It is Finished

2012 has come to a close... It's been a year of transition.  I changed my full time job (I didn't leave the Ex, I just changed assignments.. read a little about it here). I have learned new things and used a completely different skill set.  It has been great to exercise a new part of my brain and light up some new neural synapses.  I do station visits, I have some audit functions, but the biggest and hardest part of the job is recruiting seasonal drivers for "peak"...or Christmas deliveries.. I'm away from home a lot, but I think Donna likes the peace and quiet.  Our relationship is very good as we skype a lot and stay in touch via txt and phone calls.  So far, this has been very good.


 The evening service called "Mosaic" at Perritte Memorial Methodist Church came to an end.  I lead worship there for 2 years. The service had great people that have expended a large amount of energy to try and reach  a new group of people in Nacogdoches but it never got momentum.  I miss those good people but fortunately I'm friends with most of them on facebook.

My son Austin moved out of the house and got 2 part time jobs in the Webster Tx area.  I stay with him when I work in Houston.  Early in the mornings he is a package handler at the Ex and on weekends he works concessions at Kemah Boardwalk.

He really seems to be enjoying his new jobs and he loves NOT being in Lufkin.  There is a Chipotle' just a couple of blocks from his apartment and he loves living in that area with so much to see and do.

My oldest brother Richard passed away this year, and my family asked me to perform the service.  It was hard in a way but it was also a great blessing to talk about my oldest brother and laugh and cry with my family about him and his life.  My relationship was not always good with Richard but I was so glad that I had seen and talked to him a few times in his last months and in his last day he called me a hardhead and we told each other "I love you".  It was a good day even though it was his last.

Finally, as of midnight, December 31st 2012, I will no longer be a pastor at First Christian Church in Lufkin, Tx.  The new job I have requires full time travel.  I work in Houston when I'm not working in Lake Charles or Victoria or Corpus or Brownsville or Laredo or Uvalde or wherever else the company needs me.  This travel and the new responsibilities pull me away from my congregation and prevent me from fulfilling my call as pastor to this congregation.  It was a very hard decision but it's the right one.  I thought I could make it all work but I could  not.  Sunday was my last service and we did a little extra music.  It was a fun morning and I enjoyed being at the table for the last time.  You can go to church again here if you want.. :-)

2012 was kind of a hard year... I look forward to 2013 and what it has in store.  Hannah's graduation and what she will do after... Austin's work (he's already been told he'll go to full time at Kemah in February), weekends with my bride.  Donna and I looked back and realized that for the last 14+ years since we started Upward Basketball at FUMC Lufkin and we both started working in church services doing various things, we have been working 6 and 7 days a week for all those years.  Since I travel so much I will value some free weekends with my honey.  We're going to the Cotton Bowl to watch the Aggies beat the hell outta o.u. and we will celebrate our 29th anniversary a couple of weeks later.  We are still very young at heart and love being together.

Adios 2012...  2013 has lots to offer, but most of all.. as Jimmy Buffett says.  I Love the Now!

Ecclesiastes 3

¹² I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. ¹³ That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.

Peace...

A day of silence

I tried to begin a day of silence yesterday around this time... work kept that from happening but it did begin around Sundown.. Mountain time. Be that as it may it is something I hope to do about once a quarter. Sure I spoke a couple of times.. in error but for the most part I kept quiet and kept my Lord my focus.

Last night I read my bible for a while and read through some information for my sermon I'll be preaching in a couple of weeks. First Sunday of Lent so I'll be teaching a little about Lent, Ash Wednesday (we are holding an Ash Wednesday service for the 2nd year in a row..this time in the evening)...and then preaching a little about those whiny Hebrews in the desert wishing they were back in Egypt... and then God sends them manna and quail. You would think by then they would have faith in God.. after all they had seen.. I mean we have it all figured out don't we?

Anyway...

Got up this morning...shook Austin to get him off to work.... and read my bible some more. Then washed dishes (by hand..washer is broke) and cleaned up the kitchen while Donna is away working the Emmaus Walk this weekend.

Finished the dishes then I took a ride on my bicycle for about 16 miles.. it was hard..first ride in a while but my knee responded wonderfully and I'm feeling the work in my abs and legs right now. That's good..hope I can stand and play a guitar in church tomorrow.

Took a hot bath..read my bible some more..and dozed off for a bit.

