Travel

Basically I do not like to travel. I like to stay in familiar territory. This year I will be traveling a lot. Lord willing, I will fly out to California and spend 2 weeks with my brother in April. In June we will travel to Spokane Washington for the ABA meeting. In October we will fly to Paris to visit the mission work there. In May we will travel to Texarkana, Arkansas for the pre-association meeting. In June we will be going to Mississippi for a wedding. We will be making trips to Palestine Texas to prepare for our daughter's wedding and will, no doubt, be traveling there to visit her occasionally. I am glad that God has given me the abillity to travel and will do so as He deems best. As I am writting this I am in Henderson, Texas visiting with Janie's parents. I was able to visit with my parents and my grandchildren as well. It has been a good time and I am ready to go back home to Hillsboro.
I have added 400 more calaries per day to my hiking food. This brings me up to 1900 calaries per day. Will look at this closer again before I leave to see if I can add at least another 100 calaries to my diet. They say you burn 5000 cal. a day on the trail and I believe that. I have purchased some socks and will test them on my 2 day 40 mile hike. The object of the sock is to keep you feet dry and comfortable.
Well I am leaving for Hillsboro and home now, God bless you.

Food

Food is a high priority for me. I have known hunger and did not like it. That is why I like to read the Bible every day. I do not want to be hungry. When you are hungry, you are weak. When you are hungry you lack the energy and drive to serve. You cannot fight battles as well when you are hungry. When you have eaten you are ready to go to work. That is why I feast every day on God's holy word. Milk is good, milk is easy but if that is all you have to eat you will be malnurished. It takes a little more work to eat meat. You have to cook it and you have to chew it. You have to have taken care of your teeth so you can chew it. It takes longer to eat meat than to drink milk but the time is well worth the effort.

I planned the meals and snacks that I will eat while hiking in April. Right now I have planned about 1500 calaries a day. I suspect I will add to this another 500 calaries before I go. I try to have a little bit of every thing so it is balanced but some things do not lend themselves to hiking. I will finalize my food plans right before I leave and hope my plans are good. Pictured is a sack of trail mix which is of my own making, cashews, M&M's, raisins, and dried pineapple. This is about 500 calaries a cup, good energy food. God bless you.

The tent has been set up and seam sealed. Setup was very easy even by myself. The wind was blowing a little bit and I thought that might give me some problem but it did not. It was 82 degrees out side and sunny, just the kind of weather I like in February. The seam sealer says to let it dry for 3 hours so I will take it down this evening. I am very pleased with this tent for now but a few nights on the trail will tell the story. I am going to go to the store tonight and get the food for the hike and have that finished up. There is plenty of room for 2 people in this tent even as big as I am. I have to put the clothes lines in place before I take it down and then it will be ready for the trail. God bless you.

Birthday

Janie's birthday today. My son-in-law to be was the first to wish her a happy birthday on her birthday showing my daughter and myself up. My daughter followed by me were next. Janie looks better to me now than when we first met.
There are some exciting things happening at WSBC. We have baptized three so far this year and will baptize 2 more next Sunday. It is wonderful to see God moving and people responding. If my memory serves me correctly the most we have ever baptized in a year while I have been pastor here was 5. We will have tied this record by this time next week. Baptism is an act of discipleship and it is good to see so many wanting to be disciples of Jesus Christ. I earnestly believe that my having repented of my sin and getting back into the will of God has allowed God to bless us. I hate to think that I was the cause of God withholding blessings. I am determined to no longer say no to the Holy Spirit of God. I will do those things he leads me to do. God bless you.

Moving on

The funeral went well today. There was a large crowd of people there and the Gospel of Jesus Christ was preached. The ladies of our church out did themselves in preparing a meal for the family. After it was over life moved on. I attended a seminary class in a tiny church building here in town. There were four students and the first class was a study in the book of Hebrews. The teacher seemed to know his subject very well. A preacher friend of mine preached in the next session and did a great job. It was very enjoyable and I believe that God was in that place. Maybe that was why I enjoyed it so.

My day off

The Lord, after creating the heavens and the earth and everything contained therein, took a day off. I try to be obedient to this example and command but am not always successful. Today I met with four other pastors in town and enjoyed the fellowship. We exchanged horror stories and funny experiences. I enjoyed discussing the Scriptures with them and look forward to our next meeting. The family and friends of our departed Sister in Christ will gather in a few moments to encourage one another. The longer I pastor here the harder the funerals become. I have gotten to know them and their families, their likes, their dreams, their hopes. I have fallen in love with the members of my congregation and when they pass on I miss them. I find myself often thinking about them and longing to see them again. I have come to the end of my day off and look back to find that I have been doing the work which God has called me to do. Is it ok that I still see it as a day off, will God count it as such? God bless you.

