Coming to the Still Waters

     So life does not stop for cancer, it just gets a little busier when you throw into your day a 90 mile trip.  I was able to meet with Jerry today (not Richard).  It was great to swap stories.  He is a contractor and a year younger than I am.  He will be done with his treatment before me.  I was so thankful to talk about my faith and the church and then end with prayer for both of us.  I don't know if Jerry is a Christian but I will have at least 9 more days to be in contact with him.  I think it was just as good for me to speak with him as it was for him to speak to me.  Please pray for this opportunity for me.      Another run through 1 Peter 3 and a little of 4 has my sermon more near completion.  I have titled it, "A Christian Living in a Hostile World."  The Bible says over and over our focus of being good or holy as God is holy.  The contrast between the flesh and spirit is evident again with the feeding of one or the other and the fruit of each.  We are calle

     This is one of my favorite places to work in Gaylord.  I took a day off to recover from Easter Sunday (Resurrection Day) that was so great.  God has been so good to us as a church.  I had another image that I wish I had a camera for but it is embedded in my mind.  I have a few of these, like one situation at the Porter church where we did a play I wrote of another situation at the Roscommon church and the lady playing the role on that Sunday morning ended the scene with geniune tears that moved the congregation.  Another at the Alpena church was one Sunday a young lady sang after my message about God who is in the saving business and I used her story without saying her name and then she sang "Awesome God" and stated to the congregation that it was her.  This Sunday when the service was ending I offered an invitation to raise a hand for prayer for those of us who if we were measuring if we have been growing in God, that we have slipped quite a bit.  Then I gave the invit

     The day in between Good Friday and Easter or Resurrection Sunday is the what?  Well, it is Saturday and on the Jewish calendar it is the Sabbath, the day of rest.  We go back to creation and for 6 days God (the triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit) worked and then when all was completed they rested on the 7th day, the Sabbath.  Now jump ahead to Jesus in the New Testament.  Jesus has been working at a feverish pace to let His disciples know how to be and what is to come and where love comes from and then He is put to rest (physically) and what day is it on the Jewish calendar, another Sabbath.      Isaiah 66:22, 23 says written at least 700 years prior, "For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before Me, says the Lord, so shall your offspring and your name remain. From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before Me, declares the Lord."      E.G. White writes in his book "The Passion Of

     A week from Wednesday I will start out from home and drive 45 miles to Petoskey for my radiation at 8 am.  Then I will travel back to Gaylord for a blood draw at 9 am.  Following that I have an appointment with my oncologist at 10 am in Gaylord.  Once done, then we head to Grand Rapids (usually a 3 hour trip) to meet with the surgeon for a consultation at 3 pm.  My calendar is so full of dates that it looks like a mine field.  Everyday I study that calendar to make sure that I am not missing anything between myself, Stephanie and Jason.  I sure will be glad to have a calendar again that has some white spaces in it.      My heart has been preparing for Good Friday and Easter morning.  On Good Friday, I think the first that we have done on our own, will be titled "The Way of the Cross."  I am praying it will be a moving service that leaves us with the gravity of what Jesus did and His place in the tomb.  This will lead to Easter Sunday being an explosion of His resurrec

     As I type I am so thankful to make it home.  In the Valley, the snow is coming down as hard as any time throughout the winter.  30 mph and a tight grip on the wheel made the 1/2 hour trip home into an hour trip.  They say we could get 10 inches tonight.  Maybe spring has pushed back to May this year.  Funny where my Saf-ti Glass Distributors yard stick landed on this photo of the snow depth.      Another run through 1 Peter 3 has slowed me down again.  I think we will only be covering verses 8-12.  Another list emerges in verse 8.  This is to sum up of how we are to live under the government we are under, with the work situation we are in, and with the home life we are a part of.  Unity, compassion, brotherly love, a tender heart, a humble mind, and a pure heart.  Peter is giving us the right attitude to have, the right response to evil, the right standard to follow, and the right motive to operate by.  This will be a sermon to ask the question, "Am I growing?"  Also

     It is kind of hard to believe what I see outside right now.  We have a good 2 inches of snow on the ground, new snow.  With the wind blowing, it feels like a cold November day instead of April 17th.  I guess we will push spring back another week or two.  I keep getting one more armload of wood from the pole barn.  That one round of golf with Jason last week was truly a blessing with the sight that is outside now.      One person can have an impact on so many.  Last week, one conversation opened up for a group of 16 people coming to church this Sunday.  One positive conversation about her church brought 16 people to make a decision on where they would be on Sunday morning.  I pray that God would give us the courage to speak positively about our church to our neighbors and friend and family.  People are primed by the Holy Spirit to say yes to your invitation.  That Holy Spirit is already at work in their lives and your part should bring you humbly before God that you could be use

