At least I work 1 day a week!

The Trip

Monday!

Good morning! I hope your weekend went well. I had a very nice weekend and will share more about it a little later on. Right now I need you to join me in prayer that I can get a piece of paper signed TODAY. If we can get this paper signed today, then I think we are on track to leave for Honduras on Sunday, driving our ambulance through Mexico and Guatemala. I believe I have supplied all the needed information and pressure that I can.

Last week was kinda crazy. We went to Indy on Thursday for Ben's stuff at Riley Hospital, and then we went back up to Indy on Friday for the rest of the weekend. Kedra took half a day off Friday, so we left early afternoon. I got a nice hilly 10 mile run in before we left, which was good since I ate quite a bit over the weekend. We arrived at Lester and Maddie's place in time to unpack our things, and then we made our way to Avon for my nephew's wedding rehearsal.

The rehearsal went well, and the meal that followed was quite good. When we arrived back at Lester and Maddie's place, Luke and Rebecca were just pulling in from Nashville. It was so nice to see them! Lester and I went for a 5 mile run Saturday morning, and then we all went out to eat at a wonderful pancake place. Following that, the wedding took over and various ones had to be at various places for various roles.

The wedding was nice. It was outdoors, cool, and a bit windy. I kept the ceremony fairly short and to the point. Ben arrived in plenty of time for the wedding. He had been at the IU football game. The wedding and the reception went fine, and we all returned to Lester's place to watch a little football and to get some sleep.

We all got up Sunday morning and gathered with the church at North Central. I always enjoy worshiping there and yesterday was no exception. After church we went out to eat. Following our meal, Luke and Rebecca left for Lipscomb, and the rest of us went back to Lester's for a little while. Then Kedra, Ben and I returned home last night.  It was really, in a lot of ways, an uneventful weekend filled with simple pleasures. That's the way, aha, aha, I like it.

Now, here we are - ready for a new day and a new week! A signature on a paper will determine a lot about my week!



So sad

Indianapolis - A seven-year old boy was at the center of a Marion Countycourtroom drama yesterday when he challenged a court ruling over who should have custody of him. The boy has a history of being beaten by his parents and the judge initially awarded custody to his aunt, in keeping with child custody law and regulation requiring that family unity be maintained to the highest degree possible.

The boy surprised the court when he proclaimed that his aunt beat him more than his parents and he adamantly refused to live with her. When the judge then suggested that he live with his grandparents, the boy cried and said that they also beat him.

After considering the remainder of the immediate family and learning that domestic violence was apparently a way of life among them, the judge took the unprecedented step of allowing the boy to propose who should have custody of him.

After two recesses to check legal references and confer with the child welfare officials, the judge granted temporary custody to the Indianapolis Colts Football Team, whom the boy firmly believes are not capable of beating anyone.

[Don't blame me for this! Sent to me by Mike C.]

More Indy

Good morning! It's Friday, you know! And it's going to be a beautiful day, a little on the cool side, which is no problem. We're headed back to Indy today. This time we're staying for a couple of days. It's my nephew Kyle's wedding. So this evening is rehearsal and the big event is tomorrow evening. We're staying at Lester and Maddie's place, along with Luke, Rebecca, and Ben. It should be lots of fun! I'm taking off Sunday so that we can all spend Sunday together. I'm really looking forward to it. I love going to Lester and Maddie's church.

Luke and Rebecca are driving up from Nashville later today, and Ben will join us tomorrow at the wedding. He, along with some other family members, are attending the IU football game at Noon tomorrow. Kyle's soon to be wife, Charlsie, won lots and lots of points with the men of the family a few weeks back. She moved the wedding time from the original 4 p.m. start to 5.30 p.m. Some of the guys are saying they are wearing their wedding clothes to the game. They made need to, because they are going to be flying in at the last minute, I think. Should be entertaining.

Kedra is working a half day today, so we will leave early afternoon. This morning I need to get the marriage ceremony together, pack, and run 10 hilly miles. I hope to run another 10 miles in the morning with Lester. My running has not been great this week, but that's OK. I should be tapering for Monumental...

I guess I will finally watch a World Series game tonight. I watched some of last night's game but went to bed before all the exciting stuff happened. I used to live for baseball, but now I have trouble getting interested in it. I think all the strikes and greed over the years have put me off. I don't like the NBA either. I still like NFL football, even the Colts are making it challenging this year.

I hope you have a great weekend! Oh, when you are praying, would you please pray a specific prayer that our needed ambulance papers will be signed on Monday? Thanks.

Ben

Today we made the trip to Riley Hospital in Indy. Ben had an ultrasound, followed by an upper GI procedure that involved a scope. He was anesthetized forthe procedure. He was a little nervous about it, and so were we. The good news is that they did not find anything abnormal. The bad news is that they did not find anything abnormal. I guess we were hoping we could find something that was causing the problem, something that could be fixed.

The surgeon was very good and took her time talking to us. During the procedure, she inserted a small chip that will measure Ben's stomach acid. For 48 hours he has to wear a little computer to monitor the activity. He has a button to push when he feels pain. He also has to keep a complete list of everything he eats and drinks.

The doc said about 15% of people have pain like Ben has and never find out what the problem is. She said that people his age often "outgrow it," which is what I hope happens. Soon. She said he is good to work toward bulking up for football with weight lifting and an appropriate diet for gaining weight. We'll focus on that.

She did take 3 biopsies, which is standard procedure, but she does not expect them to reveal anything unusual. They said Ben was a good patient, and we left the hospital around 1. Ben had not eaten since last night around 10, so he was hungry. We made our way over to PF Changs and ate. Now we are back home and settling in for a nice quiet evening.

Tomorrow: back to Indy.

Thursday

Good morning! I hope you are well today! What happened to all that rain that was predicted? Maybe I missed something, but I don't think it rained much overnight. And why did they postpone the World Series? Wow, that looks fishy! ha ha Oh well... Now if that had been a big snow predicted and it didn't happen, then I would be disappointed. It's good a big snow did not come last night, however, because we are headed to Indy early this morning.