Angels have come again

One of our church members was escorted by angels to the paradise of God today. The family will mourn as will our church. She will be missed.

I was able to get some work done on the sermon for Sunday. I plan to preach from John 16:16-24. Had a good lunch with the Ladies Bible Study group today. They were celebrating Janie's birthday. Our parking lot at the church looks like a football field on Friday night. They fixed the street lights and it sure looks good. God bless you.

A little bit of everything

Today was a day filled with a little bit of everything; study, visitation, exercise, Bible reading, cleaning. One of the things that needed to be done before the hike was to load the maps and tracks related to the trail onto my GPS and that has been done now. I have made a of list of things that I must get done before my vacation and bloging is not on that list so I better go. God bless you.

Baptism

A young lady, saved recently, joined our church yesterday and will be baptized next Sunday. This will be the third person we have baptized this year. It is so wonderful to see the Lord working. Baptizing believers who want to be disciples of Jesus Christ is one of the commands of Christ that we love to keep. We need to be on our guard and be vigilant to follow up with another of our Lord's commands and that is to teach them to observe all things He has commanded. This take sacrifice on our part. It takes a sacrifice of our time to stay in contact with them and to spend time with them so that they might be encouraged for the Devil will do his all to keep them from following Christ. The picture is of me baptizing my daughter-in-law when I pastored at Gum Springs Missionary Baptist Church.

I placed a survey on this blog and will try to keep this up. If you have not voted please do. This particular question is one I love to ask. "Are you a gapper?" This argument has been around for years and I believe that two of my fellow pastors have about gotten it worked out. We shall see. I am off to the nursing home for a visit there and then will go by and get my wife to visit a few others in their homes. I expect this to be a very productive week so I better get to work. God bless you.

It is Finished

The tent is finished except for seam sealing. I folded and put it into the sack I made for it and added the tent stakes and took it to the scales. I was a little disappointed. My one man tent with steaks weighed 42 oz's. This 2 man tent with stakes weighs, drum roll please......... 32 oz's.

The stakes weigh close to 3 oz's so the tent without the stakes weighed just a hair over 29 oz's. I could remove the door flap and the foot flap but I estimate that they would weigh just a hair over 1 oz. For the convience of the flap I think the weight is worth it for now. I can always discard them when we get to Warner Springs, California. I am glad to have this project behind me. When the weather dries up here in a few days I will set up the tent and seam seal it. There will be a picture posted here after it is set up. My brother suggested setting it up at night by flash light in the event we want to hike into the night as we cross the desert. I will let you know how that comes out. Practice makes perfect and the trail is no place to practice. Now its off to the grocery store to get the food for the hike. Mounting my umbrella to my back pack will be my next project, should not be much problem. Cothing is ready and I have decided not to wear socks on my feet when I sleep. My down bag will be plenty warm enough. I carried some warm socks for sleeping in when I hiked last year and was glad I did for my sleeping bag was too lite. This will save an ounce or so.

Well tomorrow is Sunday and I look forward to our services. We had a good cleaning day at the church today and the new floor in the fellowship hall looks great. Our music/youth director will have completed 6 years at Walnut Street on Sunday after next. We are going to have a fellowship in his honor. He is really good at his work. He has a great personality and loves the Lord. I look forward to many many more years serving with him here, Lord willing.

Well I am headed for bed. I will rise at 6:00 am and visit with the Lord in prayer and review the Sunday School lesson and the sermon all before breakfast. God bless you.

Robert Burns

Robert Burns said it right, "The best laid plans of mice and men often go Awry." Well my last post got shot all to pieces. We will not be going to Tyler or Henderson today. That is the way of things in the ministry. My schedule is constantly in a state of flux. I may need to stop posting what I think I will do in the future and restrict my comments to the things of the past. God bless you.

Visitation

Its off to visitation today. We will head down to Waco this morning to visit at the hospital there and then we will head over to Tyler to visit there and then to Henderson to visit there. We will return to the house tonight and close the day with a visit with Job. I am starting the book of Job today and I want to read it looking for things that his friends said that were true, especially about God.

During the 7 hours we spend driving today I will get to visit with my song of songs. Her birthday is coming up soon and if I could grant her what she really wants she would get a visit from all the her children and her grandchildren on her birthday. But since our son and his family are in France and our oldest daughter and her family will be gone in view of a call somewhere and our youngest.... well she's in love, we will celebrate alone. God bless you.

