Cliff Hanger

Happy Sabbath. There is an extra blessing to Christmas this year. The Sabbath makes it more sacred. This morning I read chosen passages from the Desire of Ages at church, interspersed with a dozen special songs by special singers, all local. It was very good. The weather continues to be abnormally warm. I don't know to call it Global Warming because the rest of the country is blanketed with tons of snow, and Europe can't seem to shake the below normal temperatures. Some of our mountains received between six and eight feet of snow in the last week. Everywhere but here. Thank you, Lord.

Did I leave you with a cliff hanger in my last blog? Ah, sorry! Actually, I forgot about it until Julie and Jason reminded me. Like, well-l-l-l, what is the big proposal? . . . Oh, nothing!

I need to be careful what I say. If I reveal my feelings, I might influence things inappropriately. So, my plan is to let the Lord decide.

Anyway, the EVI Search Committee was considering a few names--very few--when the idea was floated that maybe we could ask Janet to oversee the construction of our new building thrust--Lifestyle Center, new houses, and the repair of the old houses. Leasa took Janet out for lunch. (I was to say nothing-g-g-g.) I assume my vice-president turned on the charm and put her best persuasive self forward, and helped Janet to see that we cannot possibly do it without her. (Which, In many respects is true. At least, at this time we have no one better.)

To some degree, the proposal fell a little short. How can a woman who can't build her own African houses without her son, supervise the construction of an ultra modern facility? My wife was quick to point out this discrepancy. She figures it is all an attempt to get me to stay. Yes, my staff want me to stay, but no, Janet has qualities that would be invaluable to the project.

Obviously, my Lover is not about to come running to EVI and just dump her mission in Africa. The proposal also offered to pay her way to Africa twice a year, so she could supervise it to some degree. It failed to take in the fact that we already pay her way twice a year to Africa. Ah well!

Here I think is where it's at, right now. Because my wife has a big heart and wants to help everyone that asks for it, she has agreed to help organize the buying and the accumulating of the material that Maranatha will need by May 2011. This is not the construction of the lifestyle center. This will include the building of one new house and the repair of our old buildings. I even heard her say she might be able to help more, whatever that means.

Where does that leave me? Essentially, nothing changes with me. Perhaps I should rehearse the story in your ear, the short version: After the Lord spent two years trying to make me more humble, I finally concluded that I was too incompetent to be in leadership. So, in the spring of 2009 I began to announce that I would transition out of EVI by September 2010. I was perfectly convinced that I was not for leadership. It only made sense after the disaster I created at EVI. From then on I began to tell my wife I would join her in Africa in the fall of 2009, if she would have me, of course. You never know, she might not want the same mess in Mago. From that moment on, God, by an amazing display of grace reversed course. When we humble ourselves, He lifts us up. Everything began to prosper, at least, it prospered far more than it had for a while. The biggest blessing came in the person of Leasa Hodges. (I can see her face as she reads this, humble girl.) The Lord outfitted her with energy, initiative, creativity, ideas and much more, and if there is no reason to have a party, she'll think of one.

Immediately, she asked Janet and I to consider my staying at EVI until May 2011. We agreed. Since then, it seems everyone on the team cannot see us gone. (This is of grace also.) Both my heart, and Janet's are touched with the need and the display of love, but now what???

Sometimes my Lover says she feels guilty because she doesn't think I'll be happy in Africa. I have never been unhappy. Why should I be unhappy in Africa. Sometimes she says, I don't think it's going to happen? She doesn't say that it should happen, or shouldn't happen, she just says she doesn't think it will happen. Can you see how safe that kind of talk is?

From my side, I said I was going to Africa, period. The Bible says, "Swear to your own hurt, and change not." Psalms 15. So, unless the Lord changes my direction, I'm going to Africa. I am not saying that would be the best decision. The problem is, I've already made a decision. Now my wife and I pray together. Being together has become important. Knowing God's will is even more important. You all might pray with us. Eden Valley is picking up a heavy burden, and I hate to let others struggle under the load and not help lift it. On the other hand, I can't go around telling my wife I'm going to Africa, and then change my mind. Do you see the dilemma?

Thank you for praying with us.

The Preacher.

Four Days of Bliss

I'm back to work. This morning, I prepared a sermon for Wednesday morning assembly. (Every Wednesday our staff come together. We praise God for what He is doing in our lives; we lift each other up in prayer, and I preach a 30 minute sermon.) I went up the mountain to pray for half an hour. I fixed the windshield wiper on my wife's car, and the exhaust hose on her dryer. Then I had lunch by myself because Janet and Leasa are having lunch together. Eden Valley is hitting my wife up with a new proposal. I was forbid to say anything to her personally. So, I won't say anything right now, but perhaps I'll let you know when I hear the outcome.

I took two days off from work when my wife arrived. Add that to the weekend and we've had four days in which to do nothing or anything we wanted to. I was thinking as I walked up the mountain: if anyone offered me a weekend in the Caribbean, or on South Pacific island, I could not have enjoyed my time more. That we did nothing, but we did it together. We went swimming, we went shopping, we went to church, we had folks over for lunch on Sabbath, we tried to sleep, we slept a little, whatever, it was a blast.

Eight Months, no Shopping

My Lover is home and it's been a blast. (As much of a blast as old people can make.) We have much to get caught up on. We are doing our best, so long as I can keep her awake. In the meantime, I took two days off, and we are doing the funnest thing--shopping. Oh well. We'll do anything so long as it's together.

Everyone at EVI is bending over backward to welcome my wife. People are making welcome signs, beautiful, by the way; they are making food and filling our fridge. They've invited us to eat with the Lifestyle guests. My wife was blown away with the quality of the food. I guess she's been looking at beans and rice or ugali for too long. The staff who have never met my famous frontier woman are going out of their way to make her acquaintance. They never imagined her to be so short. She is bigger than life in some imaginations. Never mind, they'll find out.

Oh, and it's my birthday today, 63. I just discovered why a person shouldn't be on Facebook. Not at least, if you want to respond to everybody's good b'day wishes.

In any case, I'm happy. I've got health, and wealth, and a wife with children and great-grandchildren. The Savior is Lord of my life, and He showers me with honors and blessings constantly. What more could a man want? May He gives you as much.

Love to all

December Highlights

Two days ago, December 10, my dad would have turned 90. He died at 56. No matter, I still think fondly of him every year on this date. We always got along very well, until of course, I began to read the Bible. I never help was angry over the situation. To him, what I was doing was treason, a rejection of important tradition and the one church that had to be the only church. I understood then. I understand better now. Nevertheless, if a person chooses to walk with God using God's word, he will garner resistance and sometimes persecution. (I was never persecuted enough to wad a shotgun.) I did the right thing. I hope that doesn't sound too arrogant? But I did.

It's like I told someone not long ago. If I hadn't, I would be sitting in the same chair, drinking the same beer, watching the same hockey puck go up and down the ice for forty years. Instead, I've been used to preach the plan of salvation from God's word in most of the 33 countries I've visited or lived in. I don't have many talents, but God uses the little I have so consistently that sometimes I'm embarrassed to be in the positions I find myself in. My wife is remarkable for the achievements she's reached, even still today. My children are not only law abiding citizens, but aggressive missionaries, amazingly talented and accomplished. You just need to read their blogs to see it. If the Lord does nothing more for me than He's done to date, I have enough to praise Him for eternity already.

Yesterday, was Julie's birthday. She's finally reached the big forty. I'm not sure she was really looking forward to this day, but it's better than the alternative. My Lover comes home in three days. I think I've written that I may not recognize her, it's been so long. I really have to be careful at the airport not to make a mistake.

It was on a December 15 that my grandmother/godmother died. I was 15 years old doing math in my bedroom when the phone call came. Why do I always remember that on this date? Somethings are unexplainable.

Hey, If you are going to retain anything, retain this: Jesus is everything to us. Set your affections on Him. Behold Him, His condescension, His lowly birth; consider His sacrifice, His love for you, His eternal vigilance over you and . . . give thanks. Love you all. The Preacher.

Hungry? I hope so.

I can't believe it, it's December 7 and the weather is wonderful, in Colorado. Usually, arctic weather has settled in by now, pipes are freezing and we are not acclimated. I suppose it will all change in time for my wife's arrival, December 15. No matter, I'll see that the house is warmed up.

Besides that, nothing is new. We have a new intake of lifestyle guests. Very nice people. I believe they all have cancer, except the supports, of course. Leonard and I put new laminate flooring in my dining room, kitchen and entry way. Today, the maintenance men put the trim back down. I get to preach in Copper Mountain this Sabbath. Today, I rec'd an e-mail asking if I would do some meetings at a youth camp in Romania in August, and a GYC in Romania next December. I might. I'm already scheduled for Washington state in February, Ukraine and Romania in May, Germany and Sacramento ASI in August. With that I'm suppose to move to Africa. Can I keep all that organized from Africa? Lots of questions; lots of hurdles.

Did you notice in the Beatitudes that Jesus did not say blessed are the righteous. The reason is, "there is none righteous, no not one." Romans 3: 10-12. Jesus said, "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness." Matthew 5. We don't hunger when we are full. We hunger when we feel our emptiness. It isn't the proud religionist, the man satisfied with his christian experience, his self-sufficience, that is blessed/accepted of God. It's the one who feels His need of help from God. "From the soul that feels his need, nothing is withheld." DA 300. Feeling our need is the qualifier, the qualification that nets for us the gift. Do you know your need of God? Oh, I hope so. I do,

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Correction

The info I rec'd last night was that Shawn, Frances' grandson, was killed. Sorry, uh, not sorry, he wasn't killed, but he was run over by a car and is in pretty bad shape in the hospital. Praise God, the Lord heard our prayers and resurrected him. Well, at least He saved his life.

Trip to the Great, not so Great North

It's 10:00 P. M. I'm sitting in a motel in Michigan, somewhere, and feeling sad. (More about the sadness in a moment.) I managed to visit everyone I planned to visit in Northern Ontario. I wish I had had more time. I would have visited Andre and Line, but time ran out.

