Decades of Life

After spending some time this morning with my daughter and her children, I thought about where I was when my own were little. That led me to think about the decades of my life - how you really never know where or what you'll be ten years from now.

When I was ten I was a 5th grade student at Clyde A. Erwin Elementary School in Jacksonville, NC. Baseball was my first love. It was while I was ten that my dad left us for thirteen months, going to a violent place in Southeast Asia. I rode a bike and got the newest fad of transportation that year...a skateboard. Mom and dad owned a modest little home in a rural development called Half Moon Heights.

I turned twenty while serving an internship in Ft. Myers, FL. A few weeks later I started my junior year of college in Lynchburg, VA. After 3 years of not playing baseball I tried a comeback, but in just three years the skills had become too rusty. Huge disappointment. But in a couple months I would meet a girl while working for J. C. Penney who would partner with me for life. today. Huge break! My ride was a '65 VW bug that was a piece of junk. Still lived with the folks.

At 30 I was serving in my third church, a youth and music pastor, since graduating college eight years earlier. My seminary degree's ink was still wet, and our family now included a four year old son and a seven month old daughter. We rented a house in the same neighborhood where my wife grew up. The next five years would prove to be the hardest of my life.

By age 40 I had been pastor of Nags Head Baptist Church for four years. Our family now included a teenager and two young daughters. I was coaching baseball and softball with my kids and totally engrossed in my job. Three days after turning 40 I got my first pair of bifocals. We were driving our first brand new car, a mini-van that would last us for the next eleven years. The church provided us with a comfortable home in Kitty Hawk, a home we would later purchase.

At the half-century mark we enjoyed the stability of being in the same position and even living in the same home for 15 years. Life is good! Our kids are finding their own ways in life. Our son is happily married. I've had some health concerns, but have fortunately resolved them with diet. Gail's dad passed away a few years ago and her mom and my parents are dealing with the issues that come with aging. The next years would bring the joys of weddings, grandchildren and the greatest trials of our faith.

Now I'm past the midway mark of my 6th decade. The seasons have flown by! I'm watching my children go through the same stages of life through which I've been. Hopefully the faith and values they've learned through life will carry them through their decades to come.

Looking back I can see how God works all things together for good to those who love Him. Solomon wrote that, "To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven", and went through those times and seasons of life. Most important is that we discover that purpose and see our lives as being given to us to glorify our Creator in every season.

Reunion

This past weekend found me transported back in time. Way back! I was on the West Coast for a reunion.

Forty years ago, when I was a 15-year-old sophomore in high school my family moved from Northern Virginia to Southern California. We moved in the middle of the school year to a place where we literally knew no one. Most people might think that would be a traumatic experience for an adolescent, but not so for me. That move proved to be a most positive life-change for me.

Because our family was Christian, Mom and Dad made sure the first Sunday we were in town we found a church to attend. Guess what? It was not just any church…it was the right church for us. And for the next 19 months that we lived there the influence of that church – especially the youth of the church – played a huge role in shaping my life.

So now, every few years the youth group of that era in the 1970’s get together to re-connect. What’s most interesting is that the church no longer exists, but there indeed is a “tie that binds”, even four decades later.

Reunions are great times, whether they are family, school, military units, whatever. Rekindling those relationships forged long ago brings great joy as we hear each other’s stories, both old and new.

Reunion is also part of the Christian faith. The “blessed hope” of the believer is that one day we will be reunited in heaven forever with those who have gone before us, and most importantly, we’ll be in the presence of the Lord. It’s something we anticipated.

What will happen then? Well, one thing is that we will be changed. As my long ago friends and I began to gather Saturday it became clear that we weren’t quite the same as we were in high school! A few more pounds. A bit less hair. Glasses adorned most faces. We were the same people…but different. Age does that!

