Can It Be True?

I live in a small community out here on the Great American Desert. A few years ago I could walk three blocks west and pick up whatever meat I needed from a local butcher. Six blocks east was the "Econo-Food" supermarket where all the other daily needs could be found. We had a little K-mart, Hy-Vee, and a Walmart. Walmart became a super wally world and the little butcher and the little grocery store are gone. All that remains for a shopper's choice in Brookings, SD is the WalMart or the HyVee. Now, to make matters really difficult I am to understand that WalMart has joined the homosexual agenda by linking itself to the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. I would like it if this were an untrue piece of news, but I fear that it is real. I've got 8 kids, 11 grands, and a whole host of family members who love to shop at Wal-Mart. One of my wife's favorite sayings when we are traveling has always been, "All roads lead to Wal-Mart." I have a distinct hunch that if this turn of events is a fact she will alter that saying to, "All roads lead away from Wal-Mart."
This does not sound like a very good marketing approach to me. But then, I live out here where folks don't really care. Or do they? Perhaps all it will take to turn this event on it's corporate head is a single city that refuses to go the way of the world in collaboration with their favorite retail outlet.
Only time will tell the rolling back of ramifications that will surely follow this major choice of affiliation. We live in America where people have to make up their own minds and make their own choices. What will you choose to do when it comes down to the support you offer this Christmas to those who would inflict upon us their own standards of living? In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Miracles Happen!!!

When the call came in I took a deep breath and offered up a prayer from the desk. One of the sisters out there had a niece in trouble. The thoughts that run rampant through our minds at times like this are so virulent that the very definition betrays our fear. Can faith and prayer make a difference? Are we well founded? Are there others that will accompany us on this particular journey of love exemplified by our Savior?
Macy Marie is alive and well. Her odds were 1 in 7 of making it through the crisis. I always stand ready(very reluctantly at times)to work through issues with families. For those of us who have Christ as our Savior there is nothing better we can do than to submit to God's will. After all, is that not what He did for us?
Macy Marie is one of God's perfect creations.
We are fighting a battle in South Dakota. Yeah, I know, where is SD? Well, it is in the very heart of the Great American Desert, and it has recently become a political hotspot for those who would have us throw lives into garbage cans behind abortion clinics so that everyone may have a "free" choice. While we are in the very midst of praying for one of our "Macy Marie's" it is beyond my understanding that others would choose to throw them away, much like a bag of refuse from the local Burger King that they toss out on the interstate.
Macy is alive, and as you can see from the smile, very happy to be. Let us not throw away the future because we can only see today! In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Miracles Happen!!!

When the call came in I took a deep breath and offered up a prayer from the desk. One of the sisters out there had a niece in trouble. The thoughts that run rampant through our minds at times like this are so virulent that the very definition betrays our fear. Can faith and prayer make a difference? Are we well founded? Are there others that will accompany us on this particular journey of love exemplified by our Savior?
Macy Marie is alive and well. Her odds were 1 in 7 of making it through the crisis. I always stand ready(very reluctantly at times)to work through issues with families. For those of us who have Christ as our Savior there is nothing better we can do than to submit to God's will. After all, is that not what He did for us?
Macy Marie is one of God's perfect creations.
We are fighting a battle in South Dakota. Yeah, I know, where is SD? Well, it is in the very heart of the Great American Desert, and it has recently become a political hotspot for those who would have us throw lives into garbage cans behind abortion clinics so that everyone may have a "free" choice. While we are in the very midst of praying for one of our "Macy Marie's" it is beyond my understanding that others would choose to throw them away, much like a bag of refuse from the local Burger King that they toss out on the interstate.
Macy is alive, and as you can see from the smile, very happy to be. Let us not throw away the future because we can only see today! In Christ's Love, Preacher.