Ben is still having a lot of stomach trouble, so today he has an ultra sound and then the scope procedure. We are concerned about him, although on the initial visit, the doctor ruled out all the "scary stuff," as she put it. Even if his life is not threatened, his pain has been very real. Hopefully today we will find some answers. That's our prayer.

Last night was the conclusion of my time with the West Shoals Church of Christ. I really enjoyed speaking there again. They were so receptive to what I was saying and so encouraging. I miss them a lot. Being there brought back lots of very good memories.

I think we are making progress on our ambulance for Honduras. I spent a considerable amount of time on it yesterday. I modified the paint job some, with vinyl supplied by Todd T. Specifically the BMV said I had to convert it from an ambulance to a truck. OK. I did that by covering over the word "ambulance" and "paramedic" and "medical services." The key was having an Indiana state trooper inspect it and sign a form that the conversion had taken place. Since I have a friend and church member who is a trooper, this went well. He met me at the barn in Bryantsville and signed the form.

The only thing left now is to get IU Health to sign an affidavit stating they want the ambulance to be titled to Capstone Ministries. The person who needs to do this is out of town.  Please join me in prayer, specific prayer, that he will sign that paper Monday morning. I am supplying him with a packet of info. If he signs it, then I can go to the BMV on Tuesday, order a speed title, have it back by Saturday, and possibly leave for Honduras on Monday November 7th, which has been the planned departure date since last summer. I don't like coming down to the wire, but that's the way it's working out. Of course, everything could change...

OK, gotta get ready to go to Indy!

Blessings

Wednesday a.m.

Good morning Don and Mike! Yes, I'm enjoying a really nice cup of Honduran coffee, actually 2-3 cups. So good! Good morning to all of you. For some reason I woke up at 3 something and could not go back to sleep, so I moved to my chair and dozed for a while. I think a nap my have to happen at some point today.

Yesterday was beautiful! I had an interesting and busy day. I made great progress on the ambulance acquisition. I went to the license branch and got the definitive word on what is required. The BMV gets a pretty bad rap most of the time, and some of it may be deserved, but the woman who helped me yesterday was very helpful. Instead of sending me away with a list of things to do, she actually began processing the title transfer and did everything she could to move the process along. She even printed out a list of what I needed and typed out a sample form with the proper wording! How's that for service?

Following my time at the license branch and all the errands and calls that it initiated, I went to the funeral home for a while. That went well, and we made our way out to the cemetery for a graveside service, which as went well also. Albert and his folks are so good to work with - consummate professionals.

After that I met with Darrin C. to work on the Give Thanks 4 race that we direct on Thanksgiving morning. I think we are in pretty good shape. The hardest part about directing a race is figuring out how many T-shirts to get and what size. A lot of people pre-register, which is so valuable, but a lot of people sign up on the morning of the race. Some races don't guarantee a shirt for late registrants, but that doesn't seem right to me. While we are not guaranteeing a T-shirt, we will do our best to have one for everyone. If you plan to participate, please go to the Mag 7 Series website. These folks making directing a race so much easier. They are great to work with.

I made my way to Shoals again last night. My good friend, Earl Wilson, wanted to go with me, so we made the trip together. I enjoyed his company. When we walked in the building, I was pleasantly surprised to see my good friend Pat Arthur and his wife Belinda. They decided to take a nice ride in the country and ended up at Shoals! It was very encouraging to see them. We had a nice evening together. On the way home, Earl and I stopped at Bo Mac's for ice cream. I also stopped there Sunday evening with Kedra, Ben, and Kaitlyn. On Sunday, I got a Rox Burger. Good!

Today is going to be a crazy ambulance day! I've got to chase down papers, meet people for inspections, do some modifications to the paint job, and a few other things.

Tonight is my final evening with the Shoals church. It's been good!

Tuesday a.m.



Oxen in Honduras

Good morning! It's going to be a beautiful day! Yesterday sure was nice also. I had a good day yesterday, and I hope you did as well. It was a day filled with unplanned things, which is fine. You know one of my favorite lines: "I used to complain about interruptions to my work until I realized the interruptions are my work."

I spent some time yesterday morning organizing and mapping out my week. I went by the school to turn in my bus driving papers from all the trips I took with football and other sports teams this fall. When I walked in, the transportation director said with enthusiasm, "Oh! Just the guy I want to see!" I've learned that such an expression is usually not based on my stunning good looks or my dynamic personality. He wants something. Yep, I was right again.

Seems like there were a lot of bus drivers missing yesterday and he was desperate for drivers to cover the afternoon routes. I told him that I would not do a regular route, sticking to my guns. Next thing I know, I am agreeing to drive a bus that has an aid on it, so that the normal driver of this bus can cover a regular route. What just happened here?? Oh well, I see my role in life, at least in part, as to help others and do good when I can. I think that fits that category.

I spent quite a bit of time doing ReGen Store stuff yesterday. I have a friend who wanted to clean out his garage, so I offered our store truck as a tool. He and his wife filled the truck over the weekend with some really nice things for the Store. A good man named Mike took me to Bedford to pick up the truck, after we stopped for lunch. I enjoyed the time I spent with him.

The ambulance saga should intensify today. I am going to the BMV and see what happens. We hope to leave in less than 2 weeks. It's funny how most people think I'm joking when I tell them that we plan to drive the ambulance to Honduras. I think that is probably a reflection about something. ha ha.

Today I will spend some time at the funeral home with my former student. We will then go to the cemetery for a graveside service. It's going to be tough on her. I'm glad the weather is going to be pleasant. That seems to help.

I went to Shoals again last night and had a very enjoyable time. I will go back tonight and again tomorrow night. The folks there are so kind and encouraging.


Sorrow upon sorrow

Saturday evening I was sitting in my chair reading and half-watching the Alabama/Tennessee football game. My phone vibrated, telling me that some kind of text message had arrived. I picked up the phone and saw that it was a Facebook message from one of my former students.