The Bible tells us that when we get to heaven a transformation will take place in our bodies. Paul encouraged the Corinthian church with these words about that future day:

“Listen! I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.” – 1 Corinthians 15:51-52

We won’t be the same, yet we’ll recognize each other. I had no problem at the reunion recognizing long ago friends – even those I had not seen since 1973. In heaven, although we’ll be given perfect bodies, they will somehow still be recognizable to those who knew us and “we’ll be known as we are known”. Different, but greatly improved! Maybe best of all the lame will walk, the blind will see. Our physical limitations and handicaps will be gone forever.

If you belong to Jesus the Holy Spirit lives within you as the guarantee that you’ll arrive at your heavenly destination safely and forever. It’s where Jesus is and all who have died before you in Him. It will be a time of great reunion.

The good news is that Christ is preparing heaven right now for all who have put their trust in Him. And He guarantees they will arrive there one day safe and sound. The old hymn says, “What a day of rejoicing that will be!”

I hope to see you there!

Click Your Heels Three Times

So said the kindly witch to Dorothy. All the young girl wanted was to return to Kansas...home.

Some, like my wife live their entire childhoods in one locale, maybe even living in the same house their entire young lives. They graduate from high school 13 years later with the same classmates from their kindergarten class. Some have only known one church family their entire lives. For them, home is easy to find.

Such was not my life. I was born into a military family. By the time I graduated high school I had lived in 12 different houses/apartments. In 12 years I attended 8 different schools. Grades 6-8 were in three different schools. Think it's tough being in middle school? Try having to make all new friends every year. Then three different high schools in four years. And from the time I can remember 8 different churches. Oh yeah, my adolescence included four different church youth groups.

So I must really be messed up! Or at least I could be. (Some might say that I am!) But I'm not so sure being transient wasn't a character building plus.

I just returned from 5 days of going back to the place where I lived from age 3 through age 11. When I say "place", I mean area. We lived in six houses in those almost nine years. My purpose in going back was to capture some sense of "home" that typically escapes military families. It's a trip I've been wanting to do for some time. All of my elementary school years - kindergarten through sixth grade - were in this community.

Mostly by memory we found all the places I had hoped to see. Two of the first three houses are gone; one of those replaced by the government with a modern new town home. (I'm glad to see military families being better cared for, especially during this time of war.) My first school, Midway Park Elementary is gone. But the building that house the chapel we attended and the room where I went to kindergarten are still in use. The old theater I walked to on Saturdays and watched movies and serials for a quarter is still a functioning theater.

We drove by the three homes outside of town, in what was then a brand new development in the country. The church we attended has grown tremendously. I talked to the pastor at the church (a different church) where I discovered life in Christ as a ten year old boy. Gail took pictures of me on the field where I played Little League baseball. Best of all I had dinner with some very dear friends from over 45 years ago who still call me "Ricky".

Even though I have no family there, rekindling those long dormant memories and seeing the places were my life was shaped gave me a feeling like I was home, if just for a few days. Two months from now I'll have a similar experience when I go to the place where I lived for a period as a teenager 3,000 miles away and have a reunion with more people who helped me become who I am today. I look forward to seeing some of them for the first time in almost 35 years.

As a Christian I'm told in the Bible that I have a home I've never yet seen. That seems to mean that when I arrive there it will seem like the place where I've always belonged. And there will be so many I've known throughout this life already there to welcome me. I look forward to that homecoming.

Home. It sounds good. Last week I felt a bit of it, and it felt good! If you're fortunate to have somewhere to call "home", don't take it for granted.

A Year Already?

The one year anniversary of our road trip across America - part of my sabbatical - passed the other day, February 5. It was one of those (perhaps) once-in-a-lifetime-opportunities that will always be one of our greatest experiences together.

In total we spent 42 days going from Kitty Hawk, NC to the Keys to the West Coast and back. Many of those 42 days it was just Gail and I. A few were long days getting from point A to B. Lots were spent with friends and family along the route. All of them enabled us to view this magnificent country in which we live.

I'll have to go back and read the blog I kept during the trip.

If you ever get the chance to do something similar, I hope you will!

