THE ASSIGNMENT!

Okay, with the assumption that no one was sleeping at the end of the church service this past Sunday I want to remind you of your assignment for this week. If you recall, I asked you to attempt to complete this sentence next Sunday - "This past week, this is what I believe God was up to". In other words, "I saw God working ...................................".

This is in context of the "Experiencing God" series that I am currently preaching. So, with the 1st of 7 realities focusing on the fact that God is always at work around you, what is it that you see God doing? And once that is determined, how are you going to respond? As I said earlier today, let's compare notes at the end of the week (month, year).

On a different note, I am currently sitting in a hotel room in Wichita getting ready to read some papers for some meetings I have the next couple of days. I hope that I might see God at work in the midst of said meetings. I'd better pay attention, huh?

If you are reading this outside of the Leoti community, what's God up to in your neck of the woods?

What say you??

"BACK TO THE BASICS"

Had the privilege of going to the Otterbein UMC in Russell, KS this past weekend to preach/teach a series based on the theme "Back to the Basics". We gathered on Friday evening for a light meal together followed by some worship and the first session. I was able to use a power point presentation for both the music and the preaching and it worked great. It was very helpful. On Saturday, we got together at 9 a.m. for the 2nd session, took a break around 10:15, and then concluded with the 3rd session at around noon. Of course, we ate together to wrap things up ( a meal was catered in).

Thanks so much for the excellent hospitality offered by the folks at the church. Special thanks to Dr. Starkey who coordinated our time together. I appreciated the openness of those who were in attendence to what was being taught. The Spirit was sweet and it was a blessed time. (After I left, the church had a youth event and a concert on Sunday so it was a good weekend for them).

Now I turn my sights to the upcoming renewal services which will be held the end of September in Towanda and the Walk to Emmaus in Garden City in October. Good stuff.....

STICKS, BRANCHES, AND LIMBS

As you can see, a bunch of the guys from the church did a little outreach ministry Saturday morning removing broken down limbs and branches that were on the ground following the recent winter storms. Several of the men had chain saws and put them to good use while others loaded trailers and hauled it all off to the dump. A lot was accomplished as many yards were cleaned up, especially for those who were unable to do it themselves.

As you can see, one of our youth worked so hard he ended up falling in exhaustion on to the hiway in front of the Templers. We kept the traffic from running over him while he regained his strength although at times we were tempted to see if a car could actually knock a little sense into him.

Anyway, it was a good morning and it felt good to help out in the community as we try to bring to completion this crazy winter. Thanks to all you guys and to the youth who helped. You know who you are.

WICHITA (not the county)

I am currently sitting in a motel room in Wichita preparing for some meetings I have with the Board of Ordained Ministry tomorrow and Tuesday, My buddy Mitch is attempting to read some material as well ( I think he is falling asleep, however).

Boy, I tell you, this Super 8 sure is fancy - it even has running water.

Oh, sorry I got diverted. We are meeting with some of the upcoming candidates for ordained ministry for our conference and anticipate a busy couple of days. Keep us and those being interviewed in your prayers.

It was a great morning in church this morning (at least I thought so). What did you think? And for those of you in Shad's class, what are your thoughts? (Orthodoxy, sacraments, apostolic succession, etc. etc).

For those of you not from our community, what did God have to say to you this past weekend? Did He bless you in worship? Did you bless Him? What spoke to you? Prayer time, the music, the sermon, the fellowship with other believers? Let me know - I'm interested.

A WIDE DOOR.........

The apostle Paul wrote a letter to the church in Corinth wanting them to know of his love for them and his desire to come and see them again. However, as he was in Ephesus, a WIDE DOOR for effective ministry had opened up to him so he stayed and ministered in Ephesus for a long period of time. This past weekend a wide door opened up to me and my wife that enabled us to minister to some folks in deep need.

First, on Friday I was contacted by a man who resides south of Mexico City, Mexico who teaches English in a school down there. To make a long story short, he ended up here in Leoti after the man he was riding with got mad at him (the man had been drinking). He dumped him out on hiway 96, and drove away (heading for Kansas City). The bottom line is he was in Kansas, 4 days from his home, had 8 dollars to his name, had no credit card and needed to get back home. Without going into details, I checked him out with the law, all was fine, drove him to Garden, connected him to a Mexican bus line, was able to refer him to a shelter in Garden, and was able to procure a bus ticket. A crazy day but it was amazing how the pieces fell together.

Unfortunately, Saturday was a more difficult day. We were hit with a white out blizzard west of town that left a man dead due to a series of vehicle accidents. I spent the afternoon at the hospital with the wife of the man as the staff at the hospital worked tirelessly to keep the man alive in E.R. Unfortunately the injuries were too severe and the man died leaving his wife here in a small town, 14 hours from her home, her friends, and her family. As God would have it, my wife called me during the ordeal and offered our house to the wife instead of the local motel so she could have a place to stay and someone to talk to. She accepted the offer and as a result we were able to help her with the logistics of working with law enforcement, the funeral homes (both locally and from the state she was from), the hospital staff, and a variety of phone calls. Most importantly, we were able to provide her with a place to cry, to talk, to feel safe, to feel loved and cared for. (Thanks a million to Mary Lou). As family arrived the next morning we were able to help them as well.

The bottom line is a wide door for effective ministry had opened up to us over the weekend. Sometimes the door is no fun to walk through but out of obedience we must do so. As a result, several families were ministered to, including our own. So as we begin a new week, there are many doors that the Lord will open for you. Will you walk through them?

P.S. The local EMTs, fire department, and hospital staff did a great job. they are to be commended. If you're local and reading this, let them know how much you appreciate them.