OOPS

I have been working on my tent today and it was going well. I sewed the front wall to the roof and then carried the tent back to the table to pin and get ready to sew the back wall to the roof. the tent is just a big wad of material at this point and I did not stretch it out to make sure I was pining it correctly. I sewed the back wall to the roof and then took it back to the table to get ready to sew the side walls to the roof. When I stretched it out the floor was twisted so Janie ripped the seam out for me and now it is ready to re-sew. Just a small set back but frustrating. This is a picture of the tent I am trying to make. It is very light, 28oz.

I have enjoyed my day off and tomorrow I will be going down to Waco to visit at the hospital and then over to Tyler to check on my father in the ministry. Suppose to visit with my youngest daughters future in-laws on Saturday and am looking forward to that.

I plan to preach from the book of Nehemiah Sunday on the subject of worship. Well I am going back to the sewing mahine now. God bless you.

CLICKABLE 2

Here is the other picture that I was not able to include in CLICkABLE below.

CLICKABLE

My daughter requested that I make the two pictures at the top of the left column CLICKABLE.
By this term she means that by clicking, a word which is derived from the sound that a mouse, not the furry animal but the computer input device, makes when one of its switches is depressed, on the picture it enlarges to allow a closer look. So here are the "CLICKABLE" pictures. God bless you.

Funeral Business meeting

The main local funeral home is under construction and they occasionally have to borrow our auditorium for a service. We had one this afternoon and it was unusual to me. It seemed like a combination of funeral and business meeting. They had an adjenda, resolutions, A time for reflections, special music, and a sermon. I liked it. The preacher led the family into the auditorium while reading aloud from the Bible.

We worked out the details today that needed to be taken care of for us to be able to have Jason and family seen live on the big screen in the auditorium. We will be able to see and hear them live from Paris, France. We also will be able to speak to them. We plan to do this one Sunday morning so that the church can get to see them. Skype is a wonderful thing.

Well I must run to Waco for a Bible Study with the Faith Missionary Baptist Church. I enjoy this study and visit with them very much. God bless you.

13 chapters and 4 miles

I read 13 chapters in 2 Chronicles and walked my 4 miles. After taking 4 days off from walking that 4 miles was a bit rough. Hopefully nothing will keep me from my walks each day this week. Janie has gone to Curves and that is a good thing for her. Exercise is great and should be practiced by all. I plan to rest this evening and spend some time on the tent. Going to straiten up the guest room so I can mess it up with my hiking gear. Have started spreading my gear out to take inventory. It is only 2 months to the hike and there is much to do. The coordinates of the major points on the trail will need to be put into the GPS. The food needs to be bought and repackaged. Trail mix must be made and divided into daily servings. Main meals need to be determined and made ready. Clothing choices are fairly simple for I will dress in layers and at any one time I might be wearing virtually every article of clothing I brought at the same time. I need to choose what socks I am going to wear and that is about all that is left. The picture is of my gear last year. Have learned a lot and my gear this year will be much lighter! God bless you.

Baptism and Giving

Baptized two at church today and preached a sermon on discipleship from the book of Acts. There was a good crowd there to see this couple begin a life of discipleship. Met with a young couple this afternoon and it was good to them desiring to do God's will. I preached on giving this morning from Mark 12:41-44. If my Sunday School continues to grow we may have to move to the auditorium or split. I prefer to move to the auditorium. In all it was a good day.

I have much to do tomorrow. Visiting the nursing home will be the high point of the day. Bank and Post office will come next and then to the office for some much needed work and study. Should be able to finish the Sunday School lesson and my Wednesday night questions tomorrow. I plan to take the day off on Thursday and get some work done on my tent. I really need to get it finished and get to working on the rest of my gear for the hike and supplies.

A brief outline of the sermon I preached this morning on giving:

(Malachi 3:8) Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
(Malachi 3:9) Ye [are] cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, [even] this whole nation.
(Malachi 3:10) Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that [there shall] not [be room] enough [to receive it].
(2 Corinthians 9:7) Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, [so let him give]; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
(Matthew 6:21) For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
(Luke 18:22) Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
Jesus Beholds Our Giving
The woman in this story sets the bar at its maximum possible height.
(Mark 12:41) And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.
Jesus beholds our giving.
Jesus beholds how we give.
Jesus beholds what we give. Time, Money, Possessions, labor.
Jesus beholds the quantity of our giving.
Jesus beholds where we give. Church, the poor, the world.
(Mark 12:42) And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
Jesus beholds our individual giving. Not counted as a group.
Jesus beholds our financial status.
Jesus beholds our potential for giving.
(Mark 12:43) And he called [unto him] his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
Jesus beholds our giving so that He may teach others about giving.
Jesus beholds our giving to commend those who give cheerfully, sacrificially, lovingly.
(Mark 12:44) For all [they] did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, [even] all her living.
Jesus beholds our giving as an act of faith.
Conclusion: This certain poor widow gave to God. She did not give to the temple, She did not give to the priests, She did not give to an undeserving corrupt worship system. She gave to God.

