day ahead!

One of the efforts I am making in the church family here is to get out into the homes of as many of the members as I can so we can have a time to visit and get to know one another better. To help facilitate this I put a sign up sheet out each Sunday for folks to let me know when would be a good time to come. This past Sunday two of our widow ladies signed up for an afternoon visit for today and one of our couples signed up for an evening visit as well as inviting me to come to have supper with them. These visits would make the day exciting enough, but then I got a phone call early yesterday afternoon from a young man. His folks are long time members of the congregation. He and his wife have attended sporadically in the past but they have been attending regularly since I came to Ennis. They are both professional people, probably in their late 20's or early 30's. He called to ask if I was busy on Tuesday evening. My first thought was that they wanted to have me over to their home for a visit. When I explained that I had plans with the couple for supper and a visit in their home, he asked if we could work out a time for them to come to the church building because he and his wife had been talking a lot over the past few weeks and they have decided to be baptized. I nearly fell out of my chair! I told him how excited I was that they made this decision and to pick out a time that would be convenient for them and I would make it work. So they are coming at 4 p.m. to be baptized into Christ. I am looking forward to announcing that to the church this Sunday. Everyone will be thrilled!

There is a nice nip in the air this morning. My car thermometer had a reading of 61 degrees but it felt even cooler than that. After 95 degrees on Sunday afternoon, this feels mighty good to me! There are even a few trees around here that are starting to show some autumn colors.

Since my afternoon and evening are booked up, I had better close this and get as much done as I can this morning. God bless you!

I'm baaaaccckkk!

If you have never seen the old Poltergeist movies, then the title above may not make any sense to you. Get the movies and watch the whole series and then you will understand. These days we all have so much spare time that you will undoubtedly be able to work that into your schedule soon (Ha,ha!).
I am back in Ennis from my trip to Arkansas last week. It was an excellent trip but so busy that I did not have a chance to write any blogs while I was there. On Monday evening I got home just in time for a nice thunderstorm. On Tuesday morning I met with the Washington County Board of Equalization in an effort to get them to revise the valuation on our house for tax purposes; they said they will take it under advisement and let us know something soon. Later in the morning I visited with some folks at the Robinson Avenue church office. In the evening we had dinner with friends and then later a visit with other friends in their home. On Wednesday morning I had a chiropractor appointment and had to take my car to get an oil change. In the evening, Merilyn and I went to a home Bible study with some friends. On Thursday morning I took Merilyn's car for an oil change. In the evening I met with my Thursday evening Bible study group. In between all of these things I was staying busy trying to get ready for a garage sale which we had on Friday morning. As things slacked up a bit around noon I got a bite of lunch and then did yard work for the rest of the afternoon. In the evening we went to dinner with friends and then to the Springdale High vs. Har-Ber High football game. On Saturday morning we got everything wrapped up from the garage sale, got my laundry done, and got packed up to come back to Texas. It was a busy, busy week but Merilyn and I got a lot done and we surely enjoyed the opportunity to visit with friends and family while I was in Springdale.
We had good Bible study and worship times in the Ennis church yesterday. Several of our folks were absent with some going to a congregation in Duncanville for a missions meeting and others involved in activities at the Texas Motorplex just outside of town for the NHRA Fall Nationals drag racing competition. I had a great surprise in the evening as Mary Ellen Cate from Springdale was with us for worship. She is down here in Waxahachie visiting her sons Rick and Mark and their family. It was a treat to see her.
Fall is definitely coming. Even down here in Texas you can feel a bit of a cool nip in the air in the early morning. As I went up through Oklahoma and Arkansas last week it was evident that the trees are starting to get a tinge of autumn color. God is good to us. Be thankful for His many abundant blessings every day!