Days that change our lives

Our entire lives can be changed by a single event or by a series of events, and in only a moment, a day or days. I know that the first days of January were life-changing for me (and a lot of other people). And now, each year at this time my mind goes back to those days in 2008 when I saw miracles happen.

At least I call them miracles. Anyway, they were life-changing. And I'm so glad I blogged about them.

So I'm going back in the archives and reading what I wrote just to remind me of God's power and love. You're welcome to join me.

Click here to begin. Scroll down to the first week's posts.

My Year in Review

Where does time go? The older I get, the faster it flies by, it seems. As I get ready for the New Year it's probably a good idea to do a quick review of the old. Then I can hopefully learn from it and do my part in making 2011 even better. I can't control a lot, but what I can I want to do so in a way that is wise, godly and productive.

Not that anyone else much cares, but this was a good exercise for me in my advanced stage of life!
In 2010 I...

• Wrote 50 or so columns for the Outer Banks Sentinel.
• Preached less than a typical year (due to my Sabbatical). Didn't preach on Easter for the first time in a long time. Covered 6 different series including expositions of Isaiah 55, Romans 5-8, and topical series on family, the church, love and Advent. Preached a series of meetings for another church and delivered a message to the annual Chowan Baptist Association.
• Posted less on this blog.
  
• Conducted 3 weddings and 2 vow renewals and a funeral.
• Responded to 4 drownings in a two week span in August.
  
• Spent 42 days in February and March driving coast (Atlantic) to coast (Gulf) to coast (Pacific) to coast (Atlantic) with Gail. We saw wonderful parts of our country and spent time with many friends, some we had not seen in over 30 years. The car traveled over 8,000 miles, got a new set of tires in California and two oil changes in Florida and Las Vegas. I took about 1000 pictures.
• Visited Bayou La Batre, AL. Home of the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
• Was in NOLA for Mardi Gras. I don't get it.
• Watched a young Marine get his LT bars in front of the Alamo.
• Blew my diet on Mexican food.
• Found Arizona to be beautiful in February.
• Went to Disneyland after a 32 year absence.
  
• Was white-knuckled scared and at the same time in awe of God's creation as Gail drove us up the Pacific Coast Highway.
• Drove through a giant redwood.
• Stood on the Mt. Shasta Lake and Hoover dams.
• Found the Strip at Vegas to be decadence at its worst.
• Wondered at the natural beauty of the Grand Canyon and Red Rocks of Arizona.
• Stood on the corner in Winslow, Arizona as a girl in a flat bed Ford slowed down.
• Visited Hugo, Schooler Lake and lived a few hours on Tulsa time visiting family and friends from ministry in the '70's.
• At barbecue in Arkansas with a bald headed biker preacher.
• Watched as friends and family had victories and defeats in their lives. And realized you can't fix everything. Confronted some issues for the first time when I thought I'd seen it all.
• Saw some folks discover life in Christ and a bunch of them take the plunge in baptism.
• Saw some folks walk away from their church family.
  
• Played with and took my granddaughters out for breakfast a bunch of times.
• Played golf (I use "played" loosely) twice. Was given a new used set of clubs by a friend. Found out my days of 300 yard drives are over.
• Got a great and surprisingly good report from my annual physical. Even amazed my doc.
• Stopped playing racquetball at the Y. Too expensive. As a result I'm in need of exercise.
• Went to France for a week to serve a couple of churches and work with them in reaching the city of Grenoble. Thanks to my friends who helped me go.
• Discovered what "French pastry" really means.
  
• Did not get in the ocean at all, except to stand in it in FL a couple times to say I did.
  
• Got some of my best work done at the Morning View coffee shop in Nags Head.
• Worked on writing two books. I'm a long way from completing either.
• Didn't read enough.
  
• Spent too much time on Facebook.
  