My Father my Father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof.

I went by to visit my father in the ministry Bro. Davis. He had been in the hospital and is home now, weak but doing much better. His mind is still amazing to me. He is so logical. I am helping him publish a paper on "Time." It is really good and when he is ready it will be posted on his website http://members.aceweb.com/pec

Had a good missions conference in Mt. Pleasant, Texas. It is good to be back home. I will be preaching from Mark 12:41 the story of the poor widow's mite. It is an inspiring story from which we all can learn much.

Went by to see Janie's parents and my parents today also. Had a good visit and they seem to be doing well, all things considered. It is good to be home and am looking forward to the services tomorrow. God bless you.

A little Sleep

I remember when my kids were little and they played simple games in the yard. I am proud of each one of them.

I do not expect to get much sleep tonight for we will not get in from church until after 9 and then we will be leaving at 6 in the morning. I just finished walking 4 miles and have read 20 chapters in the Bible. Did a little studying earlier on the sermon for Sunday and will try to finalize it Saturday. Have not gotten anything done on the tent this week but hope to spend a day on it next week. I have started to spread my hiking gear out on the guest bed and look it over. I expect to have my base weight back down to 10 pounds before the hike.

We are looking forward to the missions conferance. It will be a time of good fellowship and stimulating conversation. The 3 hour drive back Friday night will be a bit long but worth it to get back to our own bed. God bless you.

Tuesday

Spent some money today. Bought a new printer/scanner/copier today and it is much faster and better than the old one we have had for the past 10 years. It is very nice and hopefully will last as long as the last one. Bought a pair of pants for hiking from LLBean. I hope to have everything ready for the hike by the end of this month. Going to go over to east Texas and do a 2 day 40 mile hike.

I worked on the Song of Solomon today and made considerable progress. It is, in my opinion, the most difficult book to interpret. Trying to figure out who is talking to whom is most difficult. I do not think, presently, that it should be taken as completely allegorical. I believe that it was given by inspiration of God for the purpose of teaching lessons on courtship and marriage. It may well give us an insight into God's love for His people. My song of songs is pictured here in 1975 at Niagra Falls. I do love her so!

Another good day

Started my day today by going to bed. I stayed up until 1:30 to work on the bulletin and the Sunday school lesson for next Sunday. I am trying to get everything done early this week due to my being gone to the missions seminar. Janie and I went to the nursing home and had a good service with them. Did some visitation and will need to run to Wal-mart to pick up a few things for the Ladies Bible study tomorrow. Took a nap this afternoon and am now ready to stay up and work late again tonight.

Talked to Steve about the hike and looks like we have a good grip on things. Next week I will take a day off and try to get as much done on the tent as I can. Next step will be to purchase the food and lay everything out and take inventory. I will weigh everything and try to keep it to a minimum.

Super Sunday

Great Lord's day. We had great services at church today. Janie and I sang a special. Busy week ahead. We will be doing the nursing home service in the morning. Bible study and some counseling on Tuesday. Wednesday brings the midweek Bible School and Thursday Friday at a missions conference. Saturday is a work day at the church and then back to Sunday again. I am not sure but I don't think I planned a day off anywhere in that schedule. Forgive me Lord, maybe next week.

The picture is of Janie and her mother at our wedding, Dec. 27, 1973. The Lord has been good to me way more than I deserve. God bless you.

Carpe diem

Seize the day. I believe in grabing onto opportunities to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with lost people. I was surprised when a funeral home director told me that he appreciate my willingness to preach funerals of complete strangers. I see it as a tremendous chance to share the love of Christ with those who are lost. If one can enjoy a funeral I did today for I love to tell lost people about the free gift of salvation.

I am a bit concerned about myself. While I am writing this my wife has a "chick flick" on and I am actually interested in it. What's next macrame!

I long to walk my three miles and get my Bible reading done.

God bless you.

Back home

We made it back from helping Janie's parents. I was good to be able to do so. Our Jetta got 47.18 miles per gallon on the last tank, praise the Lord. I have a funeral service tomorrow and that will consume most of my afternoon. My mind naturally goes to the things I must get done next week. I have to set up my son's booth and renew the pictures and information contained on it. May let Janie do this for a woman's touch would probably be appropriate. We will be 2 days at the missions conferance maning the booth and attending the sessions. I may have to go alone depending on whether Janie's sisters can take care of their parents or not.

Going to read some blogs and then head for bed. God bless you.