NPIAM

I submit they I may not have all of the letters in the right order, but then, there are times when everything is just not as it should be. I apologize to the folks that look for my "stuff" for being gone so long, but it has taken me a lot of time to get organized for the future. That does not mean to imply that I am ready now. Only that I am sincerely working on it, again!
The young people that you see on stage with me are some of my favorites in the whole world. From ages 8 to 12 they have come together in a family tradition of music that is astounding. This is one of the highlights of the past summer, and the one that is the most recent(this last weekend)that makes life truly worth the living.
God has truly blessed me....there are times when I soar with the Birds....and times when I must come down to earth, as we all must. My youngest daughter is in Europe as I tap this out, and I would submit that she is having a wonderful experience! Her best friend was with me this weekend as the performances developed and wishes she were there, also, I am sure!
Life is filled with opportunities. Sometimes we see them, othertimes we don't. The best opportunity is always going to be the choice for salvation which is found in my personal Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is ready for you. Are you ready for Him? In Christ's Love, Preacher.

I Ain't Complaining

It has been awhile since I have been able to use my office. Heat has a little to do with that, but the level of noise occurring on a daily basis has become mind-numbing.
Post grad week began with the guys tearing out the water lines. Since that time they have managed to do it two more times, and the electric! We do have the finest of minds at work on the project, and now I finally see the clever scheme they have so carefully plotted for driving us all out of our homes. I have a hunch they thought many of us would give in and sell out just to be over this particular hump in life's road. What they did a year ago was send out a well-trained team of experts to locate all of the places a construction project might encounter difficulties. They looked through little tripod mounted glasses, they staked red, pink and yellow markers all over. They put up little red, yellow and blue flags. Then as the day neared they spray painted lines in neon orange and yellow on everyone's lawns. Now I know why. That was so the workers wouldn't have to miss cutting a single vital service to our lives. Local joke on our street has to do with how many different hard hats it takes to peer into a hole and decide what has happened. Honestly, they have a tough job to do and it isn't made easier by guys with cameras. They never hit the phone lines, but I assume that is because you just don't mess with those folks. Anyway, our life has yet to return to normal and that is a good thing! Since the front of the home is virtually unused 24\7, we have done some amazing things in the backyard which will be shared as soon as the "stuff" is over.
I suppose the way to look at the whole thing is that, "God never gives us more problems than He has provided patience for coping." Life is good here on 6th Street.
Life is better away from our little piece of the Great American Desert. And life is best when we keep on keeping on and let God take care of the rest. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Creating Memories

Today was way full! Graduation receptions, and friendly visits combined with the opening festivities of a new art show here on the Great American desert, had the time flying faster than we could keep up. It was a great day, and one filled with warm, wonderful memories that Cheryl and I shall treasure long after the photos have faded. Life is good! So good sometimes that we have to keep an eye in the rearview mirror at every turn. Tonight is unlike any other night in our small town. It is the night before graduation and the streets and alleyways are busy with folks driving around from party to party. The police are also out in full force! I did a short drive down to the church for some papers about 10:30 and the traffic was amazing. While at the church I decided that I would offer up prayers for our young people. God may not hear me any better when I'm in the church building than He does when I'm out on the streets, and that's how it is on Sunday mornings, also.
It isn't the where of the prayer that gets our Lord's attention. It's the sincere manner in which we come before Him to humbly ask for that which we need. I'm sure that He listens a little more intently when we're asking for something for someone else instead of the usual begging for our own needs. I'm also certain that he listens more attentively when we gather as a worshiping Body of Christ on Sunday morning and offer up our prayers as a group in agreement. Today I met a greatgrandmother who will always be thought of as a very kindly and understanding lady. I also ran across some folks that were a part of a parish I served 20 years ago. My how time can fly when we're living life. I pray that you have many with whom to celebrate this Memorial Day weekend. I also pray you have many that you will be remembering who are not with us.
Today, my cousin, Clyde(C.R. Huyck)shared his thoughts about really living every moment of this life that we are offered. I was truly impressed at the wisdom he has managed to aquire these past 40 years. Perhaps that's how it is with the people we love, they continue to surprise us even after they are gone. Thanks be to God for all those ancestors of mine who contributed to my being here today.
In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Taking Things To The Extreme

 
Just a quick reminder to folks that many of us travel on two wheels. Even with 2 dozen bright lights on a red motorcycle that is as large as a small car people often say, "I didn't see you!" Lol...but it is that time of the year and I've got a lot of friends and loved ones out there that need all the help they can get. In Christ's Love, Preacher.