IS IT "JUST" ME?

I was in Garden this morn with my family (or part of it) to do some hospital visitation and other things. Of course we had to do the Walmart thing and then decided to go and grab a bite to eat before heading home. So we went into an unnamed restauraunt (hint -across from Walmart) where we waited a few minutes before we were seated. So a girl who looked like she was having the worst day of her life seated us and told us our server would be with us shortly. Well here comes our server so I asked her how she was doing today. She said, "I'm sick, at at least I'm getting sick". Well, that really made me want to eat good in the neighborhood. I let it go and we ordered our food. Meanwhile I opened up the cloth napkin with the silverware enclosed only to be greeted with some kind of green stuff falling out of it. The knife had some sort of "residue" on it so I'm thinking "not cool". It happened that the manager was walking by so I mentioned to him that I thought I might need some new silverware as what I had seemed "rather dirty". Well at least he apologized. Okay, we wait a little while and our food comes. All except my son's french fries that were to go with his chicken fajita wrap. She said the fries were still being made so she'd bring them out to him shortly. (Don't you normally bring the whole meal at once?) Well, shortly came and went and with about 2 bites left of the fajita she came and asked if everything was alright. I said, "Everything except for the fact that the my boy was still waiting on his fries." She kind of responded in her valley girl voice and said she'd "like, go and see what was taking "Bobby" so long on the fries." Finally the fries arrived with the explanation that "it was just so hard to get the cook's attention". HELLO! Whose attention are we trying to get here? Is it just me or is good service slowly going the way of the dinasoar? And then we're expected to give 15% for a tip? Here's a tip. Work a little harder. See ya!

A REASON TO CELEBRATE!

I just returned from Nashville and am excited to be a part of a movement that is encouraging and equipping local churches to focus on ministry centered on the mighty act of God's intervention in human history - Christmas, Good Friday, Easter, and Pentecost. As a part of the World Methodist Council on Evangelism, it is awesome to introduce "Cornerstone Celebration" with the purpose of seeing the Church empowered by the Holy Spirit to grow in faith and discipleship and be equipped to share faith that others may know and experience Jesus as the cornerstone of their faith and life. It's primary aim (as mentioned in the brochure) is to enable persons to experience the living Christ and to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others by word, deed, and sign.

As many of you know, the church across the nation is in need of renewal and often we attempt to encourage that with special services. Last March was an example of that as Rob Schmutz came and shared with us. It was a great time, but in reality our preparation was not as it should have been and the follow up was lacking. The Cornerstone Celebration is birthed out of the the need to not only know and experience Christ for the first time or for a weekend, but for the whole of our lives.

I had the privilege of being trained to be a "herald" for these celebrations, wherever in the country they may be held. But why not have one here in Leoti? After all, we're the celebration station, right? Pray about it. Talk to me about it. And check out the website at www.WorldMethodist.org for more information. I'm ready to get after it. What do you think?

Pickin and grinnin

I'm headin to Nashville on Monday. yeap, just my guitar on my back and harmonica in my pocket - searchin for fame and fortune. All I need is 3 chords and a big ole smile.
WAIT! I MUST BE DREAMIN!
Actually, I am going to Nashville but for a different reason. I've been invited to a training by the World Methodist Council on Evangelism to be a "herald" for a new program based on "Jesus Christ, the Cornerstone". I'll spend three days there and am excited to see what is being offered. Should be a blast. And who knows, maybe my buddies the Oak Ridge Boys will need a rythym guitar man for a song or two. Elvira..............boom powpow boom powpow boom powpow mowmow............ (Somebody help me!)

The Omission Commission

So many people get worked up over the way other people act or what other people say. Did you hear what so and so did? Why are they doing that? Can you believe it? Yes, there are plenty of folks doing things they shouldn't do but what about those things WE should be doing but aren't?
It's what we might call the sin of omission - those things we should be doing but aren't.