This student is the one whose only son was murdered in the summer of 2010. We have had numerous conversations about that and about suffering in general. When we covered the book of Job in class, last fall, the conversations ramped up to a new level. Lately, Missy has been having to re-live the horrors of losing her son, thanks to all the legal proceedings. It has been so hard, because she will go to court as emotionally prepared as you can be, and then the proceedings will be delayed. Frustration. Anger. Sorrow.

The text message on Saturday evening really cut me to the heart, which is unusal. After doing what I do for 30+ years, coupled with years of hospice work, I have developed what all people in the caring business have to have to survive: detached empathy. You still care, but you cannot let yourself get emotionally involved in every problem. You would go crazy. It's a battle. Depression beats on the door.

Her text message read:

My dad. . .shot and killed himself this morning...I just wanted you to pray for me as this year and three months have been so, so rough.

First her son is murdered, a year and three months ago, and now her dad commits suicide. Wow. Her dad was a disabled Vietnam vet and was extremely upset by his grandson's murder and the very frustrating legal process. "He couldn't take it anymore."

I spoke with Missy yesterday. She asked me to speak at her father's graveside service, which I am honored to do. In the course of the conversation, she asked me, remembering our study of Job, "How long did Job have to suffer?"

Pray for Missy. And pray for me as I try to communicate the good news of Jesus to one who is experiencing sorrow upon sorrow.

Monday!

Gotta love trail running! This picture is the "men's room" at the beginning of the Saturday's race. I don't think many used it. There were lots and lots of other options (trees). Oh well, that's not how you wanted to start your day, was it? Sorry. I had kinda forgot about the trail running culture. It attracts a different breed of runners than road races. Of course there are some "bi" types - ones who go both ways. The trail running culture is a little more friendly and relaxed. I like it. I also forgot how hard it is to run on hilly trails. I tripped really hard twice, but I never fell. I am pretty sore this morning, which is unusual for me after running 13 miles not that fast. It was a good workout!

Yesterday was a good day! I had a good meal and nap after morning worship. Then I got a call from Lester. He and Maddie were returning from a visit to her parents and were concerned about noise coming from wheel bearings that he had replaced on Saturday, so they detoured to our place to repack them with grease. It was great to see them, but I had to leave shortly after they arrived. We had a couple of wonderful baptism at church, and I needed to be there for that. I came home from church, just for a minute, literally, to pick up Kedra, Ben, and Kaitlyn, so we could go to Shoals.

Kedra had just literally got in from the Alabama/Tennessee game, so it was all a bit crazy. We said good-bye to the greasy Lester (no hugs) and headed to Shoals. I am speaking there through Wednesday evening. I worked with the Shoals church from 1994-1998, so it was nice to go back and see some familiar faces. We had a really good evening. The people there are so kind.

This week is going to be a little different. I speak Monday through Wednesday evening at Shoals, have a funeral on Tuesday, a wedding on Saturday, and a trip to Riley Hospital on Thursday. Thankfully I am not speaking at Mitchell on Sunday. This will allow me to devote more time to lots of things that I need to do this week.

I hope your week gets off to a good start!

Sunday a.m.

Not sure I've ever posted on Sunday morning! But as I said a few posts ago, I am making several changes, so I guess this fits with that - ha ha. I got up a little earlier than usual and I feel pretty engaged, so it's a good time to write a quick bit.

Ben and I are alone this morning. Kedra is an Alabama - more about that in a minute. Let's go back to Friday. Friday was a nice day. Remember? It followed Thursday, which was, to use a meteorological term, yukky - windy, cool, heavy mist. I ran 5 miles in it, so I know. I ran in a group, so that made it more enjoyable.

Friday evening we went to the football game. Mitchell got crushed by a perennial power, Heritage Hills. Ben played well again. Now that his season is over, he is determined to get in the weight room and put on a lot of muscle. We're going to do some research into the kind of diet he needs to follow to put on pounds of muscle.

Yesterday, almost on a whim, I decided to run the Knobstone Trail half marathon. My friend, Tim Strunk, was running it, so I decided that a good trail run, basically as a training run, would be a nice change. It was, and it was a beautiful morning! The leaves up in Morgan-Monroe area are more colorful than they are here.

I got home about 1. Did some reading and napping, and then Ben and I went out in his new ride. Yes, Ben purchased his first vehicle on Thursday. He got a 1992 Ford 150 4x4. It's very clean and a nice looking machine. We took it to Bedford to eat and look at accessories for it.

We came home to watch football. The game we were most interested in was the Alabama/Tennessee game. Why? Because Kedra was there! She and my niece, Jean - a TN fan, used my in-law's season tickets. Kedra drove down yesterday morning, stopping in Nashville to see Luke and Rebecca. She met (a fall breaking) Jean in Nashville. They then drove to Tuscaloosa for the game. They will return sometime today.

I have my usual duties at church this morning, and then this evening I will speak at the West Shoals Church of Christ. I worked there from 1994-1998 and have lots of good memories. It will be nice to go back and be with them. I speak tonight and again Monday through Wednesday.

OK, I better get ready for today...

Ramble On

The leaves are fallin' all around,

time I was on my way
Thanks to you, I'm much obliged for such a pleasant stay
but now it's time for me to go,

the autumn moon lights my way
for now I smell the rain, and with it, pain
and it's headin' my way
Aw, sometimes I grow so tired
but I know I've got one thing I got to do
A-ramble on, and now's the time,

the time is now


Wednesday p.m.

I'm back, tired, wound up and hoping writing a bit will help me wind down! I got back about an hour ago, I guess. I left yesterday afternoon to make my way to Defiance, Ohio, but I stopped in Indy for the night. I got to Lester and Maddie's place in time to go out to eat.

We made our way to the Monon Food Company (MoFoCo - really) for dinner. It was a neat place and the food was good. The company was better than good! I love my kids! After we finished eating, Lester and Maddie returned home, and I went over to Butler U.