Then I got up and planned music for mosaic for Sunday night and worked on this song a little bit that I'm supposed to do during lent called "Then the Quail Came". I have most of the chords figured out but I haven't charted it yet. If you know this song and have charts please let me know :-)

My day of silence is about to end when Austin gets home and we head out to Broaddus together. All in all it has been a great 24 (more or less...more less than more I think but that's ok) hours. I look forward to doing it again in the next 3 months.

Praise God from whom all Blessings flow!

Salvation, Restoration, Redemption and Santa Fe, Tx

A couple of years ago I wrote a paper on Salvation.. a part of that paper is as follows..

Salvation as I stated before is a process. People may be immediately granted membership to the “Body of Christ” when they repent and believe. I also believe people will have eternity with their creator, but probably have not received salvation from all of the “issues” that block them from having a rich and full life. Christ said that he came so that “they may have life and have it to the full”. People will still struggle with issues once they become a Christian therefore I believe they must work through their salvation regarding those issues. Not that I think they are lost or their eternity is in question but true salvation is to be cut free of all those issues. Over time individuals can work through and with the love of community and guidance of the Holy Spirit can be freed of more and more issues over time.

I hope I haven't lost all of you starting you off this way but I have to share with you something very important...that's why I'm back here at my blog that I have pretty much abandoned since falling in love with fb and twitter.

We moved to Alta Loma when I was 5 years old...a part of the white flight of America when schools began desegregating. Can't desegregate a school district that's all white. (mind you I did not understand all of this until much later in life.. I was just living in a world my parents were creating around me)..

Now once we got to Alta Loma and I started in to the Santa Fe Schools...pretty much all I heard was how I was not given an even break because I was not a part of the "clique" or kin to the right people or whatever. Failed accomplishments by me were reasoned away by my dad because I wasn't part of the right group.

That stuff stuck with me. From not making the sale at the county fair to not making all stars in baseball to not getting an offensive lineman award were all laid at the feet of the fact that I just didn't belong in this community.

So...I had a negative feeling about the place I grew up. I felt like I had been shorted by people I grew up around. I just didn't know what to do with this feeling.. I enjoyed those folks I was around but in the back of my mind was this seed that had been planted about my town, my school and the people that were a part it all.

I then grew older and up and graduated and moved on. For many years I was really kind of happy to shake the dust of that town off my shoes and leave it behind. I did go back for a reunion in 88 and I was going through some transformations during that time that did not allow for that reunion to be that fun for me. Everyone was who they were but I had an arrogant feeling about myself and just didn't feel like I fit in.....still.

I heard about later reunions but easily passed on attending because I just didn't want to be a part of all of that. Sometimes it was for reasons of my new-found role as a Christian..

I don't know why I had this idea in my head that I had to give up certain things to be a Christian but it was what it was. I had a very fundamental ideal that I was striving for as I finally made the decision to be a follower of Jesus. I gave up drinking, cursing was dropped easily (and I still try to avoid it as I do not find it attractive as a representative of Christ in the world) and other things that were things that were important for me to do for me to truly believe I was making the sacrifice to follow my savior. Taking up my cross so to speak.

Hence the beginning statements from my paper. I had received salvation from my savior but I had not received salvation from myself. A friend I met years later taught me the redemption available in Christ. Finding God in all things. Loving God's creation. Loving all people...period.

Time went on and I began to find God in a good slice of pizza and a wonderful bottle of Shiner Bock. I had forgotten how great it was to sip gin and tonic....and with all these things many of my self imposed barriers to my home town and my school began to disappear.

I yearned for restoration to my people.. my people from my little community of Santa Fe Texas. Then came the gift of facebook. I began to find my peeps on there and what a joy it was. I was able to communicate with them and it was so great to be a part of their lives again. I watched in envy (forgive me Lord) as the class of 79 had their 30 year class reunion....wishing I could have been a part of mine..if there was one.


Then a long lost friend (won't say old..thanks Janet) throws a party and I get to go..

All I can say is my heart is full..nothing else explains how I feel.

Thank you Connie for your hospitality and your heart.
Thank you Cory for helping me in my redemption and restoration..
Thank you Donna for loving me for a long time through all my phases.
God Bless every one of you.. and those of you Fe'ers that were not there..I look forward to seeing you some day soon too.

Peace

Nice news..