We were talking Friday morning about people's response to "How are you"? Most people say "fine" when you can tell by looking at them that they're not fine. But how many of us actually pursue what is or isn't going on in that person's life? Why don't we? Surely we care - or do we? Maybe we'd rather not get involved. Or how about those we actually know are suffering, dealing with sorrow, having relationship problems, maybe financial problems. Are we not sinning by not responding to the needs of our brothers and sisters - especially if they are part of the body of Christ? And what about our own spiritual lives? People are sure to point out the sins of others but if Scripture commands us to meditate upon the word daily, (which includes reading it and studying it), to pray often, to worship together regularly, etc. and we choose not to because "I'm just not a reader" or "I just can't find the time" are we not sinning by disobeying God? Hmmmmmmmmmm.
Be careful of the sins of omission for they are are no different in God's eyes than those which are committed.

LOVING THY NEIGHBOR?

While in Vegas we came across this man holding this sign in front of the Bellagio hotel and casino. I overheard a woman speaking to a man walking beside her "He's really showing the love of God". Sadly, most people think this is what Christianity is all about. Unfortunately, this man chose a method of "evangelism" that would turn people away from Christ instead of drawing them to Him. The question that comes to mind - "Is this the best we can do when it comes to sharing the gospel?"

IN MEMORY

To a great nephew! You'll be greatly missed.

Life at it's best!

So, how has the year 2006 started out for you? Are you pumped up and ready to go or do you feel like covering your head and sleeping the next 365 days away? (Note above picture of one of my wife's boys.) I've mentioned it before but life is about choices. You can choose to enter the year with your glass half full or you can live as if it is half empty. It's up to you.

As for me, I choose to live it filled up and overflowing. Not that every day is going to be just great or that trouble won't enter the picture. But I choose to not let circumstances and situations dictate the way I approach life. I choose to follow the one who is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I choose to set my feet on the solid rock that is Jesus Christ. As the song says, "all other ground is sinking sand."

So what do you choose? Do you choose joy? Do you choose living life to it's fullest? (which is what Jesus promises all who follow him). Do you choose to allow him to give you victory over the stuff that life throws at you? Or will you decide to cover your head, close your eyes, and sleep the new year away? I think you know what you really want to do. So as the Nike commercial advises - "Just Do It".

"I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy.............................."

I'll be HOME for Christmas?

Well here we are, just 4 days away from Christmas. I'm truly looking forward to the service on Christmas eve and then worship on Christmas morning. Pretty awesome to think that Christmas falls on Sunday this year. It will be interesting to see how many people are here on Sunday morning because of it being Christmas. I know that many will be out of town with family and friends. That's okay because it always good to be home for Christmas if at all possible.

For my family it is hard to say what "home" for Christmas means. Where is "home" anyway? Is it at our house (which actually is the church parsonage)? Is it at my parents in Marion county with my brothers and their families? Is it at a central location in the state with my wife's family? And what about my kids? What does "home" for Christmas mean to them?

Well this year "home" will be in Las Vegas, Nevada. That's where the middle son and his wife live and on the 26th, my wife and I and our other 2 sons are heading west for some time together as a family. For that's what's really important for us. Not so much the location, but the fact that we can be together. That doesn't happen very often for us and that time is precious so whether it's Vegas, Salina, Marion, Leoti - wherever; home is where our family is.

So I pray that wherever you call home, you will have a very Merry Christmas and a most blessed New Year.

Signing out for the year 2005 - P.R.

GIVING OR GETTING?

