We Will Remember

We Will Remember
On our darkest night... in our deepest trouble... we MUST remember and praise God for WHO He is, and all that He has done. (Click on the link to hear the song)

Psalm 77

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Comfort in Trouble from Recalling God’s Mighty Deeds.

For the choir director; according to Jeduthun. A Psalm of Asaph.

77 My voice rises to God, and I will cry aloud;

My voice rises to God, and He will hear me.
² In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord;
In the night my hand was stretched out without weariness;
My soul refused to be comforted.
³ When I remember God, then I am disturbed;
When I sigh, then my spirit grows faint. Selah.
⁴ You have held my eyelids open;
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
⁵ I have considered the days of old,
The years of long ago.
⁶ I will remember my song in the night;
I will meditate with my heart,
And my spirit ponders:

⁷ Will the Lord reject forever?
And will He never be favorable again?
⁸ Has His lovingkindness ceased forever?
Has His promise come to an end forever?
⁹ Has God forgotten to be gracious,
Or has He in anger withdrawn His compassion? Selah.
¹⁰ Then I said, “ It is my grief,
That the right hand of the Most High has changed.”

¹¹ I shall remember the deeds of the Lord;
Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
¹² I will meditate on all Your work
And muse on Your deeds.
¹³ Your way, O God, is holy;
What god is great like our God?
¹⁴ You are the God who works wonders;
You have made known Your strength among the peoples.
¹⁵ You have by Your power redeemed Your people,
The sons of Jacob and Joseph. Selah.

Pressing On...

Yes, it really has been a year and a half since we have posted on this blog.  It has been a very busy time in our lives, with lots of changes.  Austin is about to finish his junior year at North Greenville University, Heather is soon to graduate from high school, and we are in the process of starting a new phase of work and ministry. 


Yes, life is full of changes.  Most of us (self included) don't really like change.  We resist it at every turn.  The older we get, the more stationary we tend to become.  But the fact is that, while we serve a God who never changes, He is always calling us to move on.  To be dynamic.  To follow His lead, wherever He might take us.  How sad would it have been if the Apostle Paul had stopped at planting one church.  Had only mentored one pastor.  Had only taken one missionary journey.  Had decided to rest in the successes (or despair over the failures) of the past. 


Listen to his heart, as he writes to the Philippian church...  

"But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.  Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ  and be found in Him...  

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.  

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,  I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

Forgetting those things which are behind - let's press on.  

 

Friends from Alabama

This past weekend (Labor Day), we were very excited that our friends Jackie Allen and Cindy Colee from AL came up to visit.  We took them with us to visit the "Isom Days" festival, and we had a great time.  Thanks for coming to see us!

Colorado Rockies

Last week I was privileged beyond measure to be able to go on a elk hunting/camping trip to the Uncompahgre National Forest in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  While I did not buy an elk tag (archery season and my shoulder would not cooperate), I had a great time sitting around the fire, walking the aspen forests, basking in the beauty of God's creation, eating the best "hunting camp cooking" I have ever had, fellowship-ing with old friends and getting to know new ones.  

Many thanks to those who made it possible (financially) for me to go and MANY, MANY thanks to Rachael and Heather for "holding down the fort" at home so I could go.  I came back refreshed, rejuvenated and with a whole new perspective on life, love and ministry.  It was a great week.

Friends from home

What a great weekend we had!  The Mays Family (Matt, Wendy, Audrey and Luke) came for a visit this past weekend.  They had not been to the Campus in nearly 6 years, so it was a joy to show them around and for them to see all that God has accomplished since we have been here. We also enjoyed touring around the area - we went and saw the elk in Knott County, visited Yoders (Mennonite bulk food store and bakery), went hiking at The Breaks Interstate Park (www.BreaksPark.com) and enjoyed church together.  They just left out this morning and we just can't get over how nice the visit was and how encouraged we are to have had them here for the weekend.  "How lovely on the mountains are the feet of them who bring good news."  Thanks for coming guys, and come again soon!!

Good to be home...

Well, after a 3,000+ mile journey over the course of two weeks, we can say emphatically that "there is no place like home".  We always enjoy the travel that comes as a big part of what we do, but the best part of going away is still coming home.