• Shaved my goatee but kept the mustache.
• Bought a cowboy hat in CA.
• Pastored a most excellent church with an incredible team of fellow pastors and staff.
• Completed my 20th Christmas season with Nags Head Church.
• Enjoyed watching "American Pickers" and "Pawn Stars" on the History Channel.
• Was disappointed once more by the Washington Redskins and their inept owner.
• Started a Facebook group for my old youth group's reunion in CA this spring.
• Had a cough I couldn't shake for two months.
• Figured out that there's no such thing as a "fair and balanced" news network.
  
• Did some substitute teaching in Dare Co. schools. My favorite is the Alternative school for some reason.
• Learned that the information highway is the cult of the 21st century, drawing in the gullible with myths and conspiracy theories.
  
• Reconnected with some "long lost cousins" and some I've never met.
• Started on researching our family genealogy. Found out my great-great-great-great grandfather had the same name as me and participated in laying the cornerstone of the Washington Monument.
• Watched our church learn what love is and then put it in to practice in the community.

In many ways it was a great year. In many ways it was a trying year. That's the way it is every year isn't it? But it's great to know that no matter what comes my way (or yours) God knows and He is always available and ready to walk with us through the valleys and over the peaks.

Have a new year filled with joy. Happiness is temporary and fleeting. Seek something greater!

Love Letters

A few days ago I pulled a couple of boxes down from our attic, looking for some pictures of old times with old friends. I found a few and was glad to see them. But even better was finding a stack of letters written 33 years ago.

The six months prior to our wedding Gail lived in Portsmouth, VA, her home town and I lived in Lynchburg, VA with my parents while wrapping up my last semester of college. She had finished her college work the previous semester and moved home to work; teaching in an elementary school and to making all the preparations for our wedding.

During those six months we wrote each other almost daily. It was in the dark ages before computers and email and when long distance phone calls were not cheap. Writing letters was still the most cost effective form of communication. It's pretty much a lost art now. First class postage was just 13 cents.

I had forgotten about all the letters. So the last couple of evenings I spent opening the envelopes back up and reading them again for the first time since 1977. It's amazing the details that get lost in the dust of time.

When you're married as long as we have been you should be more in love than ever before. I think we are. (She doesn't know that I've been sitting across the room from her while she works on her laptop, mostly just admiring her.) Certainly our love has matured with the years and through the experiences we've had, good and bad.

But I have to admit reading those old letters and reliving the magic of young love has brought more than one smile to my face. And the fact that she still loves me makes me continue to hold her in wonder; even more so now than then, I think.

Now, if I can muster the courage to open up and read the letters I wrote to her. She thought they were wonderful, and she told me so. But I'm afraid I probably sounded pretty goofy.

Spring and neighbors

One of the great thing about Spring is that after hibernating all winter you come out and spend time in your yard planting stuff, etc. At least I have been doing a lot of that these past few weeks.

While pretending to be a landscaper I've found that I get lots of opportunities to talk with my neighbors, whom I don't see much of in the colder months. Sometimes they ask me questions about what I'm doing as though I must know a lot about taking care of the yard. I play along.

Knowing your neighbors has become a lost art in our culture. Maybe it's time to revive it.

Sunday Flashback

Some of what's brewing in my head this Sunday night...

I attended a worship service at a local church of another brand to hear an old friend preach. What I heard and witnessed helped me understand the differences between us. It's just too bad that the 2,000 years of Christianity haven't kept Christ-followers on the same page.

The early service at the other church allowed me to worship with NHC at our second gathering. There's no place like home. Pastor Steve Wise told his story today and how a faithful witness shared Christ with him during "the dark ages" of his early adult life, changing him forever. Great message. Great worship.

How blessed Gail and I are to be grandparents! Today we celebrated Evaine's first birthday. These two little girls have no idea how loved they are by all their family.

I've had to drop a second teenage Facebook friend. These are kids professing Christ, yet who are somehow not building Christ-like values into their communication skills. It makes me realize how important my upcoming series on FAMILY needs to be in the lives of parents and their chlidren. Biblical values are hard to find these days in the homes of Americans. I wonder if parents have just given up, or if they're totally naive as to the influences their kids face each day.

