January 30, 2014. If my people, who are called by my name.........

The past few days in Charlotte, NC have been a real blessing for us. We have been attending the annual meeting of the National Prayer Committee being held at the Billy Graham Evangelical Association campus. Some of the speakers have been very inspirational, including Will Graham, Billy's grandson who was about to leave for a Crusade in Sri Lanka. We also are hearing a lot about the local and national efforts to unite the churches in prayer across denominational lines, foster a spirit of revival on college campuses, in communities and throughout our nation and around the world. We have met and visited with many people, including pastors and various ministry leaders from around the country. We have received much encouragement and prayer support for Ministry of Miles.
We have brought cold weather and some snow with us and are looking forward to warmer weather as we get back on the road tomorrow. We are going to Gaffney, SC where the Freightliner factory is located and are scheduled for some maintenance on Monday morning. We had some difficulty with our generator the past two days and are also having them look over some other things we have concerns about. Preventive maintenance once again.
Today we were blessed to tour the Billy Graham Library and learn more about his impact on the world and so many individuals he led to The Lord. As the tag line above from 2Chronicles 7:14 says, we need to be humbled in our lives, our ministries and our prayers to seek God and claim the promises of healing for our land. To be blunt, we live in a messed up world, a country which has backed away from the Christian values upon which it was founded and become complaisant in our faith and the call to witness and make disciples. I pray we all listen to the stirrings of The Holy Spirit and step out in faith as witnesses and ambassadors for Christ. PRAISE GOD. HIS WILL, HIS WAY, HIS KINGDOM COME.

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January 27, 2014. Change of plans

Saturday morning we were still at NAS Jax getting set to go out to the beach for four days at the Mayport Naval Station, but we are now two states north of Florida, at the Shaw AFB recreation area on Wateree Lake north of Camden, SC. Tomorrow we will be in Charlotte, NC with Kathy B and the National Prayer Committe for a series of seminars and meetings. We are humbled to be asked to attend such an event and to get to meet the prayer warriors who were part of the nationwide Prayer Bus Tour that took place last year. Our stay in Jacksonville was wonderful. We were able to spend time with my bother and sister-in-law, attend the All Saints chapel at NAS Jax for three Sundays, be welcomed and loved on by them. We made some very close friendships with a number of people in the RV Park, some of whom were our send-off committee as we pulled out this morning. It was hard to leave. We have been so blessed with this call on our life and while we miss our Colorado friends and family, we are "more than conquerors" with all that has happened to us in the past month-and-a-half on the road. Today we traveled in beautiful weather, but are anticipating very cold temperatures and possible stormy conditions over the next few days. We can't seem to find the warm weather. So many people we have met were heading to the Florida Keys trying to escape the cold weather which has seemed to follow us from Colorado. We're filled up with propane and the fuel tank is near full, so we are prepared, and grateful for the wonderful road home we have been blessed with. GOD IS GOOD, and we praise Him many times a day for this ministry, His provision and protection. All praise and glory to Him.

January 25, 2014. Called aside, alone with God

The last time we blogged, Karen and I were preparing to relocate to the back lot of the repair place on the other side of the St. John's River to have our motor home serviced. As with most vehicle repairs there's always something more than what we take it in for, and that was the case for us, as well. After a full day, and some additional expense, as well as the necessity of some B&R ice cream, we returned to NAS Jax and our familiar space 16. Some of our neighbors had changed, but Tom(NAS space 17)next door came out to greet us and help us back into our space. We did the basic set-up and reviewed the events of the day. Our vehicle had been serviced, we met some interesting and helpful people and we were once again provided for and protected by God. But there was something which bugged me about our day "in the real world". Somehow we became so involved in our repair, the details of the service contract, the expense, the time we were spending in the customer lounge waiting, that we lost track of our ministry and the reason we were on this journey in the first place. When we were heading back to NAS, I began to get down on myself for not being out there in the battle for the Vietnam vets and the lost souls we needed to reach. Karen gave me the proverbial "slap upside the head" and it dawned on me that I had earlier that day(January 22), read and completely not heeded my Streams In The Desert devotional which spoke directly to the need for rest in the hectic pace of life, work or ministry. The rests in a musical piece are just as crucial to the melody as the notes. Sometimes we need to just accept that God calls us aside from the routine and wants us to be out of the action, but know that in these times He is alone with us. After we count the rest, we jump back with the notes assigned to us. The rest was essential to the overall piece. Thursday morning I still felt a little down, and while we were planning to call Mack, our 84 year old ex-neighbor from NAS space 15, he called us from Arizona to tell us he loved us and missed us. How blessed we were by the call and God's "surprise" and His reminder that He is in control and setting the path for us. Be at Peace in His Presence. The message of the January 22 SITD devotional which I reread on the 23rd, 24th and again this morning is well worth reading if you have it, or can find it on the Internet. Slow the pace, get alone with God and enjoy the "music of life" and the rests which are so much a part of it. PRAISE THE LORD.