The meetings in the Soo were very well rec'd. I enjoyed all the people there. I don't know if the meetings made a difference insofar as the division among them, but I hope so. I spent four days with Champy and his family. His girls are adorable--very affectionate. They come by their cuddliness honestly. Their mother, Bonnie; their grandmother, Linda; their great-granny, oh, I forgot her name, and their aunt Noel are all affectionate huggers. I took a shine to all of them.

I spent five or six days with Nelson and Anne. We had a great time and they came to all the meetings, even though I did not do the meetings in their church. They are quite the couple: I love them to death. Nobody is more spiritual than Nelson. We teased Anne-Marie too much as usual, but I think she likes it. In speaking, they punctuate every point with the phrase, "you know what I mean?" Very interesting. I think they were made for each other, you know what I mean?

I really surprised Hermel and Sue. Hermel says he was thinking of me at breakfast time and presto, I'm standing in his house a couple of hours later. We really had a great visit. Sue has had a knee replacement and needs the other done next. I saw a lot of signs of aging in my old friends. Not so with Hermel. He still plays hockey at 64. He was telling me of going fishing with a "vieux bonhomme de soisante" (old man of sixty.) He had to spend most of one night rescuing the old man off of a foggy lake, and then the guy tipped his canoe and Hermel had to jump in the lake up to his neck to save him from drowning.

I visited with Monique, Sarah and Sarah's little girl. Sarah is back, without two of her children, from the Philippines. I found her to be mature and looking very good. (I wouldn't want her to sit on me, but looking good, nonetheless.) Monique continues to beat the odds with her heart condition.

I stayed at Roger and Maggie's that night. The biggest change in anyone is in Roger. He brought his Bible out and showed me how much he studies that book. He told me he has a lot to do to redeem himself. I told him he didn't have to do that, the Lord did it for him already. I've never been better treated than on this visit. All is well, if you discount old age. Roger has diabetes, heart trouble and a back so bad that he can't work anymore. They are now Mennonites and loving it.

Then I visited Buck. Some people don't change, except that he too was very happy for my company. (Buck was baptized into the Adventist church a year ago.) He made lunch for me and we had a good talk.

The last visit in the Sudbury area was to Eddy Charrette. The guy is doing good. He is the oldest in a family of a dozen and he remains the strongest. He does a lot of fishing now that he is retired. His house if real clean and organized. I"m impressed. His wife died four years ago.

In North Bay, my cousin, Madeleine and I stayed up till midnight talking. That's what happens when you don't see one of your favorite people for thirty years. She really is a sweetheart. We reminisced a lot about times gone by. She had many pictures of old relatives when they were young. I really have a soft spot for that family member.

In the end, all of these visits warmed my heart. Wish I lived closer to these dear people. Ah well, if that is what God wanted, that is where I would be. The only negatives I can point to is the weather. Oh my goodness, I haven't seen the sun since I left EVI. Rain, sleet, snow, ice and storm after storm. Through it all, however, I didn't miss an appointment. Even today, I drove through a snow squall. The other thing I can't appreciate is the scenery up north. Outside of Southern Ontario, everything looks poverty stricken. There are so many shacks up north, it's amazing. On that good note, I'll say, aurevoir!

PS: About being sad: I just got a phone call. My secretary's grandson, Shawn, was killed today. A road accident. Frances, my secretary, has a daughter in Boulder. The daughter adopted to problem children. Shawn was autistic and the girl, Becka, is Bipolar. That is the third person connected with EVI killed this year. What is the deal?

Good Trip So Far

I'm sitting in my nephew, Allan's, living room. The sky is as gray as I remember it being in northern Canada at this time of year. There is snow on the ground and the wind is howling like it was mid January. Actually, Allan's home is not in Canada at all, but it is as far north as it can get and not be in Canada. Americans this close to Canada are really Canadians at heart. They even say "eh" and act like Eskimos in caucasian disguises.

I drove from Colorado so that I wouldn't have to rent a car at this end. I intend to visit some family members after I am finished with the Revival meetings. I drove one thousand miles the first day and finished off with five hundred miles the last day. Piece-o-cake. I listened to two very good audio books. One on Winston Churchill, excellent. And one on Deepthroat, the man who leaked the truth about Watergate to Bob Woodward, the reporter. That book was excellent, as well.

I preached the first of five sermons, yesterday. It seemed to be well rec'd.

Allan and his cutie, Bonnie, are very hospitable. Their three girls, Jesse, Mac, for Macayla, and Elaina, are wonderfully sweet, well behaved and very social. The oldest, Jesse, is great at checkers, but when she comes close to winning, she backs off and lets her adversary win. She can't stand to offend. I love it. Everyone should be so loving.

I'll be moving over to Anne and Nelson's place on Tuesday. We had a nice visit yesterday, but with too many others. All is well. If winter doesn't ramp up too quickly, I should be home safely in two weeks. Till next time.

Be Diligent in Prayer

I saw the most beautiful rainbow, yesterday. I went up the mountain twice during the day, to pray. The second time, it was beginning to rain when I left, but I really didn't care as I was determined, since I am mostly alone anyway, to pray as much as I can. When my wife comes home in one month and one week, I'll have less time. We'll spend all of our time looking into each other's eyes. Well, that will take three and one half minutes, or four. Anyway, I had worked five hours on this topic of Righteousness by Faith without much success and in a state of semi-discouragement, I went up the mountain to talk to the Lord about it.

He got through to me, or maybe, I got through to me that it is nonsense to fret over sermon material. I can't produce a good sermon on an ideal day. If the Lord doesn't give me the material as a revelation, a gift, then I am up the creek. I didn't ask for the assignments and if He wants to use me, then that is His prerogative, but He'll need to supply the talks. So instead of busting my head over blank thoughts, I've decided to have faith in God and relax. He never lets me down, anyway. So, as I am making my way home with a hard wind at my back and the rain soaking my backside, the sun came out and produced the sharpest rainbow I have seen in forever. The rainbow, a double, spanned nicely from one end of Eden Valley to the other. I took it to be God's promise to me as well as giving Eden Valley a favorable nod.

Honestly, I am praying more and more and more. "Only the work accomplished with much prayer . . . will in end prove to be efficient for good." DA 362. It is as if God goes out of His way to answer my prayers, when I go out of my way to pray them. That is so encouraging. In 2008, it took a year, it seems like, to reveal that He heard. Sometimes, it's immediate. In any case, my confidence grows. I'd like to encourage you likewise. Don't tell me God doesn't answer your prayers. Tell me instead, how faithful, how earnest, how determined, how persevering you are in petitioning His throne. God will do wonders for them that "believe that He is and that He rewards them that diligently seek Him." The key word here is "diligently".

So says the Preacher to his Tribe

God is so Good

The weather is fabulous. It's November and to my Canadian senses, the summer hangs on. One of these days it's going to turn, but till then we will bask in God's gift of warm sunshine.

No new events in my life, I think. I've been praying a lot about the ASI meetings I've been ask to do. Yesterday, I presented the first of the three sermons to my staff. I can only praise the Lord. It turned out far better than I expected. Usually, the Lord lets me sweat until the last minute. True, He never lets me down, but boy, He gives me plenty of opportunity to stretch my faith. So now, I have one. Just two to go. Will they come easy? I'll let you know. Once I am satisfied that I have the messages, I am suppose to write a book/booklet using the sermons God has given me. This is so we can hand them out at the Convention. Since I've never done anything of the sort, I am somewhat intimidated. Nevertheless, I am determined to go forward. It will be interesting to see how things develop. I'd never put myself in such a predicament willingly, but being pushed into it, I am actually grateful for the challenge.

Julie just moved in to her new-to-her house, Angie's battle with her adopted twins is intensifying (I believe that thru' the Lord, she will overcome), Jason is on his last major trip of the year putting up One Day Churches. My wife arrived home yesterday with a guest from Canada, Beverly is her name. I'm working on putting out a new Faith Ventures magazine and I have to preach every time I turn around. No problem, the Lord always gives me something to say.

Being alone, well mostly alone, I endeavor to pray two and one half hours per day. The dividends are definitely noticeable. I am encouraged to pray more and more and more. "Only the work accomplished with much prayer, and sanctified by the merit of Christ, will in the end prove to have been efficient for good." DA 362:2

Are you sometimes overwhelmed? Are the challenges you face intimidating? Is the future dark and uncertain? Welcome to life on a fallen planet. That's what life is like for everyone I know. The dark future we face is lighted up by the fact that Jesus is the orderer of all our experiences and if we could see the end from the beginning, we would choose no other way to be let. Just put one foot ahead of the other. Go forward. The outcome is sure to play itself out to our advantage.

So says the Preacher to his tribe.

Not Enough to do!

I got a ticket for my wife to come home on Dec. 14 and arrives on the 15th. I tried to get her to come home with Deniece on the 22nd of December, but there were no seats. With the travel agent we began to work our way backwards in time and finally we found one seat on the 14th. When I told her, she said she was so glad. If she would have had to wait till the 22nd, she said she would have cried. I told her to hold her tears. I've been crying for months and nobody cares.

On the way to Brazil, I read a book called "Left to Tell." It is the story of a girl who spent three months in a small bathroom with six other women during the Rwanda genocide. On the way back from Brazil, I watched a PBS documentary on the Rwandan genocide. So heart breaking. Yet, there was heroism among the few and a strong connection with God with some. It was both inspiring and maddening by fits and starts. I recommend both the book and the documentary.

Romeo Aggio is dead. As far as I can tell, he was having headaches for a couple of weeks. One day, he suffered a stroke while driving and drove into a field. Apparently, he never came to. He died in hospice. The conference secretary who told Patty LaVanture said that Romeo was in great shape and was very careful with his diet, et al. Go figure!