This is my last week of Sabbatical. I'm well-rested and stress free! But there are still a lot of things I had hoped to accomplish that will have to wait for another time. I'll be back in the saddle next Sunday.

Sunday Flashback

On a beautiful Spring Sunday in Paradise we visited another local church in our community. Even still, Gail said what we both feel. "I really just want to go to our church". But we're taking advantage of the sabbatical to find out what other churches are doing to reach and teach our community.

What we found was a church gathering we both enjoyed very much. The Church of the OBX meets at the YMCA in the gym - which is a challenge - and has done just about everything they can to transform a gymnasium into a house of worship. It looked great.

The band played some mellow contemporary music and was super. I enjoyed singing the songs because they were familiar to me. Familiar means I can better relate to their message and consequently have a deeper worship experience than if I've never heard them before.

The pastor (a friend of mine) brought a message on the post-resurrection focus of the church; a timely message since last Sunday was Easter. He was easy to follow and well prepared. The challenge to his church was for them to do the same things that the first church did in Acts 1-2. It was great to see the congregation immediately start taking down their chairs at the service's conclusion - everybody was doing something.

Starting around 10:00 (( say "around" because like last week's church they didn't start as advertised) it was over at 11:15. Gail said, "Let's go to NHC (our second gathering begins at 11:00 and we were just 2 miles away) and here Tom tell his story". So we did. And it was a good story!

Our elders are teaching a series in which each of them takes a Sunday to tell his own personal faith story. Doing so is accomplishing several positive outcomes. First, it allows the church to get to know them better. These guys are not normally up front teaching Sunday to Sunday like me, and my Sabbatical has given them a couple Sundays each to teach. That also reinforces our belief and practice that our elders are pastors. Second, their stories relate to the congregation. We often learn more and better from our failures and tests. These guys are transparently sharing those experiences.

I'm not sure where we'll go next Sunday, but I'm looking forward to it.

Sunday Flashback

Sundays on Sabbatical still produce a feeling of "lostness" for me. When you're used to years of your whole week coming down to what happens on Sunday and then that's gone it takes some adjustment. Compound that with being gone on Easter, which is the biggest Sunday of our year, and it's kind of surreal.

Even though we're home now, I've resolved to visit other churches on these Sundays to gain some perspective as a guest and to pick up some good ideas when I can. So yesterday we visited a young local church trying to carve out their "niche" in our community. I'll say this much: it was different. And all the while we were both wishing we were at home at NHC because it is home.

Sometime after the Sabbatical is over and we have worshipped in 12 or so different churches from FL to CA to NC I'll write some of the lessons I learned.

Sunday afternoon we had a crowd over, including our grandchildren, their parents, my brother's family, Gail's mom, and our grandkids' other grandparents and an aunt, and some more friends. We've been working hard the past few days on our yard (it's been sadly neglected for too long) getting the deck ship-shape and the front yard ready for an Easter egg hunt.

This year's (and future years') hunt is different from the big hunts we hosted a few years ago when our kids were all college aged. We'd invite their friends; make them all wear bunny ears and sent them out into the yard and woods behind the house searching for eggs. One of the eggs always was loaded with cash, so they were pretty motivated. It was always a lot of fun watching grown up kids get excited about hunting Easter eggs. Lots of craziness.

Now we're hosting mostly toddlers. Cuteness reigns, but not as funny or crazy as before.

The food on the deck was awesome. God gave us a picture perfect day, too, with warm temps and a Carolina Blue sky. On special days like Easter, which speak so much of the faith we have in Christ that holds us together it is also like icing on the cake to have so much fun with family and friends. And we're grateful to be blessed with a home that makes it possible. The older I get the more I get it.

Two Very Different Days...Really?

I spent the day today taking my elderly mother in law to a doctor's appt, to lunch and to do a bit of shopping. She's sadly suffering from the debilitating effects of advanced aging, both physically and mentally. She no longer can think rationally and can't remember anything she just heard and will deny personal responsibility for her actions.

