Doom and Gloom

It seems like a day doesn't go by that someone doesn't talk to me about the condition that the world finds itself in. With the recent presidential election, and the financial meltdown on Wall Street, people seem very nervous. I have to admit that I have my concerns. My business has been slower the last few weeks. There have been some financial setbacks that I wasn't planning for.


GAVIN JOB HUNTING

What I have noticed in the past few months, is that it seems like the people I have talked to who have been the most worried are Christians. I have gotten numerous e-mails from Christian people who are sure that doom and gloom are right around the corner. I can't believe that God wants us to live that way. 2 Thessalonians 3:16 says "may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way".

I do believe that we are living in the last chapter of Earth's history, but I am puzzled by many of my fellow Christians. Does God want us to worry?


I saw something the other day that really puzzled me. I was in a Christian bookstore, and I saw that they had Christian worry stones for sale. According to tradition a worry stone is a smooth, polished stone that when rubbed is believed to reduce one's worries and add a sense of calmness. When the stone is rubbed, the negative energy and worries are supposedly transferred into the stone and you are left calm and peaceful. I don't think worry stones are compatible with Christianity.

In Matthew 6:31 Jesus tells us "Do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?" He goes on to say "do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own".

Christianity is supposed to be built on faith and trust. There is a story told about Blondin, who is considered to be one of the greatest tightrope-walkers of all time. Blondin became obsessed with the idea of crossing Niagara Falls the first time he saw them in 1858. A year after his initial visit, he returned to accomplish the feat. The stunt was not without controversy. Many people felt that a stunt like Blondin's would trivialize the falls, turning them into a backdrop for a circus act, and should not be allowed.

Eventually, Blondin was allowed to string his wire across the falls and on June 30, 1859, he was the first man ever to cross Niagara Falls by tightrope. A large crowd of 100,000 people watched him walk on a single three-inch rope, 1,100 feet long and 160 feet above the falls at one side and 270 feet at the other.

Blondin made many more trips across the gorge during the next year. Each time, he thrilled larger crowds with more exciting acts. He balanced a chair on the rope and stood on it. He took pictures of the crowd while he balanced on the rope. He cooked a meal on a small portable cooker and lowered it to amazed passengers on the Maid of the Mist below. He crossed blindfolded, in a sack, on stilts, and pushing a wheel barrow.


In 1860 a Royal party from Britain that included the Prince of Wales saw Blondin cross the tightrope on stilts, and again blindfolded. After that he stopped halfway across and cooked and ate an omelet. Next he wheeled a wheelbarrow from one side to the other, and returned with a sack of potatoes in it. Then Blondin approached the Royal party. He asked the Prince of Wales, "Do you believe I could take a man across the tightrope in this wheelbarrow?" "Yes, I do", said the Prince. "Hop in, then", replied Blondin. Well, the Prince declined Blondin's challenge. He might have believed Blondin could do it, but he wasn't about to trust him with his life.

When it comes to our relationship with God, this kind of trust doesn't do much good. God doesn't want us to say "Yes Lord I believe in you, but not enough to put my life in your hands." Belief has to come with trust. Proverbs 3:5,6 tells us to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.

Is their a difference between trust and belief. The Prince of Wales believed that Blondin could walk a man across the rope in a wheelbarrow, but he didn't trust him enough to get in. Do you believe in God? Do you trust him with your life? Trust God with all your heart, and if he asks you to get in the wheelbarrow, do it!

Any Road

I love driving on the back roads in western Arkansas. I love the scenery. I love the adventure. I love to just take off and explore new roads. When I see a road I always wonder where it goes.

Sometimes exploring a new road can be quite an adventure. When you are traveling a rural Arkansas road you just don’t know where you will end up.


JAMES KIM AND HIS CHILDREN

In the fall of 2006 America was transfixed with the story of James Kim. He was traveling home from Portland, Oregon to San Francisco, California with his wife and 2 children. They took a wrong turn onto a logging road in bad weather. The snow became too deep to travel, and they became stranded.



After several days Mr. Kim set out on foot to look for help. He believed the nearest town was located four miles away. The distance to the town was actually 13 miles. He promised his family that he would turn back at 1 p.m. if he failed to find anyone, but he did not. Kati Kim and her two children were found alive when a search helicopter was led to the scene after seeing human footprints in the snow. The three were then rescued, and airlifted out of the area.

Soon after the rescue of Kati Kim and her children, search and rescue teams followed James Kim's footprints back along the road for about 10 miles where his footprints left the road and led into the heavily wooded Big Windy Creek drainage area. James Kim's body was found in Big Windy Creek. He had walked 16 miles looking for help.

Although Mr. Kim had walked 16 miles, he was found about four miles from his vehicle, and about one mile from Black Bar Lodge, a boating outpost. Though it was vacant at the time, it was stocked with food items. What a tragic story!