My dear energetic Vice-president, Leasa, organized for me to preach three sermons at the Nation ASI Convention in Sacramento, CA next August. The last time I preached at ASI, I told myself I shouldn't preach there again. It is just too stressful. But, how can a President say no to his VP? She wants me to preach on Righteousness by Faith and the Third Angel's Message. Her question a few weeks ago was: Why does EGW say the 3rd Angel's Message is R by F in verity and all our evangelists do is preach on the Mark of the Beast. Where is the R by F in the Third Angel? Now you must pray for me. It would be good if I could prepare the three sermons before Xmas. Then, I need them printed in a booklet to hand out at ASI. Doesn't that sound like a plan? (All Leasa's ideas. The Lord sent her because I didn't have enough to do.)

Brazilian Adventure

I'm home. I've been all the way to Brazil and back. I didn't think Brazil was so far, but it took me 33 hours to get there and probably longer coming back. That is as long as it takes me to go to my wife's project in Africa. I was a great trip, if you don't mind discomfort--overnight travel, long lay overs, extreme heat, fire ants, canker on my tongue, sleeping on a foam that gradually became nothing in about ten minutes, etc.

In the Sao Paulo airport, I could have rented a room to sleep called Sleep Fast. Not a bad idea when you have ten hours to spare and you flew all night, except that it cost $49. (Forty nine dollars for the first hour, that is.) I saw young couples coming out of there. Must be someone thought of another way to make renting the rooms worthwhile.

The project on the Amazon river was impressive. Not the project so much, maybe, the young people running it. They bought this beautiful property for $225,000 without a penny in their pockets, and paid it off in five months. The leader, Brad Mills, is married to David Gate's daughter, Lena. They have two little boys. I am wonderfully impressed with their dedication and balanced, intelligent approach to ministry. The Lord is blessing them greatly.

They operate three mission boats on the Amazon river. They've interested 200 Brazilian professionals--docs, nurses, radiologist, dentists etc.-- to volunteer from mission trips into the interior. Now they are part of OCI's network of missions and I deem them worthy of our support.

I went with the purpose of speaking at a convention-like weekend four times. I ended up speaking six times. I had prepared three messages on Medical Missionary work and preached only two of them. I believe the Lord led me to touch other subjects. The Lord gave us a very spiritual weekend. The people are very friendly, good looking, intelligent and fun loving. Of course, the Adventist involved in this project are upper-middle class professionals. Much of the country reminded me of Dar Es Salaam, or Santo Domingo--steamy hot, sewers running down the streets, tropical fruit growing everywhere, children playing soccer on every street corner etc. The young ladies are beautiful. The older ladies still dress like they were beautiful. I guess it is too hot to dress otherwise. Last year, the Amazon river experienced its biggest flood on record, something like 50 or 60 feet above normal. This year, they set the record in the opposite direction. The waters have never been so low.

All in all, the trip was worth it, even though, I left my cell phone, pen and little note book in a motel in Miami. It was still worth it. The cell phone is coming by UPS. It's still kind of early right now, but I think I'll go to bed anyway. Tomorrow, I must speak at assembly. Yuk! As in rare cases, I haven't a thing prepared and I don't even feel like trying. Tomorrow, God will fill my mouth, just watch.

Love to all.

Little Newsy things

In two days I fly to Brazil. I was asked by Markus Yaudas to take his spot in speaking at a small convention in Manaus. That normally would be a rest of sorts, except that I fly a red-eye overnight to Brazil and I get the privilege of waiting or sightseeing in Sao Paulo for ten or eleven hours the next day. I hope I am in shape to preach on Friday and Sabbath. I return on Monday. I've never been to Brazil. I anticipate an exciting adventure, maybe.

I was talking to Julie the other day. She's got all kinds of news, but hasn't got time to blog, so I get to scoop her this time. 1. Caleb was baptized on Sabbath. Ziggy would like to be baptized also, but his mom convinced him that he is too young still. Jacob is sure he isn't ready. Caleb is still looking forward to going to Africa next year with me. 2. Julie and Art bought a house north of Whitehorse, two and one half acres juxtaposed against a game park. 3. Janice Schnurr is visiting at Julie's for a couple of weeks. 4. Julie says the first Bruce's airplane was found. The only trouble is, they found it ten years ago and they tried to keep it quiet. Finally, the cat was let out of the bag. Go figure! 5. Julie says that Champ just got out of the hospital after having appendicitis surgery. I hope he contacts me soon about preaching at his church. I'm thinking of getting my wife a ticket for late November if he does.

More news:

a) Apparently, Jason Aggio called Patty LaVanture to tell her that his dad, Romeo, had a major stroke. Not expected to live.

b) I attended a meeting by Lewis Walton at Campian last Sabbath afternoon. Very good. I'm convinced the economy will not rebound. I believe we have entered the beginning of the small time of trouble.

c) We have a doctor from Poland with us at EVI. Yesterday, I invited her and Mavis Nusser to the Zoo in Denver. It took four hours to go through that Zoo. It was 80 degrees. Summer persists in Colorado.

A few minutes ago, I rec'd a phone call from Kim Busl. He sits on a search committee looking for a president for the EBS school in Norway. The call was for Leasa Hodges. She doesn't think God calls a person to one place only to uproot her to another before the job is done. Amen!

There are several search committees busy these days. One for the president of OCI, EVI, Kibidula, and EBS. Want a job?? Apply here.

Talk Too Much

Easy week. We are in the middle of a good lifestyle session (fifteen guests). One little scare: A lady slipped in the fever tank and her son threatened to sue?? The next day, she was fine. Leasa hurt her back. Sometimes she can hardly walk. We can't afford for her to be hurt. The weather has turned cold, but not unseasonable. Leasa, Leonard, Roger Hatch, the Maranatha Chief builder, and I went to visit a retirement center in Denver. We wanted to see what our new Lifestyle Center will potentially look like. I was suppose to wire my wife $20,000 and I misfired. I'll send it Monday. She needed it sooner than that.

In 12 days I leave for Brazil. I'm stressed a little over the fact that I still need three more sermons. On the other hand, the Lord never lets me down. So, I'll see what He does.

Today, I drove the lifestyle guests to visit the Celestial Seasoning factory. It'a beautiful place and quite enlightening--Canada is its biggest foreign market; Sleeytime Tea is its hottest seller; this one factory supplies the whole world.; and white, green, and black tea are all bad for you, because the difference is only in the amount of caffeine.

I learned something, being a leader. The only way to win a war is to avoid one. Because of the Board Meeting, things necessarily need to get adjusted. When people are asked to leave, it is always painful. People are not asked to leave without a reason, but the discussing of it can easily turn into an accuse and counter accuse situation. Why do we think in terms of blame? It isn't always someone's fault. In any case, there are adjustments to be made. Now, here is what I learned: "Where there are many words, there is no want of sin." This is a paraphrase of a Bible verse in Proverbs, I think. It's so true. I had to apologize this week because I am not faultless in my dealing with people. I talk too much. Do you?

So says the Preacher to his tribe.

Bummer

I hate to extend the time between blogs too long. If everyone is like I am, then everyone gets frustrated when they hear little to nothing.

We had a Convention on the weekend. Pastor Peter Neri from the Paradise Church in Las Vegas spoke. I believe he is the best speaker we've had. Very, very spiritual and his messages are wonderfully applicable. The attendance didn't seem to be as many as last year, nevertheless, we had a great group of people. I sensed the Lord's blessing.

On Sunday, we had a Board Meeting. It is perhaps one of the most stressful boards I've attended. I usually find a board meeting stressful when I get beat up, but this time I didn't get beat up. It is just that I came to the place where I felt I couldn't go any farther with one of my departments, and it meant asking someone to leave. With some people, esp. the people you appreciate the most as friends, it is so hard. These kinds of situations do not promote good relationships. In any case, I dug in my heels and did what I genuinely felt I had to do. I prayed so much about this and I saw no other solution.

Afterward, we drove to DayStar Academy. The board there was a breadth of fresh air. The new leader has arrived on campus. This year's students are beautiful and easygoing. The farm invested $31k and expects to gross $110k when the 12,000 bales of hay are sold. I am greatly encouraged. Daniel Butler and Stephen Leach were on the board as invitees. They were both voted in as members. Daniel wants to pray about it. I enjoyed the contributions they made.

We have a new Lifestyle Session going on. This group seems so quiet compared to the group we had last month. This will be a rest for us.

News:

Linda Horner is courting Michael "Tigh-tee". He is a Wildwood-ite. I had breakfast with him last April. He is very well groomed, looks like a businessman, and gives me the impression of being just a little exacting. Perhaps I'm wrong. I wish them well.

Michelle and Yuli are with me one more day. We've had a good time. The kids and I are the best of friends, i.e. the big kids and the little kids too. We were talking this morning and Yuli says he's like to come back and stay too months next year. I appreciate the whole gang. I think Yuli is convicted that he needs to do something more than he is doing for Jesus, besides leaving the big city.

Talked to my Lover this morning. She is sorry that she can't come in November. Some woman is coming from the Yukon to be with her. She was doubly sorry when I told her I might be doing a series of meetings in the Soo, in November. Boy, what a bummer. Otherwise, all is well with her and me. Bummer!

God is Amazing

Our Convention starts tomorrow. I believe we are ready. Leasa stays ahead of the curve with Programs and Board packets and such.

Yesterday, I was in Wildwood. We had a meeting with the folks from Ukraine. I'm not sure we accomplished enough to make the trip worth while. I was routed through Chicago. My plane was suppose to leave the airport at 7:30 PM. Everything was ready, the plane, the crew, the control tower, everything. Everything except the pilot. He didn't show up until 9:30 PM. I got to bed at 12:30 AM.