Butler was hosting a lecture about the Russian Orthodox Church since the fall of Communism. I know, I know, it sounds boring and weird! But, hey, I am interested in Russia and the Orthodox Church. I did some research along my educational path and wrote a paper about icons. Of course, I went to Russia in 2008 to look at some icons and visits some really cool and old things. Oh well, the lecture was really good. They had 3 scholars present papers and then a discussion followed. I never got bored during the 2 hour presentation.

After that I went back to Lester and Maddie's place. Lester had made some yummy popcorn, which I consumed with delight. Following a brief visit, it was off to bed. This high performance machine has to have down time. (Stop rolling your eyes!) I slept well; I always do at their place for some reason.

This morning I got up and drank a bunch of Lester's coffee, visited a bit, and then took off for Ohio. The drive was messy -- lots of rain and mist, but I still enjoyed it. I got to Defiance in about 3 hours and in plenty of time to coordinate with everyone participating in the funeral. The funeral was for Carol Jones, the mother of one of my former students. I've been ministering to them for the last couple of months and thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Carol.

The funeral was good. It was celebratory and personal. There was some great music and lots of people shared during an invitation to an "open mic." I felt like Phil Donahue, scurrying all over the place with a handheld microphone. The funeral was in the building of the Defiance Christian Church. They have a beautiful building, and the ladies there provided a nice meal afterwards.

I guess my trip home took about 5 hours, but I enjoyed it. It provided a lot of time to think, pray, listen to music, and to talk to people on the phone.

Tuesday

Good morning! I just enjoyed another hot cup of coffee from Honduras. Man, that stuff is good! Waking up to that is one of my favorite parts of the day. All the extended winter forecasts are telling me that I better stock up on coffee! Might be trapped in the house for days, weeks, months... OK, maybe I'm going overboard a little. Of course, the skeptic in me says that all these forecasts pointing to the same conclusion will likely lead to the opposite in reality. I'll tell you in April what happened.

I had a good Monday. I went for a hilly run, after spending some time organizing and being quiet. It was a beautiful morning, and I probably should have run more, taking advantage of the perfect conditions. I'm feeling a tad over-trained, so I decided to stick with six. I should be taping for the Monumental Half Marathon that is less than 3 weeks away, but I think I'm just going to "train through it." My heart is not in it. I am already focused on Boston, which is now slightly less than 6 months away.

Capstone Ministries (ReGeneration Store) has to switch banks, due to our bank going out of business. I was supposed to "drop by" and sign a paper yesterday. The "dropping by" turned into more than half an hour. Oh well... After that I went to Bloomington to see some folks waiting on a surgery. Then I had a good lunch with Pat A. Then we went to see a mutual friend in a rehab center and had a great time visiting him. Then I went back to the hospital. Lots of running around; lots of talking. Last night I caught up on some work/reading.

Today I am heading to Ohio, via an overnight stop in Indy. I have a funeral in Ohio tomorrow, but this evening I will eat supper with Lester and Maddie, before spending the night with them. This evening I am also attending a lecture at Butler University about the Russian Orthodox Church, one of my interests. The timing could not have been better.

OK, that's enough for now.

Bronco Time!

Yesterday morning, as I do 2-3 times a year, I spoke in the meeting house at Spring Mill Park. From April to the end of October, there is a gathering of folks--campers, park employees, and others--who come for a short time of worship. I really enjoy going down there and speaking to the gathered group.

Last time I went, in August, I was running right on time/slightly late, so it was frustrating to get in my truck and find that the battery was totally dead. Back in August, Luke and his car were still here, so I shouted into the house to Kedra, "Truck is dead! Taking your car!" I would ask for forgiveness later. It all turned out fine. That was back in August.

Yesterday morning, I was again running right on time/slightly late for the 8:30 gathering. I open my truck door -- no dome light. Oh no! Dead again! This time we didn't have Luke's car, so I couldn't take Kedra's car. Brono to the rescue! Bronco time!

I fired it up and took off. Hard! I was running late, but after seeing a deer or two, I slowed down. As I entered the Park, I slowed way down and rolled up to the gatehouse. I have a park pass, and I had it ready. Then I saw her! The lady that has given me and many others grief over the years. She is a strict stickler and seems to like to wield her authority.

The driver's side window of the Bronco doesn't work well, so I didn't want to roll it down. I chose to press my park pass up against the windshield as I came to a stop at the gatehouse carefully guarded by Major Pain. She stared at the pass, looked at me, looked at the Bronco; her face showed disgust. No head nod, no permission to go on. Completely stopped, I moved the park pass from the windshield to the side window, pushing it with authority against the glass. She stared at it, looked at me, looked at the Brono.

After a bit of stare down, she finally barely nodded and said, "You need to slow down!" What?? I am stopped! Oh well, I gave her a glare and drove off. Not sure who won that one, but I got by her. I revved it up and fishtailed out of the gate, cut a doughnut or two, hollered "yee haw," before proceeding to lead worship. It was a great way to start the day!

Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury,pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

Monday!

Monday again! I hope you had a good weekend and are anticipating a good week ahead. I enjoyed my weekend. I finished up my work on Friday and got a good hilly 8 mile run done. Then I helped out a friend by driving a quick afternoon bus route. It's one of the special needs buses, so it has an aide that takes care of the children and knows where to stop etc. I will not do a regular route -- too crazy! After finishing that route, it was time to drive the football bus to Perry Central.

The trip to Perry is not nearly as bad as it used to be. There is new road that allows us to go through French Lick and to avoid 37 south out of Paoli. It's so much better! The game at Perry did not go well. We got crushed, but we have so many players out that it was not surprising. Ben had a really nice game.

Saturday I ran 12 miles with some of my friends, so that was fun. Then I came home and cut up a bunch of firewood. That was followed by some reading/football watching, a nap, and a trip to the funeral home. Yesterday was my only day of the week to work... We ended the day out at the Dillman's farm for a wiener roast. It was a very pleasant evening. We took Roger with us, and he enjoyed it.