Tomorrow I substitute at a local high school. All day with adolescents. The two days should be very different.

But then, maybe not so much.

As the World Turns

Some might wonder, "What will you be doing on your Sabbatical?" (I've had a couple of pastors wonder, envious that I'm in a church that provides such a thing.)

It's rest, but it's not all rest. Even while we're very casually galavanting across the country and taking in the beauty of creation and reuniting with friends there are some projects I've started that are under the current radar. When I get home I'll be able to focus more on them and less on the road.

Both projects are literary. One is intended to encourage the church to work with, not against her leadership to accomplish the purposes God has given us. Most of these thoughts have been gathered from my 19 years serving the same congregation. We've learned a lot of lessons together! If you've followed this blog you've probably read my "Ed and Edith" posts. (If not, you can find them easily.) The book is about them.

The second writing project on the desk is a look at Jesus as a leader, not by what He said, but by what He did. Leadership is about example, and He was the best ever. This may take the shape of a daily devotional type of thing for leaders.

So one is about being a gracious follower; the other about being a godly leader - both topics I'm trying to learn.

I'm also gathering notes from the churches we visit on the road, and will do so when we visit churches once we get back home. Always I'm on the look out for great ideas and ways to improve.

Then, at home my to-do list is huge. I've got two houses to work on, so I'll stay busy with them as well.

And if you're a pastor, you know that even when you're on a vacation or, in my case, an extended break, you're mind and heart never totally disconnect from the flock. One of the advantages of social networking is being able to hear and "feel" the growth and the hurts so you can, even thousands of miles away still pray effectively.

There, that's all the work for today. Let's hit the road!

Ventura Highway (hope there's) Sunshine

In a couple of days Gail and I will be in California to fulfill a long time dream.

Our first year plus of marriage was spent in Orange. It was her first time in CA. I had lived there for a time during high school Both of us love the Golden State - what we have seen of it - which is pretty much from San Diego to LA with a trip up to Kings Canyon.

This visit will include a West Coast drive all the way up into Oregon on Hwy 1. Then we'll come down the center of the state. On the way we'll get to visit a lot of friends, too. Some we haven't seen for decades.

We're totally stoked.

Reunion

I'm at the age when reunions are in vogue. You know, before the memory totally fades away it is good to come back together with friends from those "thrilling days of yesteryear". (5 points to the old timer who can pinpoint the origin of that quote.) We're literally coming from around the world.

This week I'm converging with a couple hundred others who together were pioneers in a fledgling college and were trailblazing an innovative major in church related ministry. Most of us haven't been together for over 30 years. But it is very much a special group. The ties that bind are still strong.

My guess is they're all old. But knowing this group, they'll still be a lot of fun. You have to be partly insane to want to work with adolescents. For some I'm sure the flame still burns brightly. For others maybe not.

So we'll stay up way past our bedtimes reminiscing about those good old days, showing off pics of our kids and grandkids and wondering how the time has flown by so quickly. Then before we know it we'll be back to reality.

But escaping, even for a brief time will be good.

Adios Mr. Z.

Twice now this week I've received news of the death of someone who was special in my life. I really hope bad news doesn't come in threes.

My earliest recollections of Mr. Z are of him sitting in his living room showing off his dancing poodle Holly. He would sing this little ditty and get the dog to get up on her hind legs and "dance". It brought him great joy. And he did this every time I came over to their house. So, as best I could as a fifteen year old, I would watch in "amazement" and humor him.

Back in those days he was always a pretty serious guy. So my mission was always to say or do something to make him think I was totally insane.

I remember that same year when he and Mrs. Z, then in their forties put their faith in Christ as Savior. An emotional guy, I've often seen tears in his eyes. He was a proud man in a good sense: proud of his family; proud of his church and pastor; proud of his immaculate back yard with fruit trees and chilis; proud of his Mexican heritage; proud of his ability in his 70's to climb a wall when pursued by vicious dogs!