We got a million dollar donation yesterday. I thank God for the miracle. When I was first a leader at Woodland Park, I use to watch Bill Dull, Ron Crary, Larry Flemming and all those guys, and marvel at the donations they use to bring in. They were building empires. I thought, I'll never be able to fundraise like that. Well, I was never able to fundraise at all. The Lord surrounds me with people who are able to do it. Steven Grabiner, who read the message I got by text on my phone wondered why I was not more excited. First of all, I didn't raise it. Secondly, I knew it was coming, and thirdly, it isn't going in my pocket. I praise God constantly, but I'm not making a big show of it. Steve said that I'll be known for being the best fundraiser in our work. Ya, right! Anyway, it's a huge donation. I'm humbled and grateful and amused that the Lord would choose to do that to me. I so wanted to be a fund raiser years ago. Today, I really couldn't care less. All I know, is that God takes care of my needs and my institutional needs as well. Now that making a show no longer matters a hoot, now the Lord is doing all kinds of amazing things for me . . . for us. I still marvel that John is a Conference President.

Champy called me Thursday night. We talked for half an hour. We had a good time. His church wants me to do a week of revival meetings in November for them. I thought I would try to draw my wife home with that possibility. She hasn't seen hers or my family in eons. It would be a blessing to take a week for the meetings and a week to visit some folks, don't you think?

Maybe not.

It's Sunday evening. The Family Camp is over and I believe everyone is more than pleased. I know I am. The speakers were very good--Tom and Alane Waters were good and the other family, Paul and Carolyn Rayne with two children, were better. They addressed many issues pertaining to families and romance. I don't know if I learned anything, but I do know they left me missing my wife a lot more.

The church was full, especially on Sabbath and the weather was perfect. I think it was 95 degrees F. today.

I'm enjoying Michelle and Yuli with the children more every day. The kids take to me well. It isn't like I don't work at it, but the truth is, working at it comes naturally to me. I love kids, and I think they know it. Uncle Rob drove all the way from California to see Michelle. He always makes a favorable impression on everyone he meets. Gabriella and Adam Dean stayed at my house as well. They got on especially well with Yuli. All of it put together made for a great weekend.

Today, Tom Waters went for a walk to pray. That was in the dark, before dawn. At one point, he felt like he wasn't alone. When he looked down, he saw a bear cub walking by his side. Tom stopped and the cub stopped, then began to retreat. Tom thought it might fun to pet the little fella, but he couldn't get close to it. Eventually, Tom figured he shouldn't push his "luck", or might we say "Providence" too far. I haven't seen a bear at EVI since last fall. Tom has seen the twin cubs twice in four days. Maybe I should walk in the very early mornings. Then again, maybe not.

Next week promises to be busy. On Tuesday, I need to fly to Chattanooga to meet with some folks from Ukraine at Wildwood. After meeting with them on Wednesday, I return home to get ready for the EVI Convention and Board Meeting. After the board I drive to DayStar for their boards and drive home the next day. The next Lifestyle Session will be well under way when I get back. So, it's back to the old grind.

If my wife was here, I'd turn my back on all that work and take her on a week's vacation and just rest. No point resting alone.

Visitors

Yuli, Michelle, Samuel, and Elizabeth arrived Thursday evening for England. It's been a blast ever since. I'm exposing myself, however, as a poor cook. Too bad, but this is what you get if you come to visit me when I am alone. I make good bread, and I buy a lot of fruit. With that I hope all will find some semblance of satisfaction.

Elizabeth had her first birthday, yesterday, Sabbath. She also walked about six feet without falling. Yuli brought a cake that a friend baked all the way from England and shared it with the church at potluck. 'Lizabeth was quite happy to have "Happy Birthday" sung to her. Blowing the candle out was a total mystery to her. Her brother was very eager to help, except that no one would let him. Half a dozen adults (you'd think would know better) kept saying, way above a whisper, blow, blow, blow, but she couldn't compute.

Coincidentally, I preached on 1 Samuel chapter one. You remember, the story of Hannah and little Samuel. Hannah brought Samuel to the temple just after she weaned him, probably three years old, and there he was to "abide forever." 1 Samuel 1:22. At one point I asked Yuli to stand Samuel up on a church pew. The question to the congregation was: Now, do you think this three-year old boy is ready to leave home? Do you think his mother is ready to let him stay at Eden Valley with Uncle Frank? The tsi bougon (french for little Twirp) is just that, a little twirp. It must have been heart wrenching for Hannah to fulfill her vow to God. And that was the point of the whole sermon. Abiding in Christ is not a matter of doing like going to church on Sabbath, praying every morning and reading our Bibles, it is a matter of being. It's a decision that changes our whole lives. We can't be in and out of abiding. We must abide--live--in Christ forevermore. For some, it's a heart wrenching separation from a cherished lifestyle, but is what we vowed to do at our baptism. That is what we should endeavor to live up to.

Today, we took a trip to the Rocky Mountains--12,000 feet. We had a picnic up there and all was well until about half an hour from home. Elizabeth had had enough and let us know without let up and Mr. Samuel, star of yesterday's sermon, decided to get carsick and throw up all over himself. Oh well, everything can't be roses.

So says the Preacher to his tribe.

Conference President, Imagine.

Something exciting has just happened. My brother John, the cute one in the family, Pastor in New Brunswick, was elected to the post of Conference President of the Maritimes Provinces. I spent an hour on the phone with Auntie Janice, yesterday. They are blown away. It isn't anything they expected and, I must say, it sounds like they are a bit intimidated. Surely, I would be if I was in their shoes. I'm proud of my little brother (though he is bigger than I.) God makes no mistakes. He can put a man with only a grade 10 education if He chooses to. Now I'm eager to visit them. I've never stayed in a Conference President's house before.

Michelle will be here on the 16th of Sept. I'm excited about the time I'm to have with them.

I expressed last time that we had a difficult group in our lifestyle center this time. Well, last night I had to take a man away from his bedroom and put him in our former Assisted Living facility. This morning, I put him on a flight home. He was revealing himself to some of our lady lifestyle guests, besides other gross behavior. I hated to have to send him home, but for the sake of the other guests, I had to do something. He was making progress health wise, and might have been one who would have recovered nicely. Too bad. A few minutes ago, his pastor called me, quite angry. he tried to tell me I didn't give the guy a fair hearing. Truth is, I spoke to several other lifestyle guests, and the verified his gross behavior. That was enough for me.

You probably all have read about the fires in Boulder, CO. Yesterday, a fire started just 10 or 15 miles from Eden Valley. It is 10% contained as of this morning. If it comes our way, we could be in trouble. They lost approximately 170 houses in Boulder and the Loveland fire has burned two, so far.

I have a friend in Christchurch, New Zealand, who is living with the after shocks of the 7.1 earthquake they had last week. She says the cracks in her house are getting bigger and bigger with each tremor. If you ask me, I know, you didn't ask, but if you did, I am ready to believe that we've entered into the end game. Brace yourselves, Jesus is making His presence known.

So says the Preacher to his tribe.

Knowledge Power

It's Thursday. Not too much happening, though there is always a degree of stress to contend with.

The Lifestyle guests seem to be doing alright. It's a bit worrisome when you suspect one or two of them of sneaking off to smoke marijuana. The question is: How do you handle that? Do you call in the Mounties, confront them sternly or tactfully, or wait on the Lord in the matter. We are watching closely to ascertain whether the other guests are negatively impacted. No sign that they know anything at this point. They all come to the devotional hour to hear the gospel. Therefore, I'm slow to do anything that will jeopardize the possibility of anyone missing out on finding salvation. So far, I've/we've chosen to stay cool and wait to see how the Lord moves upon us.

We are coming close to another Annual Board Meeting, Oct. 3,10. There are no big issues this year. At least, I hope there aren't any. Our finances are down a little. We'd actually be in great shape if the farm hadn't suffered a major setback again this year. As a result, we wrestle with how to relate to next year's farming. Should we keep on going, or should we close down? Should we scale down? I feel it would be wise to decide before the board meeting.

The Lifestyle Center is still full. It's been more than a year and one half now. The health food store stays in the black, and our overseas missions are pretty well thriving. I praise God.

I put a missionary lady, Carmen Rosario, whose been with us for a week on an airplane last night. She use to do the promotional work in Uchee Pine's Lifestyle Center. I have the impression that they will miss her dearly. I've been trying to recruit her for quite some time. Instead, she committed herself to Bolivia. However, the situation isn't real solid over there and I dare to hope she will come this way in the not to distant future.

Michelle and Yuli will arrive on Sept 16. (Michelle is my niece. She is married to a Bulgarian lawyer and they live in London, England.) All of us who travel from Africa through London stop for an overnight rest at their house. Very handy, indeed, and very hospitable of them, also. They plan to spend three weeks with me. Yuli is wanting to make himself useful. We'll see. What can I do to end up needing a lawyer?

Yesterday, I preached on The Power of Knowledge.

"Knowledge is power for good or for evil." FE 111. That means you aren't too dangerous if you don't know anything. Well, maybe! On the positive side, you might be a real blessing if you educated yourself to be one, a blessing that is. I work on the assumption that most people, even the "unchurched" would prefer to do good rather than evil. The problem for most is, where do they find the fodder to fill their minds with good things. The world is corrupt and corrupts everything it influences. TV, radio, internet and the media at large spews out evil with only enough good to be dangerous. Few are perceptive enough to tell good and evil apart.

How simplified is life when the Bible becomes the standard. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise [the] wisdom and instruction [it offers.] Pro 1:7. "In [Christ] is hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." Col. 2:3. Where then should we go for an education?

Am I saying we shouldn't go to school, college, university? No, but I am saying the school of Christ is superior to any other institution you or your kids can attend. I am also saying that any school, even Yale and Harvard, are a waste of time and money, if the Bible is neglected. And I am convinced that most people are unbelievers in this matter. They don't realize that "the work of education and the work of redemption are one." Ed 30. Life, if all there is is what the world offers, isn't worth the living.

So says the Preacher to his tribe.

This Week as I See It

It's a new week. Yesterday, we started a new lifestyle session with 13 people. First impressions left me thinking we are in for a rough time.

We've gotten through the first day and we are still intact. I keep praying for wisdom to maintain a balanced control of the situation. In essence, they are all lovable people. My fear is that they'll step on each other's toes.

