An Arkies Musings

As Easter weekend approaches, I have been thinking about the final week of Jesus' life.  One of the stories that is recorded during that final week is of Jesus crying for the city of Jerusalem.  If he cried over the city of Jerusalem, can you imagine how he is crying over the world today? When I was growing up I attended a small church in Fort Lupton, Colorado with my family. The small church shared a pastor with another church. Sometimes when the pastor wasn't there for the mid week prayer service those in attendance would take turns reciting a favorite text. Being somewhat of a smart aleck, I thought it was amusing to say that my favorite verse was John 11:35 – “Jesus wept”. As I have been studying recently, it has actually become a favorite verse of mine. I believe the simple words, “Jesus wept,” may reveal as much about Jesus as any other words ever said about him. I’m sure that you remember the story of Lazarus. When he be...

My entry for this weeks ABC Wednesday Meme is a picture of my granddaughter Autumn, taken a few years ago, looking into a large kettle at Houmas House . Houmas House is a restored plantation home on the Mississippi River in Louisiana. The first owners of the plantation were the indigenous Houmas Indians, who were given a land grant to occupy the fertile plain between the Mississippi and Lake Maurepas to the north. The Houmas sold the land to Maurice Conway and Alexander Latil in the mid 1700's. The original French Provincial house that Latil erected on the property in is situated directly behind the Mansion, adjoined by a carriageway to the grand home described during its antebellum heyday as "The Sugar Palace." The original home was later used as living quarters for the staff that served the great house. By the time of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the plantation was established and producing sugar. In 1810, Revolutionary War hero Gen. Wade Hampton of Vi...

March 26th is Purple Day.  Purple is the color associated with Relay For Life.  I have been a Relay For Life volunteer for 7 years.  But Purple Day is not associated with Relay For Life.  Purple Day is the global day of epilepsy awareness .  People around the world are asked to wear purple on March 26 and encourage others to do the same. Epilepsy affects over 50 million people worldwide. That's more than multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy and Parkinson's disease combined. When I was a boy I suffered from a mild form of epilepsy. I had episodes called petit mals. A petit mal seizure is the term commonly given to a staring spell, most commonly called an "absence seizure." It is a brief (usually less than 15 seconds) disturbance of brain function due to abnormal electrical activity in the brain. I had no idea that other people did not experience them. I could feel them coming on and knew to sit down or hold on to somethin...

Tomorrow I am scheduled to arrive at our local hospital early in the morning for a colonoscopy.   March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month . Over the past few decades, more people have been surviving colon cancer, and fewer people have been dying from it. This is thanks to improvements in colon cancer screening. Screening can find colon cancer early before symptoms develop, when it’s easier to treat. Screening can also find growths called polyps so they can be removed before they turn into cancer. For the past 7 years I have been a volunteer for the American Cancer Society .  One of the things that ACS talks a lot about is early detection.  Colon cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States among men and women, and is expected to cause about 50,000 deaths during 2013. The fact is that colon cancer is highly treatable. If it’s found and treated early, the 5-year survival rate is about 90%. Because many people are not get...

One of life’s biggest questions is our origins.  Where did we come from?  Genealogy searches have become very popular in recent years as the internet has made historical records more accessible. The TV program, Who Do You Think You Are, shows people learning about their roots.   I have really enjoyed watching the program.  During each episode, a celebrity is taken on a quest into his or her family history. Why are people interested in genealogy?  They understand that their heritage is part of who they are today.  I have been researching my family tree and have traced the Lawry name back to Joseph Laurie who was born in Scotland in 1770.  So far the most interesting ancestor I have found is my great great great great grandfather, James Vowels. According to a document that I found, James Vowels was a soldier in the Army of the Revolution.  James was born in Virginia in 1738. He enlisted in 1776 under Captain George Slaughter of the 8th Vir...

International World Water Day is held annually on 22 March as a way of focusing on how important freshwater is to humanity. We all need water. For most people in the world, it's not as easy as turning a tap. It takes 5 gallons of water for all of our daily needs—basic hygiene, household chores, and what we consume! Most people around the world do not have access to 5 gallons of freshwater a day, yet the average American uses over 70 gallons per day. I looked at my last water bill, and with the two of us we each used 90 gallons per day. I never think very much about our water except when I pay the bill.  I found some statistics that made me realize how fortunate I am.  Over one billion people do not have access to clean water and almost 2.5 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation. 85% of the world population lives in the driest half of the planet. I need to be reminded how lucky I am. Even in places that have clean water, a lot of peoples...

JUDITH AND I I first met Judith in the spring of 2004 when a group from my church traveled to San Pedro Belize to help build a church. Gina and I made friends with her and her family. Gina never lets me forget that I once told her that Judith was the most beautiful woman in San Pedro. JUDITH IN 2004 Every time we have visited in Belize we make sure that we get to spend some time with Judith and her kids. She has a lovely family. JUDITH AND HER CHILDREN On one trip to Belize we were able to bring Judith's son Andrew a nebulizer which he needed for his asthma. The machines are very expensive in Belize, but we were able to get one at wholesale through a friend who was the administrator of a nursing home. Another friend had 144 doses of the medicine that was needed for use in the nebulizer because of a mistaken shipment that the company would not take back. Before we went through customs in Belize we said a prayer and asked that God would help us get through without ...