He worked hard his whole life in construction. In his "retirement" he worked just as hard doing concrete and block work in and around his Orange, CA home. His handywork was everywhere. But even more importantly he used his knowledge and experience in building churches in Mexico with missions teams from his church. That brought him the greatest satisfaction.

In my adult years he and Mary often opened up their home to Gail and I when we would go out to California for a visit. It was understood that "Mi casa es su casa" at the Z's home. And the few times I came out and didn't bring her I was chastized by him. "Next time you come you bring your wife!"

When his beloved Mary died a year and a half ago after being married forever it took the wind out of his sails. Yesterday evening she no doubt was escorted to Heaven's gates to welcome him home. I'm sure today she is taking him on a tour of his forever home.

My hope is that he was told on arrival to take off his shoes and go barefooted on the golden streets because it is holy ground. (Those who know him best will understand and smile in agreement with me.) I would love to see the expression on his face.

Hasta luego, amigo viejo.

1966

It was on this day, July 31, 43 years ago that I confessed Christ to be my Savior. As I look back I think I had already believed that He was a week or two earlier, so I can't really say that this is my spiritual birthday. But that doesn't matter.

What matters is that I was fortunate enough to have someone (actually it was several people in my life at that time) explain in a way a ten year old boy could understand that I needed Jesus as my Savior to have everlasting life. Up to that point in life I was aware of Christianity in the sense that I believed God existed; that Jesus was His Son who lived, died and rose from the dead; that there was an eternity, etc.

But until I was ten no one had really explained to me that knowing facts about God and spiritual things wasn't enough. I had to make Him my God by believing - having complete faith and trust in His provision - in order to be one of His everlasting famly.

So thanks to the man who was my Sunday School teacher at the little Bible Baptist Church in Jacksonville, NC. I don't remember your name, but you taught the Bible in a way I could grasp it. And thanks to the pastor of that church, Walter Kirk for making sure I heard it from him, too in plain talk. I told Pastor Kirk that day, "I want to be saved". It's so gracious of God to not make it complicated.

Having Christ become my Savior at such a young age no doubt helped to spare me from who knows what I could have experienced in the years to follow. It really was a life-changing moment. And hanging my eternity on God's promise is one reason I am so excited to be part of a church that is overflowing with young families and children.

For of such is the kingdom of heaven!

They checked their brains at the bridge

This summer I'm posting about the absolute dumb things I see vacationers do while on vacation here on the Outer Banks. Most of them will be things that could be deadly. I think they check their brains on the other side of the bridge. And I'll update it as I see stupid stuff that I have to believe people wouldn't do at home. If I can identify where they are from, I will.

Two weeks ago our renters from Ohio took the grill off its pedastel and took it up to the third floor deck and cooked up there. Why? (I asked when I found the grill missing). Because it was windy down there. Fortunately they didn't burn down the house, but that's a frequent cause of house fires here: unattended grills on wooden decks. Hello. The wind blows all the time. Get used to it. (The picture is not of my house, but is of one that that happened here recently in a vacation home.)

Tonight on the way home (headed north) on 158 a car from Maryland headed south and the driver decided he wanted to go north. So he pulled a U-turn in the middle of the highway and into my lane right in front of me. I had to go from 50 to 20 in short order. It was one of those little square cars with no acceleration. Then a quarter of a mile later he turned right off the highway as slowly as possible. Hey, it's not a side street; it's a highway. And figure out where you're going before you get on the road.

It's going to be a great summer!

Like it dropped off the table

Any decent batter can hit a fastball. It's the great hitters who can hit the curve.

How are you doing?

The past few days I've had a handful of people (who I think genuinely care) ask me, "Rick, how are you doing?" Not that trite greeting kind of thing, but wanting to make sure that I'm OK and taking care of myself.

Actually, it feels good to be asked that. It's also good to know that not everybody thinks I'm Superman (even though I may act like I think I am).

And I'm doing OK. Thanks. Looking forward for a chance to take a quick break soon and do something fun and relaxing.