In Proverbs 14:12 the Bible tells us “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death”. When the Kim family decided to go down that logging road, they had no idea that the road was impassable. Had they known about it, I’m sure they wouldn’t have taken that path. It was supposed be a short cut, but only led them to tragedy.

What about the road you are on in your life? Have you taken any wrong turns in your life? Have you been on any wrong roads? How do you know which road to take?


THE PIG TRAIL - HWY 23 IN ARKANSAS

In Psalms 25:4,8-10 the Bible tells us” Show me the path where I should walk, O LORD; point out the right road for me to follow. The LORD is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray. He leads the humble in what is right, teaching them his way. The LORD leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all those who keep his covenant and obey his decrees.

God has promised to be our guide. He will point out the right road for us to follow. As I have discussed spiritual things with people I have heard the following analogy several times. “You see it your way I see it my way, but there are many roads all going to the same place.”

Jesus has an answer for that way of thinking. We find his words in Matthew 7:13,14. “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway that leads to destruction is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose the easy way. But the gateway to life is narrow, and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it”. You know from experience that all roads don’t lead to your destination. I’m sure that you have been on a road that didn’t take you where you thought it would. James Kim found out this truth in a tragic way.


GEORGE HARRISON VIDEO - ANY ROAD

One of the last songs that George Harrison recorded was a song titled “Any Road”. The chorus of the song says “If you don't know where you're going any road will take you there”. His words are very true. They describe the kind of roads that I like to explore. I like to drive on them because I don’t know where I’m going. I like to just take off and explore new roads. When I see a road I always wonder where it goes. A number of times I have been completely lost, but eventually I made it home. It can be fun not knowing where you are going.


SUNDAY DRIVING ON AN UNKNOWN ROAD

While it can be fun to explore unknown roads on a Sunday afternoon drive, it’s not a good plan in our spiritual lives. We should know where we are going. We should all have the same destination in mind.

I hope that you know where you are going. Jesus told us that not just any road would take us there. Have you found the road that leads to life? Have you studied the map?

I hope that you and I will be able to say what David said in Psalms 73:23-26. “Yet I still belong to you; you are holding my right hand. You will keep on guiding me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. I have no one in heaven but you; I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever”.

T Is For Transportation

It's time again For ABC Wednesday. If you aren't participating in ABC Wednesday, you are missing out on a lot of fun.

My post for the letter "T" is Transportation. I was initially thinking about Thanksgiving, but as awesome as my Thanksgiving was, I have posted several blogs on the topic. So transportation it is. There are many different kinds of Transportation, so we are going to look at a number of them.


STEAMBOATS

There were two main types of transportation that allowed this country to expand at such a fast pace in the 1800's. The first was steamboats. The first commercial steamboat transportation was Between Albany, New York, and New York City in 1807. Before long there were steamboats on just about every navigable river in the U.S.


BIG AND LITTLE

The need to transport goods to and from places that were not on a waterway brought about the steam locomotive. The first railroad to transport goods in the U.S. was the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. The first steam powered vehicle in the U.S. was the Tom Thumb locomotive that operated on the Baltimore and Ohio tracks starting in 1830.


1940 BUICK LIMITED

The automobile change the way Americans traveled, and just about put an end to train travel as a way of getting around. Americans are now very mobile. My Daddy loves to buy and sell old cars. This 1940 Buick gets a lot of attention when he drives it.


TINY VW

Cars come in all sizes as you can see here. I was driving down the street in Valle Hermoso, Mexico when I spotted this tiny VW Beetle. I pulled over to talk to the owner and took a picture of it. He wanted me to get in it for a picture.


MOTORCYCLES IN EUREKA SPRINGS

In the area where I live, Motorcycles are very popular. The Christian Motorcycle Association is headquartered here. Motorcyclist come from hundred and sometimes thousands of miles away to ride the roads and see the beauty of the area.

I love to travel to Belize. San Pedro, Belize is on a densely populated island, so it has its own special transportation needs. Here are some photos of transportation in San Pedro


RIDING TO WORK


SAN PEDRO FERRY


SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION


MIKE'S BOAT


WATER TAXI


GOLF CART


TRAVELING SALESMAN


SAILBOAT

As you can see, San Pedro has many varied forms of transportation. Just about everyone who travels to San Pedro travels by air. Flying is the newest form of transportation. Today, the global airline industry consists of over 2000 airlines operating more than 23,000 aircraft, providing service to over 3700 airports. Last year, the world’s airlines flew almost 28 million scheduled flight departures and carried over 2 billion passengers


FLYING HIGH

What types of transportation do you use?

Thanks Giving

What a great Thanksgiving holiday we had. Having the whole family together was great. Not only was there our immediate family, but we got to visit with an amazing amount of cousins. Aunt Ellen's family spent the holiday at Ouachita Mountain Hideaways. Aunt Kathy and her family all came to visit Saturday afternoon, so we were able to visit everyone. Aunt Kathy and Aunt Ellen had almost all of their families here in Mena over the weekend. It was wonderful to get to visit with so many cousins.