The heavens are telling the glory of God and the firmament proclaims His handiwork. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. (Psalm 19:1-4)

On the road again

This morning I will head back to Arkansas for a visit with Merilyn, Sarah and Blake, to meet with my Thursday night Bible study group, and to meet with the Washington County Equalization Board. It has been a busy weekend and Sunday. On Thursday, we had the funeral for the brother who passed away early last week and in the evening a group of us went to the Eastern European Missions dinner at the Hilton Lincoln Center in Dallas. On Friday I worked in the office most of the day except for going to the emergency room at the local hospital to see one of our men who was taken ill. They finally determined he had a blood clot in a lung, started him on anticoagulant therapy and sent him to Baylor in Dallas. He is doing much better now. I worked in the office again on Saturday since I will be in Arkansas most of this week. It was a nice surprise on Saturday morning when I heard back from a couple who I had called on Friday to see if I could come to visit them. They have been visiting in our worship for the past several weeks and are not members. They invited me for supper Saturday evening and we talked about their desire to become members of the church. We will have some Bible study time together so they can understand God's teaching about what it means to become a disciple and then see what they decide. Sunday was a good day with attendance continuing to improve and new visitors coming. The members of the congregation are excited and enthusiastic as they see good things happening. The church members are telling me continually how glad they are that I have come to work with them. Of course, that is encouraging and makes me feel good. It is most encouraging to see how they are responding to the preaching and teaching of God's Word.

It is just about time for me to start heading north to Arkansas. I'm not sure how many more entries I will have this week but I will try to have another one or two and then get back on a regular schedule starting next Monday. God bless!

Each new day is an opportunity to start all over again...to cleanse our hearts and minds anew and to clarify our vision. And let us not clutter up today with the leavings of other days. (author unknown)

Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining forward to what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14)

Busy days!

Yesterday I had planned to go to the noon Lion's Club meeting and be installed as a new member, but with the funeral preparations, going to get acquainted with the funeral home and all the other things that needed to be done, I called my sponsor and asked that we postpone for a few weeks since I am going to be in Arkansas most of next week.
When I stepped outside this morning it was raining again. It was not a great surprise after watching the weather report last night. This pesky low pressure system has been circulating over Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma since last Thursday, drawing moisture up from the Gulf of Mexico and dumping it throughout the area. The weather reporter I watched last night said some meteorologists are calling this type of system a "landphoon" because it is similar to a typhoon.
Today will be another busy one with the funeral this morning, work in the office this afternoon and then this evening I will be going with a group from church to a dinner for Eastern European Missions up in Dallas.
We all have busy lives these days, don't we? That just seems to be part of what it means to be a member of American society. No matter what is happening in your life or how busy you get, always remember Who comes first.

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. (Colossians 3:1-4)

Some mundane and some vitally important

Yesterday morning the rains finally stopped and by evening we had the first view of a clear blue sky since last Wednesday. One of our elders stopped by the office and said his rain gauge showed over 11 inches at his house. From what I see on the weather news and from what Merilyn tells me, it seems that this rain system has moved up into Arkansas over the past few days. The weather reporter I watched last night said that it looks like the whole system is now going to back up and give Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas and Oklahoma another dose!
In the afternoon I got to meet with the family of the gentleman who passed away on Monday. She is a strong woman and is fortunate to have an excellent support system of family and Christian family who will help her through the days ahead. Still, I can't imagine what it would be like to go home to an empty house after 61 years of marriage. She told me yesterday, "I've never been alone. I lived with my parents until we got married and we've been together ever since." There is a couple here in the church who both lost their spouses back in the 1990's then married one another. They carry out an excellent grief recovery ministry by sharing with those who have lost loved ones two books and four booklets over the course of the first year after the death. I hope these materials will help Bobbie.
In the evening I kept my schedule clear because I had to do laundry. It was not that I needed to do laundry...I had to do laundry, if you get my drift. While in the apartment complex's laundromat I met an interesting fellow named Abdul who was wearing the long, flowing garments of a man who is obviously of Middle Eastern origin. He is from Palestine. He is here from Detroit, separated from his family, and working down here because he lost his job up there. I have found that situation to be more and more prevalent in the current economy.
I just got a phone call a few minutes ago from a friend named Tom in Fayetteville, AR who found out yesterday afternoon that he has multiple myeloma. Tom is probably around 40, married, and has two young daughters. He said it's a good news, bad news type of scenario. The bad news is that it is multiple myeloma, but the cancer is stage one so they have caught it early. The doctor there wants him to go to UAMS in Little Rock for evaluation and treatment because one of the top doctors in the nation for treating myeloma is there. Please remember this fine Christian man in your prayers. He has great faith and a great attitude, determined to fight and win this battle.
Thanks for reading. I appreciate the comments, emails and Facebook messages that many of you leave. If you would, share my blog address with anyone who you think may be interested in reading. God bless you today!

