The 21st century is a wonderful place in which to live! Anything is possible, even you, reading me! You are a wondrful creation of My Maker. He did everything that He could to make you the most perfect individal that you could possibly be!
Tonight I have stretched my fingers across the length and breadth of this world. Calls are still awaiting overseas, but that is not the why of me writing. I address you as an individual who has every choice available.......Embrace Christ as your Savior.....Do not hesitate...tonight is the night,,,,God loves you! Always has, and alway will and desires that you enter into an eternal relationship with Him. Talk to me cltl@brookings.net. In Christ's Love, Preacher. 

Couldn't Resist

 
This is one of those "out my office door" shots. I just had to give it a whirl to see how the pictures might look. There is no breeze to speak of and the gentle snowflakes are beautiful as they drift groundwards. It's about a quarter to two in the am real time. God bless, Preacher. 

Blessed Be The Tie!

Life is filled with choices. Weather predictions have gotten a tad bit gloomy the past few days, so this morning I thought I had better pay attention when the rain began to fall. Hours passed with nothing but a very gentle rain combined with increasingly cold temps. The situation was serious, two of my daughter's have Chevy Blazers, one of the Blazers has no working transmission(recently quit on the interstate). Logic dictated that I use the good one to get the other to where help might be sought. I had no idea how many inches of snow were going to come later, but I've been out here on the Great American Desert long enough to know that if we didn't get the job done today it might be spring before another opportunity presented itself. 1 pm was the launch time for the project. The farm yard where we picked up the disabled vehicle was so slippery with ice and rain that the simple task of lining the two up for a tow job was severely hampered. Normally a couple of us would push the one out to where the chain could be attached and then off we would go. Not so today! The rain on top of the ice made the surface of the yard so slick it was laughable. When you push forward you slide backward. Finally we got the show on the road(I do mean "show" quite literally)with a distance of about 4 miles to cover to the feedmill\propane dealer\transmission fix-it shop. That's how things are out here, no specialty places, just sort of what ever came to mind that somebody could do and a space to do it in. All in all it took us until 3:30 to call the task "Done!" Tonight while the snow was still falling I removed the first 4-5 inches of heavy wet stuff(don't believe anyone who mentions "light" snow on the weather channel - when you're shoveling snow it is all heavy)with much more to do in the morning. God provided the perfect day to challenge our unique blend of abilities and gifts to get many tasks accomplished. It is most wonderful to know that God has already been preparing us and the tools and materials needed for the challenges of life before we knew they existed. The Bible tells me exactly that! I am thankful tonight for the 15 yr old grandson who gave up going to the one o'clock movie to watch the 4 year old grand daughter while the work was under way far from the house. It seemed like at every turn of the day's events we had exactly what we needed, except, of course, patience, which I ran out of early on. It was interesting to me that at times like this I fall into the patterns of learned behavior that I aquired on the farm long before I was my grandson's age. You look at what has to be done, work at the best pace the weather permits, and git 'er done! I learned that from my maternal grandfather. I give thanks for the years when I was blessed to aquire knowledge that helps me to surmount the difficulties of life. The best information I ever learned, though, had to do with how we "pray" our way through the worst and the best that life has to offer. Tonight I will sleep like a baby. Before I can slip off to slumber, though, I have to sit down and talk with God about how life goes sometimes. Mind you, I won't be complaining, just wondering out loud. Mostly I'll be giving thanks for the opportunity to be of service in some way, no matter how small, in the lives of others. It would be a poor existence, indeed, to not have folks we can offer assistance to when needed, and foks who do the same for us. Thanks be to God! Funny thing about God's provision, no matter where I've been or how hard I've worked at it I still haven't found a shovel that really "fits" me. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Helpful Hint #63

Organization is not easy for anyone. For me it seems that there are some things that refuse to be gathered together and kept. Therefore, I have attempted to resolve one of my personal issues with the light bulb dilemma encountered in the past. Those little boxes tend to be awkward for me and forever I am grabbing the wrong wattage for the application. This quick and easy solution came while I was disposing of Christmas trash and replacing bulbs in our dining room. It's one of those things with me that I have approached from a lot of directions with little success. Sort of like trying to talk faith to some folks who really don't want to hear it even though it might be exactly what they need in their lives. One might say, "The light came on for me today!" in a most interesting way. This is not everyone's answer for how to store bulbs, but it is currently my newest. Keeping them up high in a cabinet doesn't work because invariably I either drop them or can't find the right one. This way the entire array can rest in a drawer and when opened they're just there. Cool(at least it is for me)! When I go about talking to folks about where they are in relation to God it is not like trying to change them immediately, although that sometimes happens. It's more like finding the right amount of light that is needed so that they can see the truth. Every time I start thinking about one difficulty it seems that I come up with solutions for other problems while wrestling the original. This was fun! Time will tell if it works, but at the present I don't see why it won't. If only it were this simple with people. Getting the eggs out without breaking any was easy. Cutting the bottoms out of the holes was messy, but accomplished quickly. Even inserting the bulbs was a snap. Perhaps God has a purpose in revealing this plan to me. I don't suppose I'll know for awhile. I look forward to something burning out somewhere in the house so that I can put the "idea" to a practical test. With folks my prayer is that they receive the light they long for before I do the burning out. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Effects of Changes