Michelle and Yuli will be at EVI for as much as three weeks starting from the 14th or 15th of September. That will be a blast. I hope I can do well by them. My busy-ness isn't always conducive to hospitality. I'd better stock up on some grub, as well.

This week, I have David and Candi Katsma for breakfast and a lady from Bolivia. The Katsma's are just moving into EVI and Carmen Rosario is part of a team starting a new lifestyle center in South America. With that, I have two lifestyle guests in my house. I am surrounded with people all the time. No time to get lonely.

I'll be starting a series of meetings on True Education on Wednesday, this week.

Markus Yaudas asked me to do a week of prayer in Brazil, next month. (I said yes.)

The Larimer County accepted our first draft of the Master Plan to rebuild EVI.

Bill Bosko is looking and feeling great. He is recovering from heart failure miraculously fast.

That's it for now.

More of the Same

I find that the longer I go between blogs, the harder it is to blog. (Ask Julie. Julie, how can we know what is happening with you if you don't tell us?)

We've gotten some real good news at EVI. Our farm manager, Bill Bosko, was threatened with needing a heart transplant. Unbelievable, but true. He kept assuring me, perhaps himself as well, that he would not accept a heart transplant under any circumstance. For a while there, I thought he might have to eat his words. Praise God, he doesn't. I've not often prayed for anything as much as I prayed for this. I don't mean to imply that because I prayed Bill needs no surgery. I'm sure my prayers were just one of many, many. The doctor says Bill will recover fully within one year. Praise God. We should all have the hope of recovering spiritually is so short a time.

We went up the mountain last evening. When I say we, I mean maybe twenty Eden Valley-ites and friends and enjoyed a corn roast. I really appreciate the opportunities to do something pleasant with my Eden Valley family. Great people.

Unfortunately, the Eden Valley family hasn't always been this united. We spent the last couple of years learning to deal with each other's characters. Some people are gone, which I love very much, but they couldn't be happy with us no matter what. More and more, we are focusing on the possibility to do more for the Lord. What a blessing that is.

Leasa is gone for the weekend. She called me from the airport this morning. She told me she'd been reading my blogs up to a year ago. I thought, "Oh oh, I wonder what nonsense I've been caught saying." As you know, discretion isn't my strongest quality. In the end, it appears I wasn't caught with my pants down, this time. In July last year, I postulated that if I found a Business Manager, there would be a huge transfer of power, and I would not be needed as much at EVI. Leasa wanted to know if my predictions had come to pass. They haven't. I've never been so blessed as since this dear lady put her shoulder behind the EVI plow.

-The bears are coming down from the mountains. Our few apples are nearly ready for them. -There is one elk which thinks the corn was planted specifically for him.

-Eden Valley is pretty well full up as far as staff is concerned. We do need a female therapist.

-The corn seems to be selling well. This morning the farm crew left with a load of corn for farmer's market. They sold out the first hours. We had to send another load to them.

Till next time.

Big Weekend

Just came off of another big weekend. Leasa Hodges, the Waggoners, the Emersons and I went to Goodland, Kansas to do a health weekend. We had a great time. At least, I did. All I had to do was preach the sermon on Sabbath, and run the errands for the team. I did make a couple of recipes. It took me three to four hours to make a candy dish. Then, I brought some of the candy home, but I had to eat the wax paper it was wrapped in, it was so sticky. So yummy, by the way, that I ate the paper and all.

Dr. Emerson gave exceptionally good lectures on health. Brent Waggoner is very good as well, and humorous. The ladies did a cooking school on Sunday. The food was great, as was all else. Wish I had pictures for you.

Four of us stayed at the Pastor's house. The couple were very hospitable. Our rooms were in the basement of the house, and there was no windows in the rooms. It was pitch dark, day and night. That is so ideal for sleeping. Not so great for air, but sleep, hmmm, mm!

Talked to my Lover this morning. It's so terribly dusty over there that she is coming down with bronchitis. Jason is there with his family. He put one roof on in two days. Tomorrow, he expects to put two more roofs on. That will make his mother happy.

The Baumans leave for Africa on the first of September with twelve trunks and four bikes. The house they will occupy isn't ready yet, in Africa, but it shouldn't be too long. I hope they are tough. It will be fun to follow the progress.

Dad

Melancholy

I got word that Jason arrived in Dar early today. I guess we may safely assume he reached home as well. It was an exceptional gift that God gave me, if you think about it. The circumstances had to be just right for my son and I to spend three weeks together. An amazing blessing to me. We put more than 10,000 km on my old van. We crossed the USA diagonally, from Florida to Washington State. We climbed mountains, went swimming, attended ASI, loaded a container for my wife's project and visited with Angie and Julie with eight grandchildren and then, as quickly as the blessing came, the blessing left. We said goodbye at the airport and we walked away. I must admit, however, that a huge melancholy settled on my soul. Urgh! It was hard to walk away. But never mind, I bounced back up and work now occupies my every minute.

This weekend, a team of Eden Valley-ites will drive to Goodland, Kansas to do a health emphasis weekend. I will do the 11 o'clock sermon on Sabbath. Leonard and I were suppose to bus down to Mexico next week, but we've cancelled the trip. It's too hairy down there now.

I have to make my way to Wildwood at the end of Sept. to meet with folks from Ukraine. We, Markus, Steven, and myself, are trying to solve some ethical issues with our dear brethren.

Tonight is graduation at our lifestyle center. I've got half an hour to prepare a short talk. Got to go.

In Heat and Loving it.

The fun continues. As you know, we all went tubing two days ago. Unfortunately, Venessa lost her retainer. (The thing that holds her teeth together.) Yesterday, we went on a search and retrieve mission. We found nothing. We all prayed before we went, and yet, I couldn't muster up the faith to believe we could find a little retainer in one kilometer of river. I searched the beach where we ate while the others swam the cold waters of the river.

When it was all over, the swimmers were frozen. Seeing I was dry and hot, and that I had given Jason my shirt because of the hyperthermia, the kids came to put the ice-cube hands on my hot body. Caleb said he came to me to warm up because "Pepere was in heat." Very perceptive.

Because it was Caleb's birthday, we all ate at Taco Bell. Where else could you feed thirteen people for less than $40. Today, we are just laying around. I preach tomorrow, and on Sunday, Jason and I hit the trail for the last trip of the vacation. Again, we need to travel 1300 miles in one day. On Monday, Jason flies to his lover. Wish I was., I'm in heat, remember.

Big Tubing

Every day is a big adventure for the Ford, McPherson, and Fournier clan. Today, we went to the Icicle River, well named, and threw in our tubes, canoes and air mattresses. It was great for the kids. We saw a bear and lots of salmon. When I saw the bear (the biggest seen in these parts, according to Nessa.) I yelled, "Hey, there's a bear." The bear ran away and I got a blast for scaring the critter. Can't blame a guy for getting excited when he sees a bear, can you? For the others, well, they saw me. It's better than only seeing the man who saw the man who saw the bear.

Yesterday, was Steve's birthday. Today, is Angie and Steve's wedding anniversary. Congratulations for nineteen years of near constant bliss. I offered to babysit if they wanted to go on a date tonight. Angie says that Steve's idea of a date is to climb a mountain. She had enough of that yesterday. At least we are having lasagna for suppers.

Big Climb

We climbed to Stuart Lake, yesterday. Thirteen of us. The youngest are twins of six years. They marched with the rest of us from twelve thirty to four o'clock to get to the lake. (We did stop for lunch at a foaming creek for one hour.) Then they practically ran all the way off the mountain, taking two hours. Amazing.

At the creek, the kids jumped into the ice water. Jason caught it all on his new camera. It was a great time. Buster really didn't want to go in, but he peed his pants and his mom dunked him in the ice water to clean him up and as a form of punishment. It was a tragic comedy. Through his tears and agony he kept claiming to be happy. "I'm happy, I'm happy he would cry trying to paste a smile on his agonized face." Zero tolerance is the motto. I believe it works. He had a similar experience at the lake. He got miserable up there and his mom, tough as gum rubber, took him for another swim. Again, he pleaded through tears that he was happy, but to no avail. His pronouncements didn't cut it. He was made happy by having to stay in the cold drink until he could get control of himself. Victory again. Most admitted they couldn't be that tough. That is the part of discipline that eludes most parents--tough love. These kids will praise God forever that He saw fit to put them into this family. I believe they will be saved.

It was a great day. We were all as tired as could be by evening, but our tough Yukon boys, Ziggy and Jake, decided to climb the mountain behind Angie's house to show their toughness. Caleb needed to be sent after them when the sun went down. It was a rescue mission that only a super hero could handle. With cell phone in hand, he found them by the big tree and reported his success with a terse "roger" at the close of the call.

Good Time, Busy Time

Finally. Boy, it's been a long time. Sorry about that. It's been a busy time.

I picked up Jason at the Denver airport on August 2. We left the airport at 8:00 P.M. and headed for Orlando, two thousand miles. Jason hadn't slept for twenty for hours coming from England, and in spite of that, we drove and talked non-stop for another twenty four hours. We managed the two thousand miles in a day and a half.

The ASI Convention was very good, very spiritual. The music was exceptional. The highlight, as for as I am concerned, was my opportunity to bring two estranged brothers together to effect a reconciliation.

We lelt Orlando on a Sunday morning. We drove for 800 miles that day and for 1300 miles the next day. During the long day, we stopped at the factory that makes Zenair airplanes. Jason got some of his questions answered and asked the people there to take us up in a four-seater airplane. That was cool, even tho' it was 100 degrees F.

All the next week we worked non-stop at Eden Valley--Executive Committee meetings, personnel problems, loading a container for Africa, preaching twice etc.

Then, on Sunday morning, we took off at 3:00 A.M. for Wenatchee, WA. We travelled the 1270 miles in one day. Now, we are at Angie's having a blast. Julie and her boys are here, Angie's girls are all grown up. Vanessa and Brianna are lifeguards at the local pool. The boys and I climbed the mountain in athletic style--we practically ran all the way up and down. I was soaked. Our boys are boys. Our girls are beautiful, and I mean knockouts. Angie's adopted twins have been very affectionate and pleasant. All is good.