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37-39)

Going to and fro throughout the land

I spent a good part of the day yesterday at the Baylor Medical Center in Dallas after receiving a call that the doctors caring for one of our elderly gentlemen advised the family to remove life support. All of their four children were able to be there as well as most of the nine grandchildren. He was 81 years old and enjoyed a marriage of nearly 62 years with his surviving wife. They have been strong, faithful members of the church. It was good to see them rely on their faith, knowing that Robert's suffering was over and he was going to be with the Lord. For several hours before they removed the life support, it was touching to watch the family members talking to him and saying their final good-byes. There were tears and there was laughter. Robert loved singing and was a song leader at church for many years. One of the daughters said, "Daddy, later on today you will get to hear the angels singing in Heaven." What a great thought!
After returning from Dallas, I was able to get some things done in the office. Since the weather has been so rainy I went over to get my exercise on the treadmill at the home of one of our elders. They have been so gracious and helpful since I have come to Ennis. When I got done I got supper at my apartment, got cleaned up and went to Corsicana to visit a gentleman who has been coming to visit in our worship assemblies for the past month or so. He seems to be a great guy who is having some tough times. He is striving to be a faithful member of the church but is going through a divorce after over 25 years of marriage. I hope my visit was an encouragement to him. As an aside, he has a cat that looks remarkably like my mother's cat, a beautiful gray coat with white markings on its feet and chest. It was a feral cat that was captured and adopted with quite a story behind it as they worked to tame it over the course of many months. It has the greenest eyes that I have ever seen. They almost seemed luminescent. But the feral may not be totally out of it yet. It is very playful. Several times while I was petting it, it wanted to start clawing and biting. At one point as we were talking, the man said, "Cat!", in a sharp tone of voice. I looked around and the cat was on the back of the sofa twitching its tail a few feet away from my head. He said he thought it was getting ready to pounce on my head!
While I was in Corsicana I called Merilyn. You may remember the Collins Street bakery where they make their famous fruitcake is in Corsicana. They usually have an ad in the Sunday newspapers Parade magazine all over the country as Christmas approaches. I asked her since I was down there I would be glad to try to find the place and buy her some fruitcake. She said, "No." Can you imagine turning down such an excellent offer?!
Hope you have a good day today. God bless you!

And the rains came...and came...and came...