In light of S. M.'s children story Sunday morning I wonder how many of us really believe that it is better to give than to receive? After a little reflection (ouch) I've noticed that some of the giving is not necessarily positive, you know what I mean? Some people like to give their advice when it's not advice at all but their judgment. Some people like to give their opinions without thinking through the tone in which they are said or the impact they may have on thoise who are possibly going through difficult times. Some people love to give the latest news that they've heard without ever checking out the facts. And some flat like to give others a hard time, a regular burr under the saddle, no matter the occasion. I don't think that's the giving that this time of the year (or any time of year) represents.
As far as receiving presents, compliments, pats on the backs, affirmations - you bet, we all like that. And if we enjoy being affirmed and appreciated, don't you think others do as well? Of course they do.
As we move closer to Christmas day, may I suggest that that we give of ourselves to others. Give graciously of our time, our words, our deeds. People "get" enough of the negative stuff out there. Let's not be those who perpetuate that kind of giving. But let us be observant of those around us, those who have lost loved ones, those who are struggling with cancer, those who are facing financial difficulties, those who just need a word of encouragement, even a hug. Let us make a consious effort to give of ourselves in a loving manner that best exemplifies who we are as Christians. It may be our best Christmas ever.

JUST for kids!

Okay, I'm JUST checking to see if any kids are reading this here blog thing. So I would like to offer the first 3 kids a prize for the correct answer to some questions I have as they pertain to some of the blogs I've written in the past. A few weeks ago I wrote about going to Wichita to lead some music at a spiritual event called ________ ___ ___________. What was the name of that event?
Earlier in the year I wrote about moving my middle son to a city out west. There is a song that I referred to that was the title of the blog regarding the city he lives in. What was the title?
Speaking of songs, I used a song by Willie Nelson which referred to my being gone a lot as I was preaching in various locations in September and October. What was the name of that song?
And recently I wrote of a phrase that I despise that is used a lot during the Christmas season. What is it?
Okay, you can only win if you comment on this blog. The answers must be right and you must give me your first name and last initial on the blog comment. Ready, set, go!

ANTI POLITICALLY-CORRECT HOLIDAY GREETINGS

Okay, just so you know, I despise the replacement of Merry Christmas with "Happy Holidays". I can somewhat stomach "Season's Greetings" but with much chagrin. Now it's not thatI don't want you to have a happy holiday and I'm not against a greeting that is geared toward the holiday season. It's just that the anti-Christian folks are doing all in their power to strip Christmas of its true meaning. They complain that it's offensive to those who aren't Christian. And besides, "we wouldn't want to offend anyone, would we?" Heck, you don't see any of the politically correct police getting all worked up when Christianity gets blasphemed all over the place. There is no outcry when Jesus is made fun of on the big screen or in the printed word. That's offensive to me but do they care? But if the same intolerance would happen to Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, etc. there'd be all sorts of you- know -what to pay. Ah yes, hypocrisy reigns.

Well, if "Merry Christmas" is offensive - so what. Get over it. I'm offended that they're offended. My guess is that those against the phrase will be taking December 25th off from work. If they don't want Christmas mentioned, they can go to work while the rest of us celebrate the holiday. Otherwise, keep quiet.

The nice thing about this blog is that my wife and kids don't have to hear me harp about the continued secularization of the holiday. You get to hear it all. Don't you feel blessed?

Merry Christmas everybody!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

JUST A QUICK NOTE TO WISH YOU ALL (BOTH READERS AND COMMENTERS) A HAPPY THANKSGIVING! WE ARE ALL A BLESSED PEOPLE AND I AM BLESSED BECAUSE OF YOU.

P.R.

I smell Turkey (not the country)

Ok, ok I'm jotting down some thoughts. Are you happy? I was just taking a break, okay? As I type away I smell turkeys baking in the oven in preparation for the God Squad meal this evening. My stomach is growling all over the place.
Now more than likely I won't blog again (sounds terrible doesn't it) until after Thanksgiving so I thought it would be good to remind you (and myself) of all the things we have to be thankful for. Think about it. Most of us have a house to live in, clothes to wear, food to eat, jobs to work at, schools to attend, and on and on. We in America make more money than most of the world can only dream about. And we have freedoms most cannot fathom. We are indeed a blessed people.
Have you ever wondered why you were born in America, why you aren't fighting just to scrounge up enough food for the day, why you don't have to worry if someone will shoot you for your faith? Purely grace folks. Purely grace. We don't don't deserve what we have. It is not owed to us as if God is obligated to us for anything. Like the song says, "God shed His grace on thee".
I am so thankful for God's blessings, especially for my family and the fact that I was raised in a Christian home. I'm grateful that I was taught about Jesus and His great love for me. And it is my prayer that I've passed that teaching on to my kids, that they would accept that love and grace for themselves (which they have) and then pass it on to their kids. I pray a prayer of thanksgiving each day for what God has given me and each day for the family he's entrusted me with. Another song says to "count your many blessings, name them one by one." If I were to do so, I'd still be counting. How about you?