The journey started this time with a trip to Shocco Springs in Talladega, AL for the Baptist Builders Round-table.  This was a great opportunity for renewing friendships, making new friends and learning a lot about how to be good stewards of the construction and renovation projects the Lord has given us to do.  From there, it was on to the Equestrian Ministry International semi-annual conference, this time hosted by the White Oak Conference Center in Winnsboro, SC.  Once again, renewing friendships, making new ones, and learning more about opportunities for Equestrian Ministry.  Another purpose of this conference was to sense the Lord's direction on someone to come to the Campus to be our Equestrian Ministry Director.  Nothing is firm at all, but some great contacts were made and we are praying in earnest that this ministry will soon be able to get off the ground. 

After a couple of nights at home, it was time to head to Asheville, NC for Missions Forum 2010.  This is an annual event where mission pastors and mission leaders from all over come together to learn from each other and from mission leaders around the world.  The focus is on strategic mission planning (like Acts 1:8 strategy) and missions partnership.  It was a joy to have our pastor, Brother Mike Caudill, his wife Alice and her mom along with us, along with Josh and Marti Feltner, fellow MSC missionaries from Knott County to attend the conference too!  And, as always, what a joy it was to renew friendships and make new ones!  Is there a recurring theme here? :-)

After one night at home, it was time for all three of us (Rachael, Heather and I) to pack pack up (just swapped dirty clothes for clean) and head out for Montgomery.  This was to be a very quick "down and back" trip, with no real time for visiting much.  We left on Thursday afternoon so we could stop off and eat supper with Austin and a couple of his friends (Sean and Tyler) at a local Mexican restaurant.  It was great to see Austin and catch up with him, and we also enjoyed visiting with Sean and Tyler.  Austin got a haircut that kinda surprised us, but it looked great on him.  The next morning we headed for Montgomery.

Rachael's Aunt Marilyn was visiting with her parents, so we stayed with the Pouncey's in Wetumpka  this trip.  Friday night we went and met Rachael's folks and aunt at Red Lobster (Earl's treat! thanks!) and had a great visit.  On Saturday we got to relax a bit with the Pouncey's and Jamie worked on a slide show for Sunday while Rachael made a quick trip in to Montgomery for some shopping.  On Sunday morning we had a blast visiting with our home church, Thorington Road Baptist and sharing in the morning worship service.  Rachael and Heather treated us to a duet of Casting Crowns' new song "Always Enough" and did a great job.  Brother Wade brought a great message from Hosea about the importance of faithfulness in our covenant relationship with God.  An awesome Sunday morning!

Sunday afternoon we got a quick nap and then packed up to head home.  On Sunday evening we got to visit with our "other" church home at Mountain View Baptist in Wetumpka, and share briefly in the evening services there.    It was so good to see so many friends, even some that came just to see us!  How very blessed we are!  After church, we were "on the road again", headed home.  Our intention was to drive as far as we could (all the way if possible), and we actually made it as far as SC before we had "gone as far as we could go".  We got a good night's rest and finished our journey home on Monday morning. 

We have almost recovered now, and we're certainly glad to be sleeping in our own beds.  Max, Rolex and Spices all say to tell you "hey" from KY.  It will be nice to not have to "stare through the windshield" for a while, but we hope to head back to AL in April so we can spend more time visiting with friends and family, and I am sure there will be some trips to visit in churches in the next few months.  Take care, and may God bless you richly.

"As long as we've no place to go..."

Actually, we did.  We were supposed to be headed down to the Greenville, SC area today to speak in a church tomorrow, but the storm kinda changed our plans.  While we got about 7 inches of snow here at the Campus, with 4wd that normally would not have kept us home.  But with the higher mountain gaps we would have had to have crossed getting between one and two feet, and with the Greenville area getting socked in with ice, there was no point in even trying.  We'll reschedule for next weekend and hope the snow that is supposed to come then will not be so bad.

Turns out to be a nice day to sit by the window, drink coffee and watch the snow fall.  I mean, as long as we've no place to go...