Last Thursday I was delighted with the weather forecast that we had an 80% chance of rain. The area south of Dallas has been mighty dry for the past 6 weeks or so. The weather reporter I watched mentioned that there was a low pressure system out in the Gulf of Mexico and if it moved onshore it might increase our chances of rain over the weekend. Well, it moved onshore, parked over north-central Texas and has been pumping moisture/rain into our area ever since Thursday evening. I have not heard a definite total for Ennis but surrounding locations have had from 8 to 12 inches so far and it is still coming down steadily as I write this.
There have been quite a few interesting experiences since my last entry. On Thursday evening I drove 6-7 miles south of town to visit one of our older ladies on the farm where she has lived since 1961 when she and her late husband moved there to work the land. She even made chocolate pie since she knew I was coming. She is a vivacious lady, full of life and good humor. Her place is beautiful. The driveway is about 100 yards long, lined with crepe myrtles. Up around the house is like a cornucopia of all kinds of flowers, ornamental plants and shrubs. She was feeding her cat when I drove up so we stood out in the yard for a while as I admired all of the beauty. Then here came a beautiful dove with mottled white plumage and literally landed right at our feet and within 4-5 feet from the cat. When I expressed my surprise at the dove coming so close, she said it's been coming around for quite a while because it wants to get whatever scraps of dry food that the cat does not eat. So far the cat has not tried to have dove for dessert.
On Friday morning Adam drove up from College Station and we went to El Centro College in downtown Dallas to watch one of his good friends graduate from the Dallas Police Academy. The mayor and other city leaders were there. Adam thought that former president George W. Bush was going to give the graduation address but it turned out to be the special agent in charge of the Dallas field office of the Secret Service. It was an impressive ceremony. Afterward we got to spend the evening with Joe and his wife. They are both Aggies who graduated with Adam last December.
On Saturday Adam was going to go back to Aggieland but during our visit with Joe, they decided we would get together on Saturday to watch some of the big football games up at Joe's place on the north side of Dallas. On our way up there Adam took me by the Dallas police headquarters and the place where JFK was shot by Oswald. We enjoyed a good "man day" with football, chips and dips and grilling out. There were some amazing football games: Houston & Oklahoma State, USC & Ohio State, Michigan & Notre Dame. Then the Cowboys won on Sunday. Good stuff!
We enjoyed another good Sunday with the church. I have just gotten a call that one of our members who is in Baylor Medical Center in Dallas is going to be removed from life support so I am going up there to be with the family. He has been struggling for a long time so it will be a blessing for him to pass on, but it is always hard. Be thankful for all the blessings that God gives you today, especially the times and contacts that you can have with your family and loved ones.

Another day older

How does the old song go? Another day older and deeper in debt? That's probably true for me right now, but God gives so many good blessings all the time that there's no need to be worrying about it. My birthday turned out to be an excellent day with many Facebook greetings, emails and phone calls from family and friends. It was a busy and productive day in the office. At noon, one of our members took me to the Noon Lions Club and I submitted my application to join. Many of the leaders of the community are in the club so it will be a good place to get to know people and be involved in the city. I went out for my afternoon exercise to the Lions Club Park, a fairly new project that is a great addition to the community. There is a 1/2 mile walking/jogging trail around a small lake with birds, turtles and other stuff to look at while exercising. It was good , but still hot! It was 95 while I was out there, which is borderline for me to go outside. In the evening I had supper with the youth group at church. During the school year the youth workers provide a meal for the group before Wednesday night Bible study. They sang "Happy Birthday" to me and we enjoyed the time together. After a good adult Bible class where I began teaching on the subject "How We Got The Bible," I had an excellent meeting with the elders as we are making plans for some special events in the next 6-8 months and discussing how we can continue the good progress that is happening.
God continues to bless us abundantly. Focus your heart and mind on the good things, not the bad. Count your blessings, not your troubles. Have a great day!

Happy Birthday to me!

Wow! In my younger years, I thought I would never make it to 39 years old...or is it 49 today? OK, OK, I'm 56 today and proud of it! God has given me many wonderful years years to enjoy, especially with the blessing of my wife, our children (including Blake, our new son-in-law), our parents and our extended family. Life is good!
Speaking of Blake, it sounds like he may have the flu. Sarah says he has been running a pretty high fever and feeling rotten. He stopped a car last week for running a stop sign or red light (I can't remember which). When he approached the car, he noticed several sick looking people in the car and a sack from a pharmacy. The woman driver was crying so Blake asked her what was wrong. She said, "We all have the swine flu!" He backed off, told her to be more careful and let her go, but I suppose he could have picked up a bug even from that. He's got a doctor appointment today. Keep him in your prayers and Sarah, too, that she won't get sick.
Yesterday my doctor friend and elder took me to lunch at the local hospital. I got to meet several doctors and other staff folks. He took me into the doctor's lounge where I saw a remarkable machine. It is a portable Starbucks machine that will make quite a variety of coffee drinks, grinding the beans as it does so, as well as making hot cocoa. I've seen cartoons before about how there are so many Starbucks, you may have one show up in your living room. Maybe that's not too far-fetched!
There's a busy day ahead so I better shut this down and get to work. Hope you have an excellent day today. Always keep God first!