     I will get to know this stretch of the road quite well by May 20th.  I am driving the 97 Honda Civic, so I am practicing my hyper-mile-ing skills with gas at $4.00 a gallon.  I am hoping to break a new record on the mpg.  I'm thinking of having a bumper sticker made that says, "At $4.00 a gallon, BEWARE I DRIVE SLOW!!!"  The sessions are only about 10 minutes for the 90 mile round trip.  I am feeling some of the effects of the pill form of chemo but I guess I am getting used to be feeling nausea and fatigued and a little punky feeling.  I hope this next week to have a date nailed down for my surgery.  It will be at least 3 weeks after the radiation is all done.      I am pretty close to having my sermon complete for Sunday.  I am praying that this will be a great sermon for us to renew our passion to see others come to the Lord.  I also hope that this sermon will give us some practical things that we can do within the marriage relationship to foster not only salva

     Today was the last day before chemo and radiation and I am trying to make the most of it.  It was great to be on the golf course this morning to watch and very limited semi coach my son as he played his first round of the season.  Next was the opportunity to sit with a great couple who have been so special to my family and the church and be able to say to them how much they have been appreciated.  Their humble servant hearts are ones to model.  Finally to the gardens and the ability to till up the ground to prepare for the future fall dinners that come right from the ground.  Tomorrow I start 28 sessions of chemo and radiation in Petoskey that will end about May 20th.  I pray for God to give the strength to finish this part of the race.      Another run through 1 Peter 3 again gives me the reason to say, "Make sure to look at the context."  This is a husband and wife passage but it is really about those closest to you coming to know the Lord.  We could get stuck in th

     What a great day.  I am feeling great because I am on the second week and thankful that I actually get a couple more days until I start the chemo pills and radiation on Wednesday.  I am so thankful to see the progression of God providing what we need in line with the church.  God is putting together people who He has chosen to continue on the ministry of the church and also to see it branch out in areas that it has never been before.  I got to do double duty again today with leading the worship music time but I realize I don't have the lung capacity I once had.  But I guess it was great to sing all out for the Lord so much that I was asking Him for more breathe the preach.      I think the part of the sermon that hit me the most today was the Old Testament account of King Uzziah in 2 Chronicles 26.  A king at the age of 16 who was following the Lord and great things were happening for the country of Israel and then comes verse 15 and the phrase, "...till he was strong.

     Our passage this Sunday is 1 Peter 2:13-25 and I am going to handle it with the illustration of 3 teeter-totters.  The teeter-totter has a pivot point where both sides meet.  We are going to look at these teeter-totters as having equal weigh on both sides.      The first pivot point is v.15 that gives us the will of God.  On one side is v.13 & 14 that talk about our relationship with the governing authorities.  On the other side is v.16 & 17 that talk about our service mentality to all.      The second pivot point is v.19 that gives us the point that we will suffer unjustly at times.  One one side is v.18 that talks about our relationship with our employer.  On the other side is v.20 that talks about our actions during the suffering.      The third pivot point is v.24 that tells us the Jesus is the Sin-bearer.  On one side is v.21-23 that talk about His example to follow in times of suffering.  On the other side is v.25 that talks about Jesus as the Shepherd bring

     Thanks again for all the prayers.  Here is the latest. Adam

     Health-wise, Adam is feeling great.  I'm on the treadmill trying to give my cells a lot of oxygen to fight against the cancer.  I'm thankful that Stephanie is a clothes keeper.  I have went from a 42 down to a 34 (Abe's pants that will need to be shorten).  We head to the radiologist tomorrow for a long appointment and we hope to post a video tomorrow evening of our day.        A sermon title could be "How does a Christian function in his world?"  or "How are you doing at submission?"  I think the second is deeper and I think I am leaning toward. First, do I submit to God and God's word? Second, do I submit to men in authority? Third, do I submit to circumstances I am put into? Fourth, do I submit to suffering I am to endure?      I think we get hung up on the civil disobedience point and when man's government or rules goes against God's word.  Are you willing to receive the punishment from evil to hold unto what is good?  We

     It is snowing as I type and it is actually sticking to the ground.  We can't seem to get rid of the stuff this year.  I need to keep the wood stoves going for a little longer.  I noticed this morning that I didn't have as much breathe for leading singing but it was great to worship together with God's family.  I was back on the treadmill yesterday for a short walk and hope to be on it again today.  Wednesday we meet with the radiologist and will post a new video of the news.  Below is a link to a video we showed this morning in church.  It really reminded me of the conversion of Paul on the road to Damascus.  It is a good reminder of why we do what we do. http://vimeo.com/21540639      Our next section of Scripture, 1 Peter 2:13-25, will deal with our response as Christians in the world in regards to the government and work.  This will be a really practical sermon.  I love the last verse that says, "For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to

     Wow, for a guy with a cast iron stomach, that was something I have never experienced before.  I could walk into a room and smell something that Stephanie couldn't from 60 feet away and feel like I was going to lose it.  I lost a lot of sleep over it and had to take more anti-nausea medicine but last night I was able to sleep through and things are not turning my stomach this morning.  The sun is rising over the horizon and I am thinking about an early morning walk to breathe in the spring air.  Thanks so much for praying for me.      I wish all of you could be there Sunday for this sermon.  Maybe I will post the video I am going to show during the sermon after Sunday.  How much we love to chose.  We are created in the image of God, so He first has that ability to chose us.  It doesn't matter that He choses first, we have the ability to chose Him as we are drawn into this relationship with Him.  2 warnings are given in this passage.  "...to abstain from the passions