BRAIN DRAIN

Sorry, too tired to write anything of great import for you to digest. Not that there's nothing to talk about....................................................

Let's go for a walk!

This past year Mary Lou and I have attempted to walk 2 miles a day which gives us a little exercise and a time to catch up from the activities of the day. Some weeks we do very well, others have been a little more difficult but we've kept at it. It's been good and it's got to a point that I miss it if we don't get our daily walk.
The same holds true for our walk with the Lord. Just as it takes discipline to walk 2 miles per day, so it takes discipline to spend time each day in prayer and reading and meditating upon Scripture. It doesn't just happen even if the intentions are good. You must actually set aside time each day or the day will be gone and you'll soon be spiritually flabby, even if you started out in good spiritual shape.
On Thursday of this week I head to Wichita to be on the "Walk to Emmaus" team. I am heading the music team and will be working with about 20 others who are seeking to assist about 25 men grow in their walk with the Lord. For some, this will be a totally new experience and will be quite a challenge. For others it will be a return to a walk that they might have once had with the Lord, but have either stopped walking or have turned and gone in the other direction. No matter the situation, it will be modeled after the passage in Luke 24 where 2 men encounter Jesus in a way they least expected and their lives were transformed. That is our prayer for the men who will be participating this weekend.
I invite you to read that passage and pray for the team leaders (of which I am one) and for the "pilgrims" who will be participating. Pray that God would stir their hearts and that they too would encounter Jesus in a most unexpected way. Who knows, as you read the passage, you too might experience Christ in a new way. If so, you can be sure your walk will turn into a run. Nothing like being in shape for Jesus, huh?

Meanderings!

JUST a variety of thoughts and observations from the past few weeks:

Why do so many people want to drink from the devil's watering holes when the living water is so readily available?

Why does an hour at the football game seem so short and an hour at church seem so long?

Why does the church so often shoot its wounded?

Why does the 18 inches from the head to the heart seem like miles?

How is it that the devil gets a foothold in a worship service at the same time that the Spirit is at work?

If childlike faith is what God desires, why do we make Christianity so difficult?

If we didn't call it "Sunday School", would more people participate?

Have you noticed the kids who are desiring to be loved in God Squad? Pay attention to the dynamics.

Did you know it's just as far to Towanda from Leoti as it is from Towanda to Leoti?

TGJ - Did you really drive to Leoti just for biscuits and gravy? Hmmmmmmmm..................

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

October is always one of those months for me that reminds me of Willie Nelson's song "On The Road Again." This October is no exception. I just returned late last night from leading some renewal services in Larned (No they didn't check me into the hospital). It was a great three days. Tiring, but great, as people each night responded to the invitation to be renewed and refreshed regarding their relationship with God through Christ. Sunday I leave for Towanda (between ElDorado and Wichita) for another three days and nights. I pray the people are prepared for God to work in their lives just as the folks in Larned were prepared. The next couple of weeks I will be back and forth to Wichita in preparation for the Walk to Emmaus event which will be held the last week of October. I am leading the music team with my brother Rod and Kevin Fruechting, one of the guys I used to sing with at Aulne. That will be a blast. The first weekend in November I will be going to Moscow (KS, not Russia) to lead another series of renewal services.
So, as you can see, these are busy days. But they are exciting days as I witness what God is doing in the lives of his people. It is humbling to me to be used in such a way that I can work with kids, youth, and men and women in various locations and settings and proclaim God's love, forgiveness, restoration, and renewal. The real blessing is that I am just as encouraged and revived as those to whom I'm preaching or teaching. Isn't that JUST the way God works?!?