This week is going to be a little busier than usual. I am doing my friend's mother's funeral in Defiance, OH on Wednesday. I am going to leave some time on Tuesday and spend the night with Lester and Maddie. Then I will get up Wednesday and complete the trip. I think it's about a 5 hour trip from Mitchell.

I have some other things coming up too, but I will wait to tell you later. I will say that the Honduras ambulance deal is getting kind of crazy. I spent a lot of time on the phone on Friday talking through it. I am supposed to leave 3 weeks from today, but I am becoming doubtful that we can get all the paperwork finished.

Have a good day! You get to decide, you know.

Friday

Good morning! It's Friday! It's going to be a windy day, but that's OK. I enjoyed the rain yesterday, but I am ready for some sunshine. Tonight we have a football game at Perry Central. I hope the wind settles by then, because it could be a bit cool this evening. Ben is going to start at middle linebacker again tonight, and he may play a little at outside and nose tackle, depending upon how Perry Central lines up. He's glad their center only weighs 170. Me too.

We are running into all kinds of bureaucratic red tape with the ambulance. I guess we should have known this. Texas won't give us a plate until they can inspect the thing in Texas. Hey, what's a little challenge along the way? We'll figure it out, and I figure we'll see some divine activity along the way. Our 3 week time frame for departure is somewhat in jeopardy...

Some time in the spring my computer crashed and I lost everything that I had not backed up in the year previous. I had an ongoing backup system and it failed also! That event has been a life-changer for me. It really has. I think it has been for the most part a positive experience. I won't go into details, but I have simply changed the way I do a lot of things and even the way I think about a lot of things. For example, I have stopped recording every ministry thing I do each day. For the first 13+ years of work here I briefly noted who I saw or what I did. I'm not sure why I did that, but I did. Not any more. 

Lately I've really started looking at the way I take care of myself and the time given me. I told you recently a little bit about how I organize my week. I'm doing some reading now in the area of organization and disciplined thought. I am ready to make some fundamental changes. Less news intake is on the way for me, and more of a focus on spiritual formation in a more intentional manner. I guess I'm saying this old dog is learning a bunch of new tricks. Someone pointed me to this, and I think it may be helpful as well.

We are never too old or too established in a routine to change. I find it quite liberating actually. In the process of making some changes, I realize some of the plates I used to anxiously spin may fall to the ground. Crash! Shatter! Clean up on aisle 7! ha ha. Life moves on!

Seems right to me

Thursday a.m.

Sorry about that, but I thought it was kinda funny. Good morning, Thursday! This is the first Thursday in the last few where I don't have a lot of things scheduled to compete with my preparation for Sunday. I am hoping for a good morning of productivity in preparation, but I learned a long time ago that you can't force creative thinking. The text this week, 1 Peter 3:8-22, is a hard one to preach. There's so much in it, and it has a strange reference to Jesus preaching to "spirits in prison." It's going to be a challenging morning.

Earlier in the week I told about my friend's mother dying. Before she died, she asked me to do her funeral, which I am honored to do. It's going to be next week in Ohio, so yesterday I spent some time working through some of the logistics. It's a long drive, but I will break it up by spending Tuesday evening with Lester and Maddie. That worked out well, because there is a lecture at Butler next Tuesday that I wanted to attend anyway. It's a 2 hour lecture about the Russian Orthodox Church.

I will get up Wednesday, travel to the funeral, and then return home Wednesday evening. I enjoy driving and seeing new things, so I'll use this opportunity to take a break from the usual. Speaking of driving and the unusual, we are working on getting our ambulance ready for the trip to Honduras. We have sent all the paper work to Texas to get a TX license plate. We gave the title to an organization there that is very active in Honduras. We think a TX plate will be helpful in getting through Mexico, which we think will take 3 days. We plan to leave the week of November 7th. We have some very experienced people working on the logistics, so stop worrying! (ha ha - I know some of you.)

Running is still moving along, happening. I am sitting on 20 miles for the week, and I hope to do 5 today, possibly some speed work. I will take tomorrow off, maybe bike a little, and then run long on Saturday. I want at least 40 miles again this week. I've been working my core also; that's moving along pretty well. I want to turn my abs into abs of steel. Well, I don't know if that will happen, but at least I don't want them to be abs of mashed potatoes. Don't know if I will develop six-pack abs, but I don't want the 24 pack either. OK, enough of the corny jokes.

Maybe more later...?

Wednesday - the Long Day!

Man, I had a great time yesterday! I turned on all the lights and siren and got to Indy in about 35 minutes. It was awesome! Just kidding, though it was tempting to have a little fun with our new ride. Maybe later on?

Thanks to the hard work of Warren Crawford, this ambulance will soon be on its way to Honduras. Last year on a trip to Honduras, Marc Tindall mentioned to Warren and others that he would love to have an ambulance for Honduras. That's all it took for Warren to begin a relentless pursuit. He was not finding much, until one day at a ministerial meeting in Bedford he met the CEO of IU Health Bedford. Warren half jokingly said, "You guys don't have an ambulance you'd like to give away, do you?" As they say, "the rest is history." Wow!

This ambulance will be used, if I understand it correctly, to transport patients from one hospital to another one about 2 hours away. Right now patients are being transported in the back of pick-ups and mini vans. Can you imagine that? I'm sure it will be used in other ways as well. It will be a tremendous blessing to the people of Honduras. I will have a lot more details to share later. Yes, I plan to drive it to Honduras, but that's not as scary as it sounds. Once I have the details, you will see what I mean. I have to get the machine gun and rocket launcher fitted first. Just kidding.

Yesterday was a busy day -- lots of meetings and just stuff. I am WAY behind on my study and normal things. Today has to be the catch up day, but it looks pretty tight too. I have a couple of extra things coming up next week which is starting to put the squeeze on me. Time to get super-productive! I got up at 4.30 this morning, which helps out some. Of course that makes for a long day, which won't end until about 8.30 this evening. Not complaining! It's gonna be a good day!

Ben in action

Ben is 33, assisting on a tackle.

Tuesday a.m.