The messages at ASI were all good. Interestingly, the sermon I enjoyed the least left me with the only lasting impression. It had to do with the Beatitudes. The Preacher read something from the S.O.P which said that Jesus preached the Beatitudes in an effort to give the human race access to God. Just that idea inspired me to no end. I long to have greater access to God. Don't you? That means everything, John 17:3. But consider this: Jesus gives eight points, which if we follow, constitutes the key to the heart of God.

The eight keys are in a natural order. Number one: Blessed are the poor in spirit. Happy are they who feel their spiritual poverty. This is the first condition of salvation. Then, blessed are they who mourn that condition, for, number three, it will leave you meek, i.e. teachable. Once we recognize our terrible condition and become self-distrustful, then we begin to hunger and thirst for righteousness. With righteousness comes purity, mercy, and peacemaking, as opposed to trouble making. In reaching that high standard, then surely persecution will come and with persecution an intimate walk with God. I love it.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Lonely

Lonely. Can you imagine? I don’t have a day like this in ten years of days. Well, it hits me like this occasionally. The planets have to line up special, though. I am usually so busy I look for the moment when I can go pee. But occasionally, eveything stops and whapp, I ain’t got nothin to do. I tell you, I’m glad it don’t happen too often, I’d go stir crazy. Jason is scheduled to arrive tomorrow at 6:25 P.M. at the Denver airport. We’ll take off from there and drive to Orlando. It’s 1900 miles. Why, that’s nearly 3,000 kilometers. It would take two good days to drive that far and that without fiddlin, and all we have is one day and two nights. I think that is why I’ve got nothing to do. I’ve been getting ready little by little, and I’m worried about having enough strength between us to drive the distance nonstop. Jason’s body clock will be off quilter and I’m not as young as I was yesteryears. As a matter of fact, I drove to Oak Haven and back last weekend (1200 miles) and it took me all week to recover.

I know, we’d recover better if we flew. Actually, I tried to buy tickets with air-miles. I have two tickets, just what we need and I tried to cash them in, but United won’t do it when they can seat paying customers. I tried to go to Alaska to visit Julie and they wouldn’t accept my air-miles then, either. I bet if I decided to go to nowhere, i.e. where no one else wants to go, they’ll be glad to honor them, but who needs to go there? Well, anyway, I didn’t want to buy two tickets out of pocket. Jason lives on a shoestring, always, and I figure we can make the trip cheaper using my car. Except that I can’t use my car. Things happen. Bill was fixing my car when he got sick. Oh well. What aggravates the situation is that Jason made a mistake on the tickets he bought from Africa. He’s arriving at least one day later than he should be arriving. (Two days would have been better.)

So here I sit, anticipating tomorrow, and I ain’t got nothin to do. I’m ready. So I think, ok, I’ll prepare a sermon. I’ll get the jump on my next assignement. I really ought to do that, but nah, why should I prepare a sermon when I don’t have to.

I preached yesterday. Amazing. (It isn’t amazing that I preached yesterday. I preach every Sabbath and every Wednesday, and when the lifestyle guests are here, I preach every day.) What’s amazing is, the sermon I preached. I’m having a string of lousy sermons turn good, by grace. Really. I’ve been so busy, I am down to devoting two or three hours to a sermon, and by the time I’ve cranked it out, I could throw up. There isn’t anything more I can do but pray. But pray I do. Praise God for that. No matter how busy I am, I take time to pray. I’ve got no choice. It’s embarrassing to have a reputation as a good speaker, and then turn around and serve the people slop. Anyway, all I can say is, I prayed and begged the Lord for help and He turns around and fed the five thousand (50) a good meal. For yesterday’s sermon, I worked all of one and one half hours. That’s all I could do. I was sick over it, but when I got up to preach, God’s Spirit, to sooth my sickened heart, turned the water into wine.

One man walked out weeping. He told me that message was just for him. Half a dozen people told me the same. Strangers were asking for the recording of it and I stood there with my mouth open. God always treats me as if I am special. It blows me away.

There is a danger here, of course. Perhaps you’ve figured it out already. I mustn’t go around thinking I can wing it and the Lord will rescue me every time. It isn’t that hard for the Lord to turn the water into mud if His man gets a little too cocky.

Anyway, where was I. Oh yes, lonely. I was reading this morning in Counsels to Teachers that idelness is the devil’s workshop. I suppose it is, except the devil must be asleep, cause he hasn’t bothered to tempt me with anything exciting today. I did get the notion that I should go to town.

“To do what?” I asked myself. That was the end of the temptation.

So here I sit. On my bed, rambling. Wish you were here, maybe we could hoe corn together, or something.

Dogs

I'm sitting at the computer waiting for the words to flow out of my fingertips. Boy, sometimes my fingertips are dumb. So now, lets see, hmhhh. . .

Well, ok, I did have something exciting happen to me, and to many others, this week. Our new doctor has two dogs. The noisiest barkers I've ever had to deal with. It seems they can see me coming from miles away and they stir themselves into a fury, every time. The staff at the Lifestyle Center are aggravated and the lifestyle guests are sometimes afraid, and the docs family is frustrated. Finally, Dianne, our cook decided to buy three "Stop Bark" contraptions. I really didn't expect much of them. You know, made in China and probably don't work. But wow, they work wonderfully. The dogs are totally quiet. I can even go in their yard and antagonize them and they won't let out even a peep. Makes me feel like going over there and teasing them. Maybe I should bark at them. The gadgets are bark induced frequency machines. Shouldn't they feel what we've had to feel all these months? Or should I just forgive. Or is it ok not to forgive dogs?

Bill, my farm manager, is scheduled to leave the hospital today. We don't know too much yet. The docs can't figure out what the problem is. I believe Bill has an appointment at the University Hospital next week. The big experts will take a shot at it. Keep praying.

Let God be God

I'm home. I left the board meeting at Oak Haven at 7:30 PM on Sunday night. The board was almost over, and I wanted to get past Chicago before morning. Oh Chicago! What a traffic mess that is. In any case, I did get two hundred miles behind me that night and that left me only 1,000 to go. I got home at 7:30 PM, last night. The trip was good. I listened to three Audio Books--tho' nothing to write home about.

The Polish couple had given me a CD of Chopin's music. I listened to it several times. Very good.

The board was not an easy one. Three years in a row, not easy. The leaders of Oak Haven are the best in many respects. I don't know anyone who would succeed better on the business side of things. But there are always relational struggles. We can't know for certain where the blame lies, but we've asked Steven Graviner to sit with the leadership circle of Oak Haven and give them some counseling/coaching. I'm very sure he will be able to help them tremendously.

All is not well at EVI. My farm manager, Bill, is hospitalized. The left ventricle of his heart quit working, or works less. It may be serious, or not be serious. We await the results of the tests they will do tomorrow. The doctors call it heart failure. It seems a little overstated, I hope. Please pray with us for Bill Bosko.

I look forward to going to ASI with Jason. He arrives next Monday. We'll take off from the airport toward Orlando immediately. It's going to be a grueling trip, but we should manage some quality time, don't you think? Unless, of course, one or the other will be sleeping all the time.

Do you know that God lives outside of space and time? Space and time were created to accommodate His creation. Therefore, as Creator, He automatically is outside of His creation. Wouldn't it be interesting to get a glimpse of the dimension God lives in? I bet it would blow us away. No space, no time, no material. God needs no things. Things were created to support us. God lives during every era of time simultaneously. That is why Jesus said, "Before Abraham was, I Am." Only God can say, I Am, at all times. That is why He knows the end from the beginning. Why would we ever want to tell God how to solve our problems, when He is living during the time that the solution is or will be applied. He knows, absolutely what is best. So, let us let God be God.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Current Happenings

I am at Oak Haven, in a beautiful guest room. It is about 100 degrees F. and promises to be a sweltering weekend. The place, Oak Haven, is looking fantastic.

I drove 1,000 miles yesterday and that was, to me, leisure. I listened to two audio books, got to bed by 9:30 and didn't get up till 6:00 this morning. I preach tomorrow early meeting on the Declaration of Independence.

Nothing is too new in my life: Our farm manager, Bill Bosko, has been having trouble with his health lately, and it didn't look like he would recover easily, according to the doctors. It turns out he has pneumonia. I noticed last week that some of his symptoms were similar to what I have experienced twice already when I had pneumonia.

I sent my wife $10,000 by wire. She hasn't got it yet. It got routed thru' Zanzibar, of all places, and hasn't made its way to her bank, as yet. She is not feeling good either. Overworked, I bet. Angie, Christina, Jason . . . are all under the weather. Well, not onto death. I've got to get everyone on XPC's.

We are buying a new booth for EVI from someone in Florida and I have had to struggle finding pictures to send to him. The Lord worked some wonderful miracles to drop those pics in my lap. I never would have guessed. Anyway, the booth is coming together, even as I have to consult Leasa in Ukraine. Technology is amazing these days.

Finally, we are trying to submit our Master Plan for the new construction of EVI. The deadline is Monday and we don't have all the pieces together. Laural, our Master Plan spear header, may swing it by Monday. The great fear is that we submit it with the hefty fee, (something like $1,500) just to find out we don't have all our ducks in a row. We would lose our fee. We may have to postpone for one month.

I've had a Polish couple in my house, with their son, Michael, for two weeks. It's been a blast. I enjoyed them immensely. Grazyna, Mrs. Kuczek, is a physician. She's done many lifestyle sessions in Poland, but not on their own institutional property. She is thoroughly inspired by what goes on at EVI, and hopes we/I can help her/them get started on their property in Poland. My heart is with them. I don't know if I can do anything, but I am certainly willing to try. Oh, if I were rich. I know she would be great to invest in. There is no doubt they would succeed.

Never Lets me Down

Another blistering hot Sunday in Colorado. To cool a little, I took my Polish friends to the top of the Rockies. (12,000 feet.) They were amazed at the sight, and at one point, the highest, we needed to run back to the van because it was too cold.