January 21, 2014 Moving day

We're planning to pick up stakes later today and leave space 16 at NAS Jax to set up in the back lot of a Freightliner repair facility 20 miles from here. We're hoping its just basic maintenance and then back to space 16 again until the 28th when we will leave for Mayport Naval Station and 4 days on the beach. That's the plan, anyway. Space 16 has been good. We've met some wonderful people, had some great conversations, shared our travel and life experiences and learned a lot about life on the road. I know that blogging a list of names may not be too exciting for you as a reader, kind of like reading some of the Bible lists of names, but if I write them down, think about the conversations and pray for each one, it brings me to the real reason for this ministry and this journey. Some names I've already mentioned, but they are on my heart today: Mack, Julie, Les, Tom, Kathleen and Peter, Johnny, Miss Grace, John and Sandra, Jake and Barb, Mike and Barb, Dave, Joe, John and Susie, Vicki and Gary, Paul and Dewey. God, bless them and keep them as they travel, visit with family or face the medical and other issues in their lives and seek peace and purpose along the way. As with our relationships in Colorado, so we are building a treasure-trove of relationships which will linger as we proceed on the path God takes us. We pray for our friends, new and old, our family, Shiloh, and for God's continuing grace and peace. PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW.

January 17, 2014. Jacksonville, Fl Blessed

Weather and technology have been recurrent themes of our blog the past month. We have encountered Colorado weather in Florida and have even had a few days of Florida weather in Florida. We have met people from "the north" who are heading further south and are eager to escape the cold weather here and where they came from. Not many people are heading north as we plan to do in about three weeks. We all seem to watch the weather and with the abundance of resources we can get a pretty accurate picture of what the next days and weeks will be like weather-wise. Our plan is still to stay in the temperate climes and avoid the severe stuff if we can. We are blessed to be here and have the comforts we do. We are learning more about this life style, having met a lot of "full-timers" and others with years of experience on the road. We are becoming more comfortable with the community of rv'ers and the various personalities from seasoned travelers to novices like us. It's wonderful to be able to help others and be helped by them. We are definitely in this life together. Every day we meet people from different parts of the country, learn more about their lives and their plans for the coming years and their hope beyond. We are encouraged by the many who are Believers and have not found too many who don't want to hear about our faith and our hope of eternal salvation. We look forward to being able to share our faith and share our hope with those who don't now know Him. We are blessed to be able to keep in contact with our family and friends in Colorado and around the country. We are getting more comfortable with the technology I once rejected and wanted no part of. I must be softening up. We thank you for staying in touch with us, for your prayers and the love you express to us in so many ways. Thank you, Lord. WE ARE BLESSED.

January 14, 2014. It's time to blog again

When we decided to have a website and a blog, I didn't know how much I would be able to write in addition to my daily journaling which has been a staple of my morning devotionals and quiet time for the past 10 plus years. I have always thought I would write a book, memoirs or some major opus which would rock the world, be a Charles Kurault-type journalist or write copious letters to the editor on topics which would change minds and influence policy. I like to write, but most of my writings go unread by anyone. No one has read my journals which fill nearly 8 notebooks and if and when they are read it will take a long time to complete. So, this blog is an attempt to "go public" and hopefully encourage, uplift, teach and reveal something about me, help me work out my salvation as we all are called to do, tell some of the experiences we are having and telling about the many people we are meeting and talking with. But it is impossible to tell it all in a few paragraphs. When we set out to say hello to everyone, to ask a question of a stranger, to do more than just walk along with our head down, to compliment a person on their attire or notice a t-shirt slogan, take an interest in a pet they are walking, we are creating an encounter which may lead to commonalities, conversation and a change in plans, a new priority. And so goes each day for us. A visit to Best Buy lasts 2 hours, a stop at Tasty Dogs for a quick bite to eat lasts more than an hour, paying for the next two weeks at the NAS Jax RV Park takes extra time because Julie is such a caring and personal host involved in the lives and travels of her "residents" and we have to check out an alligator sighting on the golf course, dinner is delayed because I get into a conversation with a couple from New Hampshire who have a son-in-law living in our home town. We set out with no firm itinerary or timetable and as a result our days are fuller, our conversations deeper, our prayers more personal and our lives richer and more relational. God wants us to slow down, listen to His voice and the voices of His children. This has been an eye-opener of a journey, one which has changed us already. It has not only confirmed our faith, but spurred us to share it more openly and passionately with each new acquaintance and during every new encounter. A seed here, a seed there. We pray for those we have met and those we will meet today. Press on, send me Lord.