Now that's a woman! Did you here about her? On this past Sunday a lady ran the Chicago Marathon while being 9 months pregnant! Guess what? She had her baby just 7 hours after finishing the race. You can read about it here. I thought I was tough - I've run marathons with hangnails.

How was your yesterday? Mine was fine. I got a hilly 8 mile run in yesterday morning. I will soon expand my Monday run to 10 miles, running toward Stumphole bridge from Spice Valley. It's a hilly course, but I want hills to become easy. Bring em on!

I spent some time, as I do each Sunday p.m. or Monday a.m., getting organized for the week. I use a legal pad to list everything. It's usually 2 columns and full. I list all the regular things I do each week, and then I add all the things I hope to do on top of that. I have a section for people. I usually write out about 20 names -- people I hope to see or have some contact with through the week. I add a column for my running schedule, and there is a list of things that I need to do around the house. I don't always get it all done, of course, so I carry some of it over.

Yesterday I got the call I've been anticipating. My friend's mother died. I was glad I was at a point that I was able to be there shortly after it happened. We gathered around here and had a good time of prayer and reflection. Life and death are such great mysteries. Ministry is most real, in my opinion, in the context of death. It's when our faith is challenged to become real. Do you really believe there is life after death? Do you really believe the words of Jesus?

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

I had shared this Scripture and several others with this woman on several occasions. She believed and died peacefully.

Today has a few exciting things in store! IU Health is giving our work in Honduras an ambulance today. That's a pretty big deal! Warren Crawford, who went on a trip last fall, has done a wonderful job in making this happen. He has worked and worked, and now all his working is going to pay off.

OK, I really need to get busy. I have lots of little things, and some big things, that I need to get done.

A Guide to Understanding Women

Thanks Don!

Here we go...

So, how was your weekend? Is it Columbus Day? Isn't that the day where federal employees don't work and everyone else ignores the day because of political correctness? Yes, I think that's what this day is. Everyone will be confused because there is no mail today. The media barely mentions old Mr. Columbus. Oh well... I still remember that he sailed the ocean blue in 1492.

Look what I found:

IN 1492

In fourteen hundred ninety-two
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.

He had three ships and left from Spain;
He sailed through sunshine, wind and rain.

He sailed by night; he sailed by day;
He used the stars to find his way.

A compass also helped him know
How to find the way to go.

Ninety sailors were on board;
Some men worked while others snored.

Then the workers went to sleep;
And others watched the ocean deep.

Day after day they looked for land;
They dreamed of trees and rocks and sand.

October 12 their dream came true,
You never saw a happier crew!

"Indians! Indians!" Columbus cried;
His heart was filled with joyful pride.

But "India" the land was not;
It was the Bahamas, and it was hot.

The Arakawa natives were very nice;
They gave the sailors food and spice.

Columbus sailed on to find some gold
To bring back home, as he'd been told.

He made the trip again and again,
Trading gold to bring to Spain.

The first American? No, not quite.
But Columbus was brave, and he was bright.

My weekend was good! We got to watch a really good football game Friday night. It went into overtime. We lost but it was a very good game. Ben played middle linebacker and played well. He was not satisfied with his play; he's hard on himself. Wonder where he gets that?

Rebecca came home for the weekend and brought a carload of friends. Maybe later I will talk about her challenges of not getting lost while driving. Anyway, she made it home! Saturday morning I ran 16 miles, and that was surprisingly easy, which is good. Saturday afternoon Kedra and I went to Bloomington to celebrate her birthday. We made a brief stop to visit my friend's mother. She is declining rapidly. Kedra and I tool the long, scenic route the Bloomington, up 446. Beautiful! We ate at Reb Lobster, and I ate too much. Sure was good though!

Let the new week begin...

Wondering about this story...

Squirrel caught before Game 5 in Philly

More Bale Info

You may want to read the post right before this first.

The bales we sell weigh right at 1000 pounds and are made up clothes that did not sell. The clothes were on our racks for 4-5 weeks and no one bought them. In the baler they go! The bales also contain clothes that have stains or some other things that we believe will prevent their sale or don't rise to our (pretty high) standards.

We bought our baler from Wal-Mart, when they closed their old store in Bedford. They used the baler to bale cardboard. The baler is one of the keys to what we do at the Store. When clothes come in and are sorted, they begin their journey by either going in the baler or not going in the baler! If they make it past the baler, then they have a chance to be sold. They will get some rack time at some point. If they are out of season clothes, then they will be stored for a while before getting their big chance!

We don't know exactly what happens to the bales we sell. We signed a contract with a broker. Who knew these guys existed? It's actually a very active, competitive market. Our bales go to Canada, where we believe they are un-baled and sorted again. Some of the clothes go to developing countries and others are turned into rags and used for making paper. Pretty cool stuff!

In addition to bales of clothes, we send other items: belts, purses, and shoes. The same procedure, described above, applies to them as well.

And now you know more about the Store!

Bale Sale

Good morning! It's Friday! For me it's going to be mostly about work, which is fine. I simply did not have much/enough time yesterday to get my usual Thursday things done. No sermon, no slide show, no discussion guide, no class prep -- oh well. At least it's a nasty day; good day to be inside working. ha ha. Actually the weather provides incentive to kick it into gear and to stay focused, which I have a hard time doing sometimes.

Yesterday we sold another semi load of bales from the ReGeneration Store. I forget how many loads we have sold in our 5 years, but this is the best one yet. The prices for baled clothes varies like the grain and livestock market. The current price is 19 cents a pound! It's usually in the low teens. These sales really boost our revenue and helps us to help more people or organizations that help others.

Blessings in a Backpack is likely going to be launched at one of our local schools, and we hope to provide significant funding for it. The idea is that kids who do not have adequate food will be sent home every Friday with a few food items to help them eat better over the weekend. The sale of the bales will likely directly benefit this program and a few others. The Lord has really, really blessed Capstone Ministries. We are very thankful.