I talked to Uncle John last week. They just returned from London, visiting Michie and their grandchildren. Sounds to me like they are delighted with those kids. (Can't imagine why.) Michelle is happy and England swings. Well, it did for a day or two, anyway.

For those of you who know him, Michael Burkhart, Sarah's brother has been coming to church at EVI for the last couple of Sabbaths. I never would have known who he was if he hadn't told me. Looks good, very muscular, works with his dad in Estes Park, tree trimming. There is a very good aura surrounding him. If He continues to to come to our church I'll want to get close to him if I can. Hard to believe, but the kid is 29 years old, and Sarah married in March.

I preached yesterday. (What else is new.) I am so busy that I can only prepare sermons on the fly. This last one I thought was a dud. However, I did pray more over it. (I don't like dud sermons.) And I reviewed it twice more than I usually do. It was so well appreciated that one lady ordered twenty copies to give to others. Go figure! Actually, there is no mystery to this thing. God can bless whatever He chooses to bless. Prayer is the key, and hard work is the only way I know to cooperate with my prayers. God is so good. He never lets me down, never.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Bed Bugs

Where did they come from?

We started a new session, yesterday. Approximately eighteen people are here for treatments. All are Adventist. (A rare thing.) Sometime during the day, one couple laid down to take a nap. In a few minutes, the man felt like he was being invaded by ants all around his neck. When he looked down he saw his pillow was invaded with bugs. (Approx. 40) What in the world? So the cooks in the Annex asked if they could move this couple to my house. Of course, they can. My house is always full anyhow.

I have another couple with a 10 year old from Poland with me.

I went to see what the bugs might be. Yep! I knew what they were. Bed bugs! Yuk.

Today, we called an exterminator and he went over the room. John Roeske and I burned the new mattress and box spring. (Drastic, no?) We hope that takes care of that. Some lifestyle guest must have brought them in. We've had many folks from the islands lately. Who knows?

All is well besides. The weather is hot, 90 degrees. Everyone is of good courage.

Sometimes I just sit and think. I reason things through to the best of my abilities. This morning I was thinking: We all would prefer to be saved then to be lost, right? We would all prefer to succeed than fail, surely. We all work toward happiness and not misery. We all want a lover rather than to be alone, at least I would. (And, mine isn't around to do much loving.) And, we all realize that these great blessings don't just happen by chance.

There are laws to govern the success we make of these things. If there wasn't, there wouldn't be so many books written on these subjects. You want to know how to make money? Somebody's figured it out and wrote a book about it. (Ten thousand books about it.) You want romance, health, success. Go to the library. The point is, there are laws that govern every aspect of life.

Now, who knows "how to" better than God? Where would we find the best advice on all those subjects? So it boils down to this, search the Bible on any topic and do it. It's just that simple. People find it irksome to have to obey God. That is so-o-o insane. We want to succeed, but we don't want to do what it takes to succeed, or to be happy, or to be healthy, or to be lovers. Insanity!!!

So says the Preacher to his Tribe

Oblivious

It's been a beautiful day in Lake Woebegone, uh, I mean Loveland, Colorado, sunny and warm with a cool breeze. The Sabbath will soon be here, praise the Lord. I talked with my wife this morning. All is as well as can be expected. Somebody was suppose to make windows for her and they didn't. She drove to Mafinga to pick them up, approximately four hours, and the guy hadn't done anything. You can imagine how frustrating that must be. She surely will become the most patient woman around if she can take this nonsense sweetly.

The Baumans from Walla Walla will be going to join her on September 1. We are all praying this new family works out. If they do, my wife should be able to spend more time in America. Meeting her standard, however, may not be that easy. We'll see.

A new Faith Ventures magazine should be going to the press this week. And, that's the news.

Sometimes I think. (We ought to give ourselves to thinking, sometimes.) Proverbs 10:19 says, "In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin." We don't know how bad it really is. We are sinful, i.e. full of sin. Can a clean thing come of the unclean? Can perfection come out of imperfection? Can the pure come from the corrupt? It's impossible! If we fully realized our real state of being, we would be apologizing all the time, or we'd keep our yaps shut. (I had to apologize to someone who was oblivious that I had said something wrong, this morning.) How careful we would be; how humble; how merciful when others would say something untoward.

Though all of that is true, Jesus makes up for the shortfall with His own perfection. Otherwise, we are all toast. It blows me away. People go on as if God doesn't exist, while He sustains, protects, blesses, and makes up for our deficiencies. He doesn't just make up for the Christian's deficiencies, He makes up for everyone's sin. Otherwise, all would be fried. In oblivion they go, living like they are the center of the universe. Indulging as many lusts as they can without destroying themselves too quickly. Lord, how do we get through to our own heads, much less theirs? If only we could see.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Disappointed

Drizzly day. I just finished preaching a sermon on freedom, giving a beautiful picture of how God offers salvation. I expect the two families from Czech Republic today. I'll have to go out and buy food. I ate at this family's house some years ago. The meal consisted of European breads, very substantial, dark and crusty with various pates and tomatoes. I don't know if I can duplicate that cuisine, but I'll do my best.

I got word from my lover that she will not be coming from Africa to ASI this year. She has too much work to do. She has a family coming from Walla Walla, WA., and she has no house ready for them. So duty calls.

Surprisingly, I feel disappointed. The reason its a surprise is that I understand duty and its demands. The voice of duty is the voice of God, right? I am not disappointed intellectually, it's a heart thing. We were planning a vacation in August. Every now and again I think to just go away for a few days, but I never do it. Where would I go? And who would I go with? No one. So I stay and work.

We've got more than twenty people coming for the Lifestyle Session starting on Sunday. We'll have our noses to the grindstone. Especially seeing that Leasa will be gone for most of the month. On the 21st of July, I need to go to the Oak Haven Convention. Then Jason comes in and we go to the ASI Convention together. That will be fun.

That's today's news.

July 4th

It's Monday morning and all is well . . . I think. I got a text message from my wife saying the paper work is done for the Bauman family. They now can make their way to Mago, Tanzania. I need to call them this morning with the good news. I sure hope they still want to go.

My wife is starting to fudge, as she always does at this time of year. She was suppose to come home from July 21 to Sept 6, and as usual the work starts to look overwhelming and she calls to see how I'll take to the idea of her not coming, or her coming just for ASI. It's a disappointment to me, but I happen to understand the call of duty above other calls. So, if that is duty calling, so be it.

Yesterday was Sunday. I like Sundays, usually, because I can get some things done that I haven't much time for during the week. Yesterday, I managed to prepare a sermon. That is always such a blessing. This week I have to preach twice, and I have little time to get it all together.

I got caught up on all my e-mails, put out the campus mail because my Secretary is on vacation, and got ready for a picnic we planned for the campus. That was fun. Well, it might have been fun. A huge storm came up and chased us home. So much rain fell that HWY 27 was flooded in many places. Half a dozen driveways were washed out onto the road. Our Annex (Lifestyle Center) was flooded with about an inch of water on the bottom floor, and the store floor was filled with mud. Being the 4th of July, we were suppose to go watch the fireworks at Loveland lake, but I just went to bed instead. I don't know if anyone went to watch.

Today is a day off for my staff because July 4th fell on a Sunday. I'm going to go finish cleaning up at the Annex.

Till next time.

Life is Adventure

I took a flying trip to the General Conference, in Atlanta, this weel. OCI decided to have a board meeting while everyone but yours truly was there. I never would have gone otherwise. Lots of people in a big party mode. I arrived late afternoon Tuesday and left late morning on Thursday. On Wednesday I sat through four meetings--the OCI board, the Search Committee, a Country Haven board, and a meeting to address minor issues between two brothers. (I get invited to these stressful events because I am the board chairman and because I do it, it gives other people an excuse not to have to.)

All the meetings went well. The Search Committee holds my interest more than the others. I have no desire to be president of OCI although a few people wish I would change my mind. I'm interested because the dynamics are intriguing and my future is somewhat intertwined with the outcome. I'll let you know when it is all over. There are many people who could do the job, but few of them are free to do it. The way I see it, the Lord will have to free the individual He wants in that position, or we will need to choose the ones that are currently available namely the present VP. When the person is found and agrees to be president, then he must have a hand in choosing his own vice-president.

All is well. I hope you are following my children's blogs. Jason's is an extreme adventure in practical missionary work. Angie's is extreme adventure in child rearing. Something akin to a domestic rodeo, and Julie's is extreme adventure in the realm of gifts falling from heaven.

Let us never get bent out of shape because someone's done us a bad turn or things don't turn out as we wish they did. We fight not against flesh and blood or against God. What others do to us, God chose to allow, and He allows nothing but that which is for our good or the good of His cause. Be free, be happy, "nothing shall by any means hurt you." Luke 10:19.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Keep it Together

I just read Jason's blog. It's been a long time, if ever, that we've been through that much hassle because of being in Africa. It's wonderful to have adventure, but it gets tiring when you can't eat, or when all they give you to eat is green slime and goat meat. Hey, the kid wanted to be a missionary. . . we are glad for it. Hope he survives.

When I have a camera, I don't use it. When I don't have one, I wish I could take pictures. That's how it was on the weekend. I did a wedding in Moab, Utah. Moab has to be the most awe-inspiring land I've ever visited. When there, I always wish I could capture the magesty?? of it all.

The wedding, as most weddings do, make me real nervous. First of all, there is no pulpit. SoI have to hold my big-ole' Bible all the while, with my notes in it. Then the couple stand practically on your toes. (I tend to spit when I speak. Only half kidding.) I have to juggle all of that and remember what I am suppose to say, then I have to keep track of events because I'm suppose to be directing traffic. Anyway, the wedding went off more smoothly than most, and I was complemented because of being so practical in my advice to the young couple. If the Lord hadn't blessed, I would have made a mess.

My car's AC didn't work. It was over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Mavis, Beverly and I went to the wedding. We nearly cooked.