This morning I walked out to my car to discover that the combination of overnight humidity and temperature had created a work of art across the entire length and breadth of my vehicle. The time was about 7:42 according to the wrist clock. Usually I'm in a hurry to scrape the windows(after starting the engine, of course), but today the patterns on the hood captivated me. The little digital on my belt bag does a quick job for recording a multitude of things, and did not fail me today. Probably all of us have seen these things at one time or another without taking much notice other than to remove the obstacles that impair one's vision while driving. Tonight I reviewed the pics and did different variations of coloring in the 'puter program stuff from Picasa, added text and put them out here. The heat of the engine rapidly dissipated the frost from the hood. The scraper and heaters did the job for the windows, and in the midst of it the images were gone, except for the thoughts that nagged at the back of my mind during my drive to the country. Our lives are altered in one way or another by circumstances beyond our control quite often. We approach those alterations much in the same way I usually handle frost. We get rid of the impediment to our goals as quickly as possible. Automatically we run through our intentionally formed habits of eradication without observing what it is we are changing. Quite often I speak about how I "need" to listen better to what God is telling me instead of pushing onward with my agenda. This morning I considered the beauty of a natural occurrence and it made me think that I miss out on a lot of neat stuff because of my plans and the "time" I hesitate to lose when confronted with change. Tonight I wonder, "Does God bring about change in me that I fail to recognize simply because I'm trying to get on with my own agenda?" Out here on the Great American Desert the weather changes things drastically, often. Doesn't matter what time of year it is! Everywhere God is busy changing people. Doesn't make any difference where we are at in our life's journey. Are there times when I simply "brush off" the changes and get on with my "stuff?" The answer is yes! The question is, "Are there times I need to really look at the changes before getting on with my program?" Again, the answer is a resounding, "Yup!" I'm going to have to take a little more time looking around at what's happening and see what I'm missing. Makes me think, ya know? In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Seasoning The Reasoning!

Interesting thoughts accompany the winding up of this Christmastide. I've been blessed to cover some 15 states(and at least as many HD shops)the past couple of months. Some of you that read me from time to time know that I write about the ministry that accompanies my steely steeds and I when we travel the highways and byways of our nation during the weather that is permissive. I've got a cousin that works as a regional rep for the company, and many friends whose livelihood is derived directly from their expertise with Harleys. Then there are those with whom I share the simple freedoms and fellowship of the open road, and the 100s that work in motorcycle ministry year around! This year I made a point of visiting shops all over the US when time permitted. Our government has managed to squelch the "faith based" roots of our country in many ways, but private enterprise where persons of the christian persuasion work at jobs they love is not one of them. Now, it has occurred to me to begin methodically surveying the members of the HOG(Harley Owners Group)locally(about 600 in our area)to find out where there allegiance is to be found in direct proportion to God & Country. No need to do that. I already know the answer! By and large the HOG membership is christian to the core, with non flag-waving members amounting to less than half of a total percent worldwide. Now, this is only an opinion, but when you take into account the popularity of the machine and it's "legend" and place that alongside sentiments that seem to grow against the US in other countries it would seem that we have common ground that stands alone against public outcry. I would venture to say the HD emblem is as loved in France as their president(maybe more so)! What do we learn from this? God uses the tools that are provided in every situation to keep alive the essence of truth that the Holy Bible presents to all mankind. Some modern day authors and graphic arts people have gotten together and presented a picture of my Savior on a Harley with the pronouncement that if He were to come today, He'd be riding a Harley rather than walking. I can't, in all honesty, take it that far, but I can add this note of personal experience....out in that real world we live in the people on two wheels that I know are the very type that my Bible refers to often when it teaches character lessons in the form of parables. Parables about people are still being written. I pray we write them on hearts as often as possible. Many thanks go out tonight to the people of faith that own and operate the dealerships across our great nation "under God!" Their lights twinkle brightly, and their greetings mount up tall and proud against the backdrop of a nation that seems to be losing God in the midst of the 21st century. When you see those riders out there this coming season, give them a wave and a smile. The same freedoms that our nation is restricting every day they are seeking to keep alive in every possible way! In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Merry Christmas!

 
364 days and we get to do it again! What a rush this year! The music, services, smiles, weather, and most of all the love. Love seemed to abound in every direction for my wife and I. Someone described last night as a set of pictures from a Norman Rockwell presentation. We ended the Eve of this year's celebration of my Savior's birth singing caroles around a fire in the woods. That began around 11:30 and wound to a conclusion around 1 in the am. A choir of voices(nearly a dozen at times)sang as we smiled at one another. Guitars strummed gently and we tuned our voices to the "prum" of the "Little Drummer Boy" to conclude the evening. Many tears were shared along with more laughter than we deserve. Some of us took time to give thanks, proclaiming loudly God's handiwork in all of creation. Others slipped away to make calls to distant friends and family to greet them and let them know what they had missed. I am worn, a bit overtired and overfed, and a little weary, but I would not have missed a single moment of this Christmas for any reason that comes to mind. During the course of this Christmas there were a few youngsters that learned that there really is no Santa Claus other than the one which we provide for one another. I'm sure that was at first disheartening. Greater truths were revealed, though. The ones of which knowledge and understanding become keys by which the hearts of all can be turned in the direction of Bethlehem and the greatest revelation to ever become part of mankind's history. This year I didn't tell the story as I have in years past, I listened. Sometimes it is good to listen to how others tell the story. How simple it is, and yet how totally, and absolutely overpowering. The plan by which you and I, everyone, has the opportunity to receive Christ into their heart and gain forever the greatest gift of all, salvation. I bear witness to that salvation tonight as viewed through the eyes of persons from 2 years of age to 100 plus years and counting. This was a "perfect" Christmas. And to all a good night. In Christ's Love, Preacher.