When we sell bales we never know exactly when the truck is going to show up. We have a general idea, like "Thursday or Friday." I thought it was going to be Friday, but Darrin got a call yesterday morning, saying the truck would be here in an hour or two. That left us scrambling. I had an ethics committee meeting at St. Vincent Dunn that I really needed to attend at noon, and then I was scheduled to see a hospice patient. Warren saved the day! He was able to get there and run the forklift. I made it when the load was about 3/4 completed.

As usual, we had a truck driver who speaks English as a second language. This provides some challenges, but we got him weighed in/out at White River Coop. Sorting out the paper work at the end is always interesting.

Tomorrow is a 16 mile run. I hope to get a little 3 miler in sometime today. Why? Because I am sitting on 21 miles! Do the math! I want 40 miles this week. I did get a 30 mile bike ride in also, so hopefully I can go to bed Saturday with one of my best weeks of endurance work in a while.

Not using this on Sunday

RSN

I knew it!

Thursday a.m.



Building a house in Honduras

Good morning! The wonderful weather continues! I'm not sure that I would ever get tired of this.

We set the dates of our summer trip to Honduras. Of course, due to airline issues, it could move a day or so one way or another. We have set the dates as follows:

Leave: Sunday, July 8

Return: Wednesday, July 18 

We have several fund-raising activities planned and are looking forward to a great trip. We also plan smaller trips in November and in February. I'm hoping my ambulance run will be extended into a few days of work with a team that will fly down from here.

Earlier this week I mentioned that Ben had a break-out football game last Friday night. Turned out that the coaches saw it that way also. He is starting at middle linebacker on Friday night. He's pretty pumped and so are we. He gets the opportunity because of the injuries of others, so that makes me feel badly for the ones hurt. But I guess an opportunity is an opportunity no matter how it comes. I hope he plays well.

Yesterday while running with a couple of friends, on a back street with NO traffic, we had a man just about hit us! Turns out it was intentional. We stopped and turned around. He stopped and put his van in reverse. We weren't sure what he was doing, so we started running again. Next thing we know, he comes up behind yelling at us! "You were in my lane!" He said several other things as well. Finally he drove off. I think he was trying to kill us but wants to scare us first. Keep reading.

As we contemplated this unpleasant encounter, we concluded that Johnny Furbee was behind it somehow. Who is Johnny Furbee? Read this. We speculate that Furbee has connections on the outside. Probably took the stance: "If you can't beat those "darn" (cleaned-up for the gentle readers) humans, then join them in their methods." He found connections to the baser sort of humans, the rough people who like to kill, maim, and run over defenseless runners wearing very little clothing.

We guess that he has investigated, through his human connections, and found that the same trio that killed his dad while riding, also run together. He hates runners now. The old man in the van, in my mind, was hired by Furbee and the Rebel Squirrel Nation (RSN). We think he tried to take out several of us a couple of Saturdays ago. Unsuccessful. Too many. He just did a couple of warning swerves on that day, looking for three of us in particular. Yesterday he had the three he wanted.

Hey Johnny, and I know you read this blog, you can't take us down. The RSN will not win. We will run and run well and a lot. We know how to jump and watch behind us. Call off your people now. You did your crime. Do your time. 

I Pad?

Thanks Ron!

More about Coach Don Meyer

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The basketball court at Lipscomb’s Allen Arena will be named in honor of former head men’s basketball coach Don Meyer. The dedication will take place in a ceremony on Dec. 3, 2011.

Meyer is the all-time winningest men’s collegiate basketball coach with a record of 923-324 in 38 years as a head coach. He coached Lipscomb from 1975 to 1999 and directed the Bisons to the NAIA National Championship in 1986.

“Coach Meyer is one of the cornerstones of excellence at Lipscomb University,” director of athletics Philip Hutcheson said. “He impacted thousands of lives from student-athletes to campers to community members in his 24 years at Lipscomb.

“While Coach Meyer was committed to winning on the court, he has left a lasting legacy through his teachings to make the world around us a better place. It is with great respect and admiration that we name the Allen Arena court in his honor.”

The Lipscomb basketball program under Meyer produced the top two scorers in collegiate history along with the all-time career leaders in 3-point shooting, steals and assists. Meyer also produced three national players of the year and 22 All-Americans. His camps are legendary and have attracted instructors ranging from John Wooden to Pat Summitt.

Meyer was involved in a life-changing car accident on Sept. 5, 2008 that led to eight surgeries and the amputation of his left leg below the knee. He was subsequently diagnosed with cancer in his liver and small intestine. Meyer was awarded the “Jimmy V Award for Perseverance” from ESPN at the ESPY Awards in July 2009.

Northern State University also honored Meyer by naming their court after him. Meyer took over the Northern State program starting with the 1999-2000 season and retired from coaching following the 2009-10 season. He remains on the Northern State staff as a Regent Distinguished Professor.

The National Basketball Hall of Fame awarded Meyer with the John Bunn Award in 2010 for significant contributions to the sport of basketball.

Lipscomb’s annual athletics fundraiser is also named for Meyer and has featured guests including Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and legendary Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski.

The Wayne, Neb. native attended the University of Northern Colorado and graduated in 1967 majoring in physical education and minoring in English. Meyer began his coaching career at Western State (Colo.) where he was an assistant from 1968-70. From there he went to the University of Utah where he served as an assistant basketball coach from 1970-72 and earned a Ph.D. His first head coaching position was at Hamline from 1972-75.

Meyer has been married to his wife Carmen for 43 years. The couple has three children and eight grandchildren.

Wednesday a.m.

The Mizuno Inspire is my favorite running shoe and has been for 2-3 years. I think I've run through 7 pairs of them. I always buy them discounted, getting the model that has just been replaced. All they do is change the number and color a little, so the old ones are the same as the new ones. I don't ever pay full price for running shoes (or for much of anything actually).  I run about 500 miles in a pair of shoes before switching over. When I am training well that translates into about 3 months.

Good morning Wednesday! Don't you just love these cool mornings, warm days, and perfectly pleasant evenings? To me, it just doesn't get any better than this. I love October.