January 10, 2014 - The cow never stays milked

Good morning.  Have you heard the expression about the cow never staying milked?  Last August in the Dakotas, we met a farmer who milked his cows every day for years, but had never heard the expression.  A city boy teaching something to a farmer who taught us a lot about his farm and the history of the area.  Our lives, our jobs, our daily routine, our whole existence seem to be a series of ever-repeating habits, habits or routines which are the same every day, even several times per day.  Our clothes keep getting dirty, the bills seem to keep coming, the in-box always has something in it and no matter how many times we rake the leaves, they keep coming back and each fall there seem to be more of them.  Add your own scenario;  the cow never stays milked.

     One of our purposes for this  journey and this ministry was to try to break the pattern, to not have the same routine, to do something different, to get the cow milked for the last time.  But it is becoming obvious that while the scenery may be different, the story is still the same.  We are lost, we are weak, and we need Jesus in our life to help us, to help others and to bring the cows to the barn for their milking.  I'm a city boy who has never milked a cow, but I understand the principle and the message.  Press on for The Kingdom.  One day the cow will be able to take a vacation from the routine of his life and  stay milked.  Glorious day for the milker and the milkee.  But until them, press on and preach the Good News.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Smartphone

January 7, 2014 - Jacksonville Naval Air Station - Time flies

A new day, a new location.  How quickly the days go by and so many experiences,  conversations, new acquaintances, memories.....on and on.  And through it all the time moves inexorably on not stopping when we want it to slow down to enjoy a moment longer, or speeding up when we want something to be over.  Time is one of the many parts of life we can't control and is better left in the hands of God.  It's hard to believe that Karen has already driven over 2300 miles (I've done about 4 feet),  we have spent all 22 nights in the same bed and are being blessed so abundantly by the the things we have seen and even more by the people we have met.  It would take volumes to relate all that we have encountered and the stories we have shared.  If I mentioned all the names we have written down, it would go on and on.....like the time.  We pray a lot.  We try to share and encouage to listen more carefully,  to learn from what others have done and pass on what we know.  In all, we give glory and thanks to Jesus and seek to make that the primary message we convey in our words and deeds.  Without trying to make this a complete prayer list,  I pray for Mike and Linda, Sherman and Jean, P Randy, P Walt's daughter,  Paul, Alan who served in Cu Chi, Renee and Angel, Bill, Bill and Linda, Gordon, Carl, my new friend John(Monte) from Anh Khe, Betty, Fred and Arnette, Mac from Mountain Green, Jose, Les, my brother Phil and sister-in-law Sharon, Julie and Elliott, and names of others we have met:  known to God.  Bless them and keep them, let your face shine upon them and give them peace.  Praise God. We press on in Your service.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Smartphone

Weather/Internet January 3, 2014

Good morning from sunny Florida.

Today we are sunny but cool.  Yesterday it rained all day and it was warm and muggy.  Like Colorado, if you don't like the weather,  just wait and it will change pretty soon. We hear that a lot in our travels.  Not much we can do but dress appropriately and smile. God has it all figured out. I wrote a long blog earlier this morning, but it's lost somewhere in cyber space.  Like the weather, not much we can do, but react appropriately and smile.  I'm not sure God uses the internet, but He does have infinite eays to communicate to and through us.  Thank You, Lord.

Thank you all for following our blog.  We have heard that some of your comments are not publishing.  It seems that Google needs some form of identifying the commenters. The easiest eay to manage the system is to use the anonymous category and just write your name after the post so we know who commented.  Otherwise you need to give an email address and a password and that doesn't seem right.  We'll figure all this out in time with our Shiloh tech staff back in Fort Collins.  Thanks to them and all of you for your prayers and encouragement.  We press on to new opportunities and new experiences.  

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Smartphone