Independence Day Approaches

My time has been being burned on the "project" as it has moved toward final phases. We signed the papers on the place Tuesday. It is now ours 100%(and the bank, of course). A fall taken in the basement hall has slowed my ability to keep working 10 hour days. The prayers of friends and family have sustained me in the midst of the healing process. I pray that part is about over. Deadlines were met. Inspections have come off better than expected. Even the electrical got a green stamp of approval. Still there is much to do and a year from now we should have it all completed. This is our moving month. I replaced my old(7 months)drivers license with a new one with our correct new address yesterday. I might not have to have done that right away, but it seems my wife, Cheryl, borrowed my license to validate purchases on my account at Lowe's and forgot where she put it! LOL!!! Anyway that was a well spent few hours yesterday during which I had the opportunity to peruse home magazines and found some wonderful ideas. I pray that your celebration of the 4th of July is a good one and that you and yours are all safe and happy on this holiday weekend. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Tried, Tired, Tied!!!

>The thing is never the "thing" or so a pastor friend of mine has informed me. We are almost done with jumping through the financial hoops. It seems that there are a of licensed folks in the world that take exception to a country preacher doing his own wood work. I have been checked once a week to make sure that I meet "code" expectations. Duh.....I grew up playing with unfinished blocks of wood. If one piles them up and they fall down then you try again. Had I had the advisers I have now I probably would have been in group therapy since age three.

So, my exertions have now met the acceptance of the county, state and local officials. Whoosh!!! What a relief. Now I shall remit pics of what has been continuing to happen before I subscribed to an anxiety attack of enormous proportions. Yeah, "I KNOW IT AIN'T A POLE BARN AND IT IS WITHIN THE COUNTY'S JOURISDICTION!!!' Give me a break. I have busted my nether regions making this acceptable, and everyone has a problem. There will come a point in time when I may deign to assume persecution on a faith basis. Nonetheless I continue to persevere.
Many thanks for all the prayers offered on our behalf. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Time: Never Enough

Things we would like to do seem always to take more time than we would prefer. This past week I was too worn and weary to update my blog. The results of too many hours on a ladder and too much time invested making that which is old new again! Once again I am experiencing the fatigue that comes from hours setting walls in the addition to our 100 year old "victorian" home. God has been good to us, and the energy and stamina are holding true to form. Each day that I put behind me shows on the exterior person and the one that resides within. Muscles that have long been forgotten have ceased their daily screaming and acquired a new taste for life at the top of 14 foot ladders. Amazingly enough, the rest of me continues to adapt to the tasks and perform them without undue stress. My greatest pleasure now comes from the light that I know is at the end of this particular tunnel. Life is like that, as well, we look for the light at the end of the tunnel. Should you have any doubts, please know that my Savior, Christ the King, God's only Son, is the light at the end of the tunnel of life for each of us. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Long Days

I can't show you what is happening because I have not had time to take pictures. My right arm went down due to overexertion so the work goes on at a slower pace. Needless to say the expectations and visions I had concerning the old house continue to materialize. It is a wonder to me to walk in and see it coming together. Eldest grandson, Matthew, graduates this coming weekend so progress may be impeded by the deluge of relatives coming to celebrate with us. Many of them have offered to stat a few extra days to assist us in the work so I may have time for photos by Sunday. As always I give thanks to God for His ability to provide for us even when the body grows weak. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

This Is Spring?

We are so at work on the project home! Snickers does not want to stay home, but he is not really happy with the temperatures where we are working. My wife, Cheryl, picked up our electric space heater for the day due to the low temps where she is wall papering. Snickers was quite happy to sit in front of the heater and cuddle up in the blankets, his opinion is much the same as mine: It is "too" dang cool! We are moving forward with the project(although not as fast as my wife would like), really good work takes time and thought. I do both, but not as swiftly as she would prefer. Today is "Mother's Day" and there is a lot that goes with that thought. We all have one(OR HAD ONE)and they are very special for a variety of reasons. Mine was always supportive and loving, even though we had a combined penchant for bourbon after 2 am. Ma was the very best she could be! For all of the folks I have shared time with throughout the years please know that the love for "mom" never stops. We do what we do and then try to stay warm, like Snickers. Love is an everlasting emotion. Praise the Lord we have been given a Savior by the Grace of God that sees each of us in the light of forgiveness. A mother's love is unending. God's love is unceasing. If you are in need of either there is no quicker way to find that love than to open your heart and sit on your knees. They may hurt from the day's extensions, but the reward is worth the effort! In Christ's Love, Preacher.