Right now, I'm sitting at the airport again, on my way to the GC. I will be there one full day, and I have three meetings to attend. This afternoon at four we have a Search Committee meeting for the OCI presidency. The initial letter we sent out revealed a very interesting fact. (I'll tell you about it some day.) Tomorrow at 9:00 A.M., we have an OCI board meeting. Then, I have to meet with Markus, I think it is over the Country Haven sale. I guess I'll find out.

I need to talk to the new President of DayStar also. He is making changes and his future staff are very worried over those changes.

It's flattering when people think very highly of you, but there is a danger. They might just put you in a position beyond your ken. There is more to contend with than meets the eye. Pride, once awakened, clamors for recognition. It's a job to hold one's pride at bay and to keep your well meaning friends from doing you a disfavor.

So says the Preacher to his tribe.

Happy Summer Days

For a week now, the days have been sunny and hot. The evenings cool and my walks through the forested mountains are always surreal. The temperature couldn't be more perfect, the breeze is caressing, the company, heavenly--seeing I go up there to pray. Yes, every night and yes, I pray for you.

Nothing out of the ordinary is happening. My lifestyle guests asked for the series on the Prodigal Son on CD. I always give them away. For the first time in my experience, three or four of the guests turned around and gave me $105. I'm touched. Almost as touched by that gesture as by Angie's tribute to her dad last Sunday on her blog. I nearly cried, nearly. (At Angie's words.)

A Korean lady from Denver came to meet another Korean lady visiting from Korea. The lady from Denver brought food to feed me. Kim-shi, the main dish. It was all good, except the kapenta (little fish), which I skirted. We use to buy kapenta to feed our dogs in Zambia. Maybe if I was mixed in mealy-meal I would be more tempted. (Just kidding.)

I'm putting together our next Faith Ventures magazine. I hope to have it gone to the Graphic Designer within the week.

Tonight is graduation night for our lifestyle guests. They've been a great bunch. I'll miss these guys.

I'm listening to Walter Veight's series called The Genesis Conflict. (Creation vs. Evolution.) It is more than excellent. I recommend it highly. At the same time, I am reading J.A. Wylie's massive History of Protestantism. It just thrills my soul. In the Dark Ages, people committed their lives to Jesus unto death. And death was the end for at least 50 million of them. I wonder if our commitment is anything like that? It might be profitable to find out now, rather than when it is too late. Don't you think?

So says the Preacher to his tribe

Hodge-podge

Ho-hum, same old. I talked with my wife today. She was doing a puzzle with Twalisa and Deniece. She has a bunch of fundis working and is trying to keep up with their needs. She and Antionette and the kids sleep in the church. Deniece sleeps in the bathroom, and others are scattered wherever there is a place. I called because I need an article for my Faith Ventures mag. I have been so busy that I skipped one whole issue. I'm determined to produce over the next week. Lord help me.

We had an Executive Committee today. Usually, it takes forever, but we got through in record time. It's really hot around here, today.

For those of you who know Brenda Eskelson, she and her husband of five years, was visiting me since yesterday. It was a blast to get reacquainted. She married a macon?? --bricklayer. They are on their way to Canada to visit family.

Lori Mundall is engaged to be married, and Verlin has a girlfriend.

One more day and our present lifestyle session is over. It was a good one. Praise God.

Dying with a Mouth Full of Praise

People are not Christian because they say they are. Many, I’m afraid, will think to enter in, but shall not be able. Today, I met one of God’s children. (Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure I am surrounded with God’s children, but the evidence is not always conclusive. Today, it was.)

I officiated in the communion service, this morning. After church, a woman asked that I bring communion to her dying mother. The lady is not so old, perhaps in her mid seventies, but she is very sick with cancer. When I got to her, she would not, or could not so much as open her eyes for weakness. I went through the communion ceremony, abbreviated, and then asked what she thought of the way God led in her life.

With her eyes closed, no teeth in her mouth, an accent from the islands (Bahamas, I think) she began to recite the words of a familiar hymn. A hymn of praise. Then she expressed nothing by gratitude. God has been so good to her, she said. She thanked Him, over and over and over again. Do you see the picture? Here is a woman who came to EVI for treatment. Her hope was of recovery. She isn’t so old. She came with expectations, like everyone else, her mouth filled with prayer. But instead of realizing her hopes, she appears to be sinking. Is she disappointed? Discouraged, perhaps? I don’t know, because all she can say is thank you, thank you, thank you Jesus.

The greatest evidence of faith, that I can think of, is gratitude. Out of the heart the mouth speaks. I met someone today who knows Jesus. I can tell. She speaks the language of heaven.

Criticism, complaining, murnmuring, pessimism, discouragement, and all the negatives in the dictionary, when expressed, reveal only one thing. We haven’t come close enough to Jesus to experience the eternal reality He’s created for us. The temporal reality still occupies too much of our hearts. Dear ones, live by faith, not by sight.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

Get some, that you Might have Some to Give

It's been a full week at Eden Valley. No let-up in the work and Satan took a few shots at some of us. I don't usually worry when people accuse me of sin or fault or flaw, (it is always so nearly true) but I must say that I did fret for a few hours this week when someone said that another vowed to take me down. It occurred to me that if anyone wanted to take someone down badly enough, it would be a matter of inventing the worse and getting another to back him up. In the end, I had a meeting with the individual and as usual, it wasn't anywhere as grave as at first thought. Praise God. I don't need to be dragged down by another. I do well enough on that count "all by myself."

The farm crew put a whole new roof on the grow and exercise rooms. It was a big job on very hot days.

I rec'd visitors from Singapore (The Lion Port.) I met these people in S'pore 12 years ago. They had taken me around to see some sights. We had a delightful time together. We ate at a Thai restaurant and I treated them to a hyperbaric chamber session. They left this morning with tears.

Tomorrow, Sabbath, I preach on forgiveness. Do you know that "pardon and justification are one and the same thing"? That means that when Jesus forgives, He saves, period. But do you know, that He forgives as we forgive. That unless we enter into this act of giving salvation/justification, we ourselves are not saved. We are saved in proportion to the salvation/forgiveness we proffer to others. So, my dear loved ones, is there anyone you can't forgive? You had better seek forgiveness from God that you may have some to give to them.

So says the Preacher to his Tribe.

God's in Control

Yesterday, Sunday, I got up at 5:00 A.M. and did the juicing for the lifestyle guests. That took an hour and a half. I then served them breakfast. Dale Zumwalt came and we replaced a breaker box in the Annex with a bigger one. That took five hours. After I took Dale to lunch, because it was 3:00 P.M. and there was no food around, I determined to stain a new cabinet that is in the church. I was half way through when Svitlana and her boyfriend offered to finish the job for me. Hurray, maybe I can work on a sermon for Wednesday. Fraid' not! As I stepped outside, I was met by a car with two people who had hosted me in Singapore twelve years ago. Wonderful couple. We had a great time, but it consumed the rest of the day. Oh, by the way, that was my day off.

Life unfolds like that for me daily and guess what? I love it. If running my tail off is good for me, then run I will.

Today, Monday, it is much the same. I decided this morning, after doing the devotional for the lifestyle guests and feeding my visitors, that I would write two very important letters. I did, by the way, but not until after I had to run to town, rent a U-haul, go get a load of donated furniture, load it and unload it by myself. (Not a complaint. There wasn't anything I couldn't lift by myself.) Besides that I got to talk to the fellow who lambasted me on Sabbath because my sermon made him want to throw up. He apologized, not for the principle of the conversation, but for the spirit in which it was conducted. Forgiven. Hey, why not? Life is too short. People are too hurt and should a hand never be laid on me? Do I think I do nothing wrong? For all I know, he was probably right. He's got me thinking, anyway.

Wonder what tomorrow holds? (I still haven't worked on a sermon for Wednesday Assembly.)

The Preacher may have nothing to say to his tribe.

One Sermon, great and rotten

Happy Sabbath. I preached in Copper Mountain this morning. One fellow that I've known for quite some time said it was the best sermon I ever preached. Well, I don't think so. It turns out, as far as I can tell, it was a sermon that brought him under deep conviction. It left him really questioning whether he had faith or not. It's a blessing to see God work.

The same thing doesn't happen to everyone. Another fellow, which I've known for even longer, lambasted me thoroughly for not preaching strait enough to suit him. He accused me of preaching smooth things, of being chicken, of being a coward and on and on and on . . . That kinda rattles my cage a little. Not as much as it would have in the past. He especially didn't like that through the lambasting I never lost my smile. I think that is aggravating to people who are trying to be ultra serious with me. In any case, I'll be asking the Lord about my preaching. Should I preach a straighter message? Am I being cowardly? Or, is this friend a little off his rocker? Lord guide me. Truly, I want to do right. Preaching there next month will be an event. Yuk!

Yesterday, I lent my car to the lady who lost her daughter, till Monday. One day, a decision like that will cost me. Hey, I'm going to help if I can. I gave her a hundred dollars so she could put gas in it.

On to the Next Thing

I'm blessed. No matter how hectic the situation, I always get through it with God's help. Funerals need organizational skills that I may or may not have. My problem is, my wife is perfectly endowed with said skills. Whenever I need something organized, she is there to do it for me. Not so this time. I took it on, however, and all went well. (I worked all day long every day for five days. I would never believe anyone else who told me it took that much organization to pull off a funeral.)

Many people attended. I believe the Holy Spirit gave me a strong sermon. I spent half the sermon comforting the bereaved and half the sermon teaching the many non-SDA about the state of the dead. My little secretary bought the casket. It was amazingly good looking. All metal, white, with gold handles. I had told the funeral people that Brittany's mother was very poor and that she couldn't afford any frills. We paid $450 for the casket and another $457 for everything else they did for us. (I hope I am not repeating myself.)

In any case, the Pastor and I shared the service. I did the church service. He did the graveside address. All went well.

Tomorrow I preach in Copper Mountain. Brent Waggoner is coming with me.