Last night I went to Bedford to run with some of my friends. Several of us did 10 miles at varying paces. I felt really good and feel like I am getting back in decent running shape. The Monumental Half Marathon is only 3 weeks from Saturday. After my performance at the Persimmon 5K, I have lowered my expectation for a great race. That and I just don't feel that motivated or excited about it. I am really focused on Boston in April. I hope to run sub 140 at Monumental, which is about a 7:35 per mile pace. I think I can do that.

I don't think I will taper much for Monumental. I want to keep the "mile pile" going. I should hit 40 this week. I've already got 16 in 2 days. Add 5 today and 16 on Saturday and a few more on Thursday or Friday. I hope to throw a 30 mile bike ride in also. It's a shame not to ride in this weather. I hope it's true: you never forget how to ride a bike.

Yesterday was a good day. I had breakfast with Roger and got some really good studying done. Then I saw/made contact with several people. It's amazing what all goes on in people's lives. There is so much good and bad--just so much stuff. Everyone needs encouragement. Simple words and notes go a long way toward helping people deal with things.

I don't think I've mentioned this here before, but IU Health at Bedford is going to donate an ambulance for our work in Honduras. Warren Crawford has done tons of work on this, and it looks like it will come to fruition really soon. Once it is released to us, things get exciting! I hope to be part of a group of guys/vehicles that will drive it to Honduras. It should be quite an adventure! I'll share more later.

Breakfast with Roger

I spent a lot of time with Roger a couple weeks ago. I took him for a heart cath and kinda took care of him for a few days after that. We went out to eat a few times, and I really enjoyed that. I was trying to keep him from driving, and it worked.

Once he decided to drive again, I didn't have as much contact with him. It seems like we naturally drift apart from people until there is a special need. I don't like that, especially with Roger, but it happens and I feel responsible for it. Once I get home at the end of my day I am usually tired and don't feel like checking on him, or when I'm leaving for the day, I am usually eager to get where I am going, not taking the time to stop in. Of course having to write everything to him makes communication even less convenient.

The last few days I had tried to catch Roger to see how he was doing. I was not successful. He was either out somewhere or sound asleep. Sunday night I decided to drop in. I found him, and he wasn't in very good shape. He had not shaved for a while, didn't feel well, and was depressed. I told him that I would take him to breakfast on Tuesday, which is today. I picked him up this morning, and he seemed eager to go. He had shaved.

He wanted to go to Arby's, which was good, because that's where I was hoping we'd go! I kinda had a yearning for the breakfast platter (eggs over easy, bacon, wheat toast). When we took the tray over to get napkins and straws, Roger said, "hot sauce, gotta have hot sauce." For his biscuits and gravy. He found it. Then he reached into the basket holding the sugar and grabbed a huge handful. I gave him a what-are-you-doing look. He smiled and said, "I need some sugar at home." I shook my head, and he laughed.

When we sat down, Roger took a long time get his biscuits and gravy ready to eat. He first covered them in pepper, the white gravy become black. Then he added the hot sauce. By this time I was about half finished eating. He said, "I take a half hour getting my food ready." To which I replied in writing, "I eat too fast." He laughed and said that too many people do. "Inhale their food!" He then told me about a cousin of his who heaps up his plate and then leans over the top of it to scoop the food in. Roger demonstrated it for me. Pretty funny!

He then returned to the subject of "stocking up" with sugar and other supplies. He told me that he likes to stop at Speedway and get a handful of Splenda every once in a while. It could be worse though. He told me of some women who go into Wendy's on a regular basis and grab hands full of forks, spoons, knives, and napkins. He shook his head and laughed.

Roger told some other things that he thought were really funny, but I simply could not hear what he was saying. My loss!

Tuesday a.m.

It's gonna be a bright, bright sun-shiny day! THIS is why October is my favorite month -- start out in the 50s and end in the 70s, with crystal clear blue skies! I love running in this weather. Yesterday I took off for a hilly 6 miler, around 8 a.m. There was a little frost around Spice Valley, the sun was warm, and life was good. You know it's good running weather when you seek the sun's warm instead of hiding from it. I'm making the monster hills from Spice Valley to Bryantsville and back a regular thing now. It's amazing how much easier hills become if you run them a lot.

After my run I got busy with work. I had a couple of meetings, went to the Store to see how things were going, and went to see some people. What I'm about to say will probably get me in trouble. Probably not as much trouble as Hank Williams Jr.is in. He got yanked from singing the intro to Monday Night Football because he said something bad about the President. Oh well, what I'm about to say is not like that. Here goes: I'm not that crazy about dogs. There, I said it! I like them OK, but I do not like them licking me or placing their slime on me. That happened to me yesterday, but, for the sake of the Lord, I endured it. What a selfless servant I am!

Yesterday I was driving the Bronco around. That always gets me a lot of (unwanted) attention! Why was I driving the Bronco? Because my 1994 Ford Ranger, with nearly 250,000 miles, would not start. The starter was bad. I came home a little early to deal with that. Here's another confession, and some will want to pull my man card for this: I do not like mechanical work. AT ALL. I've done it and can still do it, but I do not like it. But motivated by saving money, I crawled under my Ranger and removed the starter. I know that it is a fairly simple repair, but sometimes the simple things turn difficult for me. I was blessed! The thing came off fairly easily, and I did not lose any skin or get anything in my eyes.

I took the starter to a parts store to get it tested. During the test, everyone is the store stopped and looked at what was going on. Some came over to get a closer look. Why? Because my starter made a noise that caused the employee to exclaim, "I've never heard anything like that!" The weird part was that it passed the test--the machine said so, but everyone knew, and by this point a crowd had gathered, the starter was bad. So I got a new one. Some of the wiring on the new did not match the old one. Great! More challenges.  Hey, it was a beautiful day, so I was up for it.

Long story short: I got all the wiring lined up, hooked up, and got the starter back on. It works! And I still have all the skin on my knuckles and I didn't get any rust/dirt in my eyes. It was a rare mechanical success for me. I was on a roll, so I decided to cut, split and stack wood. This activity I really like, and it went well.