A Wonderful, Wintry Wedding

Thursday the 24th I rode the Ultra Classic over to Volga to work on the project. The sun was shining and our temperatures were in the 70s. Then came Friday with a vengeance! Winds howled as snow descended on the Great American Desert. I had a 6 pm wedding rehearsal scheduled but by that time of the day roads were becoming impassable. Late arrivals due to the weather held up our starting time for 45 minutes. It was a perfect day for four wheel drive. We got through the rehearsal by eight only to find that most of the roads were closed or in the process of being closed. North from here the interstate was off limits as were highways 12 & 212(probably all of them). Schools had closed early in the day so most folks were safe except for the ones in the ditches and stuck on the streets.
I took a couple pictures of Saturday. At our house the depth of the snow was between eight and 10 inches. The Harley was not buried, but a few more hours and it might have been. We persevered and the sun came out to begin the process of eradicating the snow. Temperatures bumped up over 45 for awhile, and the wedding party and guests all had a wonderful time discovering they could get out and about again. The wedding was at 7 pm last evening and I must admit it was a treat to look out the windows occasionally at the sunshine as I shared the reading of scripture and a brief message before Corey and Heather completed their vows. Sometimes being the "Preacher" has a real upside. The young lady pictured above is the daughter of the bride. She played a very special role in the ceremony. The picture was shot before the service began.
Whoosh! What a rush this weekend turned out to be and we still have all of Sunday to enjoy. It is now 3:26 am and I should probably close my eyes for awhile before the alarm goes off. I pray it is another sunny day here on the prairie.
In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Access Granted

Last evening I watched the sunset with regret. Body tired and aching I mounted my faithful Ultra Classic and rode the highway home from Volga. Tomorrow I would begin the process of building the stairway leading to the new basement from the kitchen, utility and bathroom area of the addition. My most challenging task to date. If I could have gotten just a few more hours of daylight I might have been closer to my goal of being able to walk down a flight of stairs instead of climbing down a ladder into what has now gained the nickname of the "pit."
The "pit" is ten feet deep, five feet wide and runs under the southern wall of our victorian home and down a fifteen foot hall to the new basement. Out here on the Great American Desert we are never quite certain what the storm clouds may bring us so I decided when we were pouring the concrete and laying block that the new home would have adequate protection for residents. Steel plate 1\2" thick caps the end of the stairwell, and the whole of the construction is geared to providing a comfortable area to sit out even the worst of storms(excluding another cataclysmic flood, of course)on the prairie. Each of the ten steps is 7 1\4" high and 11 1\2" deep by 5' wide. I know that sounds like a really wide stairway, but if we ever have need of being down there for a protracted period of time there should be plenty of room even if all of the bedrooms are in use. I tell folks jokingly that I wanted the stairway and hall wide enough to get the big HD under the house for wrenching in the winter. It also had to be built big enough to allow the passage of my theater organ, a vintage 1953, and accompanying speakers. I look forward in the next few weeks of setting up that organ and playing hymns to the house. I'm certain that there will be some blues and jazz not far behind as time allows. God has truly blessed Cheryl and I with a home we pray will be a blessing to others. A call came in on my cell phone just as I was preparing to leave to pick up more lumber 7 miles away. The call was from the lead guitar player(I have not had much opportunity to get together with anyone lately). He was in town getting lights repaired on the band trailer and wanted to know if there was anything he could do to help. I may not have gotten back to work today if it were not for his offer and the timely delivery of the needed supplies. When my number was dialed Gordon was only a few blocks from the lumber yard with the perfect means for conveying my 2 X 12s on his way home. There is a promise in the Bible which states that God is busy about the task of filling our every need before we are even aware of the need. Quite often I have been a recipient of this blessing and today was one more for the long list of unanticipated answers to prayers before they were uttered. Tonight I give thanks for all of my friends, and especially for my helpmate, Cheryl, who keeps a positive spin going on everything. In Christ's Love, Preacher.