But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day. (Matthew 6:33-34)

Great weekend, Sunday and Labor Day

What was so great about it?, you may ask. For me the great thing was that Merilyn got to come to Ennis, arriving around 2:30 p.m. Saturday and staying until around 11 a.m. on Monday. Before she arrived I fortunately had time to get the apartment cleaned up and straightened up. I have to admit that I tend to slip back into "bachelor mode" a little bit, if you get my drift. Of course, Merilyn brought Mollie, our new little Maltese puppy, with her. She's a lot of fun, but those puppy teeth sure are sharp! We didn't do anything big...just enjoyed being together, watched some football and NASCAR on TV, and ran around Ennis and Waxahachie some. Yesterday (Monday) was our 35th wedding anniversary. Although Merilyn had to leave to go back to Springdale in the late morning, we were glad that we could at least be together for part of the day. Adam, Sarah and Blake all seem to be doing well so we have many blessings for which to be thankful.
The church had an official "Welcome" fellowship for us on Sunday while Merilyn was here. Even though it was the Labor Day holiday, we had good attendance in worship and an excellent turn-out for the fellowship meal. As part of the welcome, the church presented me with the gift of a nice microfiber love seat to put in my office. My office here is bigger than what I had in Springdale so the love seat is a great addition and it goes great with the new paint job in the office as well as my other office furnishings.. Everyone in the church family here really seems to be excited and happy that I am here to work with them. A number of folks have told me over the course of the past month that they were afraid that I was going to take the job in Honolulu. It was a tough decision, but I believe I am where the Lord wants me right now. As the past few years have taught me, who knows what the future will bring? The only one who knows is God. God has demonstrated many times that as long as we will follow Him in faith, He will give us the guidance and blessings we need at the proper time. Faith certainly does not mean the pathway is always easy, but we know that it is always best.
Have a great day!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. (Proverbs 3:5-8)

More eating, Part 2

I thought some of you may be interested in an article from the Dallas Morning News yesterday. It appeared in the "Metro" section, discussing the new fried food items to be found at the State Fair of Texas from 9/25 to 10/18. You have probably heard of the old favorites that have been battered and deep-fried: fried Twinkies, fried bacon, fried Snickers, fried cookie dough, and fried peanut butter-jelly-banana sandwich. Now comes these new items: fried butter (Yes! The guy takes a golf ball size scoop of butter, freezes it, batters it and fries it!), fried sweet potato on a stick, fried peaches, fried pecan pie, and fried peanut butter cup macaroon. Yummy! It makes my stomach turn and arteries clog just thinking about it!

Come to the State Fair and enjoy!

More eating

After what I wrote yesterday I thought to myself, "I've got to start watching what I eat more carefully." Well, that didn't last too long. Let me explain why. On Sunday I met a couple who were church visiting for the first time. They moved here from southern California a few years ago after he retired from Lockheed Martin and she retired from writing government defense contracts. Their visit was the first time they had ever been in a worship assembly for the church. I called them on Tuesday to see if I could come to their home for a visit. They were very receptive to the idea but she explained that she was having elbow surgery on Thursday (today) so I suggested that I would call one day next week to see about setting a time. She called back and asked if I could come on Wednesday evening. I told her we had Bible class at 7 p.m. but I could come before or after. She said her husband got home at 6:15 and asked if I could come then so we agreed on that. As the afternoon progressed I decided to go out around 3:30 for my exercise so I would have time to get my workout, cool down, shower and have supper before the appointment. Everything worked out according to plan. I enjoyed some excellent leftovers of grilled pork chop, a nice serving of mashed potatoes, and some of the green bean/tomato/artichoke dish that Adam sent home with me last Saturday. Soon after I arrived at the couple's home she said, "I bet you didn't even have time to eat so I have fixed us some sandwiches and chips for supper." What could I say? We all sat down and I had my second supper of the evening. We enjoyed a great visit. They have indicated interest in private Bible study as well as continuing to visit with us so I have high hopes that they will become members of the church. After leaving them, I went immediately to our Family Life Center because were having the annual event of a Back-To-School-Bash ice cream supper for our students. It was an excellent event. Of course, as soon as I arrived, people were pushing me toward the line where those serving kept saying, "Here, have some of this," and "You've got to try this." It was all good, but I was starting to experience caloric overload!