PROUD OF MY KIDS!

My wife and I have been blessed to have three great kids, all boys as many of you know. It's hard to believe that two of them are grown up and gone while one is a sophomore in high school. But time slows down for no one. I often talk to parents who can't wait for their kids to leave home but that has not but the case for us. We loved having our kids at home and love it when they come back home. It was and is always our intent to be involved in their lives - at school, in sports, in music, in the pursuing of a vocation, hunting, fishing, watching football, whatever. Of course, the church and our faith played a major role in our lives together and still does. This is what enables us to be united as a family when it comes to celebrating the good times as well as going through the most difficult of days as was the case these past few months with Todd's situation. I'm proud to say that even during the darkest of days I've seen my kids be faithful to Jesus and stand firm in the faith. I wouldn't trade that for anything in the world. For those of you who are still rasing kids (when do you stop, anyway?), pray for them daily. Place them in God's hands. You can't control their actions nor can you control their choices but your prayers can influence them and God will honor the integrity of your heart. He's honored my heart's desire for my kids and He will do the same for you. To Him be praise!

Nothing new under the sun

Isn't it interesting that the focus of the tragedy of the recent weeks pertaining to the hurricane has turned into a blame game? The local government blames the state government who blames the federal government who blames the alignment of the stars as the problem. Of course you get the religious folks who claim it's God's vengeance against an evil and sinful city. And then there are those who blame the welfare system, the penal system, the political system and on and on we go. So in the midst of the bickering and the pointing of fingers, people, no matter their color, no matter their socio-economic status, no matter their religious background, no matter their political stances - have died. And all folks want to do is say - "It wasn't my fault". Sounds familiar doesn't it.
Remember the account in Genesis when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit? God wasn't fooled. He knew they disobeyed. But Adam blamed Eve and Eve blamed the serpent. Same ole same ole. Instead of acknowledging the wrong and confessing their disobedience, Adam and Eve blamed someone else and ran and hid. Do you ever wonder what would have happended should they have confessed their sin and repented instead of trying to pass the buck?
Don't you suppose everyone made some mistakes when it came to the response to Hurricane Katrina? And don't you suppose we'd all be better off acknowledging our faults rather than trying to blame someone else for them? And in that confession, don't you think that healing and restoration would take place which would sure go a long way in reaching out and meeting the needs of those who are in dire straits? The bottom line is when no one takes responsibilty, everyone suffers. People have suffered enough, don't you think?

Katrina response

Okay - we have a disaster of biblical proportions as a result of the wrath of hurricane Katrina which has wiped out New Orleans, much of Mississippi and Alabama. So now what? We have thousands and thousands who have nothing but the clothes on their back. Nowhere to go, nothing to eat, nothing to drink, missing friends and relatives, not to mention thugs and looters rampaging the city of New Orleans. Chaos and confusion seem to reign supreme with only a hint that some order is now being restored. The victims have used words like lost, scared, afraid, frustrated, mad, furious plus several I can't mention on this site. So now what?
Does living here in Leoti leave us with the response that there is nothing we can do? I mean really, what can we do? Oh, we can send money (and we'll do that). We can put together survival kits. And of coures, we can pray. But do you think that maybe, just maybe the Lord might be challenging us to step it up and send some folks down to the area of need? Jesus said in Matthew 25 to those who gathered before the throne of God, "Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, and I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me." Later Jesus said "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me."
Surely the people affected by Katrina are the same as those mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 25. And surely we have a responsibility to do something, to put our faith into action. I'm not real sure what I'm asking in this blog, but I feel impressed to go and help. Not to just send a check, but to go and assist in feeding , clothing, caring for the needy as a result of this disaster.
Anybody out there thinking the same thing? Like I said, I don't know for sure where this will lead, but I believe God is wanting us to step it up. Are you with me? Give me your thoughts sooner than later.