Encouraged

Two years ago, we started a project that we are just now completing. Every year, the canal where we get our water is closed down for two weeks just before convention and it usually coincides with a lifestyle session. We need a lot of water for our lifestyle sessions and we had no way of storing any, so, we chose to dig a 600,000 gallon reservoir. It worked well for the first two years, and this year we decided to finish the project. I appreciate Bill Bosko's leadership in the venture.

The reservoir is full. We are using it. A little more landscaping and a fence and we should be done for good.

We have 10 lifestyle guests this month. Seven of the ten are black ladies, mostly from Barbados originally, now living in New York and Chicago. They are a bunch of live wires. This morning, I took one of them to a Sunday church. She grew up Adventist, but something happened in the course of living to turn her heart away from us. The church we attended was very conservative, spiritual and friendly. I think they are Non-denominational. I've never seen church done this way before. To begin, everyone takes a turn at praying, then everyone just pops up, one after another and gives a two to five minute sermonette/testimony. Then they have communion. Everyone breaks a piece of white bread and eats it, and they then all drink grape juice from the same cup.

I am just sanguine enough to jump right on the moment. I prayed when it came time to pray and, though unprepared, I preached when it was time to preach. The difference with my preaching was that I looked people in the eye. They didn't. I think they had notes in their Bibles and they were concentrated there, or they were focused on their shoes for some reason. They also all took on one tone of voice and used one cadence in speaking. I was the only one to make a small appeal in my sermon. Everyone else exhorted themselves rather than the congregation. In other words, they read scripture, expounded on it, and then concluded by saying how they desired to bring their lives into harmony with the principle they that had brought this morning's conviction.

In the end, that was the best other church I have ever attended in the Loveland area. I have brought several lifestyle guests to various churches and every time it was "Rock & Roll" a la Catholic, Baptist, Pentecostal style, etc.

I wondered how it would be for SDA's to have to prepare a five minute sermonette every week for church? The people at this Non-denom. church were all good at it. That tells me we could all become good at speaking in public if we were put in that position.

Yesterday, I preached in Copper Mountain. The Emmerson family came with me. We had a very pleasant day. Chuck and Wanda Scarborough make sure to attend that church when I am scheduled to preach. (They use to be Julie's principle in academy, in Fountainview.)

Things are quiet at EVI. We got our hay in, for which I praise the Lord. It's been a battle because this year is wetter than usual, but I've been praying more and the Lord has honored my prayers. We have our reservoir finished for now, and I believe that this week we will have the 10,000 raspberry shoots in, as well.

I get feedback on my blogs from the most unexpected places. There is an unintended agreement that I am too hard on myself in so far as my leadership is concerned. I appreciate everyone's concerns. Perhaps I shouldn't be so free to air my feelings about myself in public. I am the most unprivate person I know. I can't understand being private or having secrets. Also, I cannot be pretentious about anything in myself. I don't often call a spade a spade when referring to others, but the spade in me is open for all to see.

It's two weeks to EVI's annual Convention and board meeting. I am praying like mad that God's will will prevail. Rumors fly in every direction. If all the rumors were true, there would be no one left at EVI by the time the board was over. The truth is, I love EVI, but I can't bring the discordant notes into harmony. Being the conductor of a choir that can't get it together is discouraging, to say the least. I'm ready to let another lucky conductor have a go at it.

Besides that, I am full of courage. I've managed to pray two and one half hours daily (except for a few interruptions, like church board etc.), and I am here to say, it makes a huge difference in my personal, courage, outlook and conscience. May you all be driven to it . . . soon.

That's it for today, the Preacher