Maybe I can get back to some semblance of normalcy in my diet today. God bless!

Settling in

The process continues. On my top three list of least favorite things to do are: 1) Painting the house, indoors or outdoors; 2) Wallpapering (glad that is not in style anymore!); 3) Moving. Since it has been quite a while since we moved, that item had slipped to the #3 position, but I may have to bump it up one or even two spots. All in all, things have been going pretty well with my transition from Springdale to Ennis. Over the course of the past week, I've gotten nearly all of my boxes unpacked in the office and most of the books and other things are in the shelves where they belong. The apartment is coming along as well. I've gotten curtains hung, bought most of the cleaning and maintenance supplies, and laid in enough provisions to keep myself fed. But I tell you what...the church folks here are feeding me so well that I may have to increase my exercise program! Here's what has happened this week beginning on Sunday. One of the couples took me for Sunday lunch to the Grand Buffet Restaurant, an oriental food all-you-can-eat place that lives up to its name. In the evening I went to Wendy's with a group from church where someone else bought my supper. On Monday I had my usual lunch at the apartment. In the evening, a couple had me over for a great supper of salad, homemade chicken pot pie and topped off with chocolate cream pie. On Tuesday one of the elders called just before lunch and asked if I was free for lunch. I was so he took me to Jimmy's, a neat pizza/Italian restaurant downtown in an old bank building. I got two slices of pepperoni, thinking that wouldn't be too much. They were huge! Those two slices would have been a whole small pizza anywhere else. In the afternoon, I went to visit one of the couples in their home. She had made a beautiful fresh strawberry pie and asked if I would like a piece. I couldn't say "no" since she went to all that trouble and all, could I? I am surely not complaining. Everyone, church folks and town folks, has been so nice and welcoming that it is truly a pleasure to be here. Even though Merilyn and I do not like the situation of having to be separated right now, we are grateful for the blessings which God continues to provide for us.

Thanks for reading. Have a great day!

Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

Ever wonder what a preacher does on Monday?

Yesterday was a full day. Here is rundown of my activities for the day:

• Arrived at the office at 7:30 a.m.; logged onto computer and wrote blog
• Reviewed visitor cards from Sunday morning and other paperwork on desk and set list of things to do for the day; asked secretary to send welcome letters to visitors
• Reviewed and wrote email
• Visited with various folks who came into office throughout the day
• Began sermon preparation for next Sunday
• Made phone calls to Arkansas to try to take care of tires for Merilyn's car and ask for help from friends to see after the lawn and check out inoperable lawnmower
• Continue unpacking and arranging office
• Go to lunch then to post office to get church mail and to Wal-Mart to exchange curtains for apartment
• Work on church bulletin ideas and content
• Visit with a lady asking for benevolent help and make arrangements to get her some food
• Begin figuring out how to deal with people who are dumping their junk at a Medina Children's Home donation box at the back of the church parking lot
• Go to one of the elder's home to use their treadmill for my after work exercise
• Back to the apartment to shower and get ready for the evening activities
• Go to the home of one of the couples from church for supper and then go with them to visit another family who has been visiting at church
• Back to the couple's home for more conversation and visiting; really interesting as the husband has a family Bible that traces ancestors back to 1792
• Back to my apartment around 9 p.m. to catch the last of Monday Night Football, read newspaper, talk to family on the phone and get ready for bed

This is not what happens every day in the office, but it is pretty close. The life of a minister is quite a bit busier than lots of people think it is, but I know that is true for most people and the everyday activities in their careers. I am grateful to be able to work as a minister in the Lord's church. There is nothing else I would rather do.

Thanks for reading. Leave a comment any time you would like. God bless you today!

Never let adversity get you down...except on your knees. (Author unknown)