AUTUMN AND GRANDMA

One of the fun things that we did over the holidays was making a gingerbread house. Autumn and Grandma worked on the house together.


LICKING THE SPATULA

Autumn was involved in every aspect of the project. She is very much an "I can do it myself" girl. If you put her in the car seat, she will crawl out saying I want to do it myself, the get back in on her own. Grandma was very patient letting her work on the gingerbread house on her own.


DECORATING

Making memories is what the holidays are all about. We certainly made many wonderful memories this Thanksgiving.


GAVIN, DAVID AND CYNDA

I read a blog today, where the author was challenging us to put our money where our mouth is. We have so many things to be thankful for. Let's remember to give back to those in need. God has given us so many blessings, so many things to be thankful for. When there is an economic downturn, one of the first things that many of us cut back on is charitable giving. Let us show how thankful we are by giving.

If there is Thanks, let there be Giving.


I AM SO THANKFUL

Why I Blog

When I ran across this cartoon, it made me think about why I blog. It is certainly not for the money. I'm not sure why I blog. I haven't been doing it long, less than 3 months. In a way it is kind of like a diary or journal. I guess that it feels good to leave some kind of mark. Some way for people to actually know you exist and have done something. Maybe it because my memory is so poor, I feel that blogging can help my memory.

I know that I am not blogging for the money, but the benefits have been many. I have met, if you can call typing on the computer meeting, many wonderful people. With all of the ugliness we see and hear about in the world, it is nice to get to know wonderful people from all parts of the world.

I'm still trying to figure out why I blog, and if it is worth the investment of time. In less than three months it has become an important part of my life, so I imagine blogging is here to stay.

Probably the most important reason that I blog is to let the world know how great my grandkids are. I just got to spend four days with them, and it was marvelous. They just left a few hours ago, and I miss them already.


AUTUMN AND REBEKAH

So, why do you blog?

A Thanksgiving Dinner That Couldn't Be Beat

Thanksgiving Day was as beautiful and perfect a day as you can have in Arkansas in November. The temperature was almost 70 degrees with clear skies. I started the day by listening to Alice's Restaurant by Arlo Guthrie. Listening to Alice's Restaurant is a Thanksgiving tradition for me. If you have ever heard the song, you know that Arlo's troubles began on Thanksgiving. You can get anything you want at Alice's Restaurant.


After everyone got up and had breakfast, Autumn wanted to go outside and play. I took her and her dog Sally down to the creek behind the house. Autumn had a great time throwing rocks into the creek, and Sally spent her time splashing through the creek until she found a swimming hole. She spent a half hour or more just swimming, then getting out and shaking on Autumn and I, and then swimming again.


AUTUMN AT THE CREEK


SALLY SWIMMING

The day was spent cooking and cleaning up the kitchen. Our kitchen is small, so we have to keep things washed so there is room to cook. It is agreed that I should not do any cooking, so I try to keep the dishes washed as the cooking progresses. There were pies being baked, and a turkey in the oven. On Thanksgiving Day, Gina is thankful for our double ovens. There was stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, Gina's awesome homemade cranberry sauce, and Christmas jello salad. Cynda loves the Christmas salad so much, that it has become a Thanksgiving tradition also.

While we were waiting for the turkey to finish, The girls wanted to play outside. Cynda raked leaves into a pile so they could jump in them. Everyone had so much fun raking and jumping.


AUTUMN RAKING


AUTUMN JUMPING IN THE LEAVES


COVERED IN LEAVES

Rebekah liked being outside, but she didn't understand jumping in the leaves. she was content play with the rake, or just watch. "Why would you want to jump in a pile of leaves"


REBEKAH ON THE STEPS

It was great to have everyone here for Thanksgiving. My folks came over and enjoyed visiting with the kids. Daddy brought his 1950 Ford, and we took it for a drive. Rebekah liked pretending that she was driving.


REBEKAH DRIVES GRANDPA GREATS CAR

When the turkey was done, we all sat down to a marvelous meal. The table was decorated with pilgrims that Autumn had made out of toilet paper rolls. We decided that one of the things we were thankful for was toilet paper. At each place setting there were five kernels of corn. Each person took the kernels in their hand, and with each kernel told of something they were thankful for. Thanks Pastor Dan for the idea. I'm sure it will become a Thanksgiving tradition for us.

There were so many leftovers that I know we will have another Thanksgiving dinner that couldn't be beat. I'm looking forward to it.


THE GRANT FAMILY

Five Kernels Of Corn

Last week in church, Pastor Dan gave each person in the audience five kernels of corn. The story behind the five kernels of corn goes back to the Pilgrims.


EDWARD WINSLOW

While they were waiting for the harvest of 1623, they lived four or five days at a time on a few grains of corn. From their experience came the legend of the five kernels of corn. Their hopes rested on a good fall harvest, but the harvest of 1623 was almost wiped out. A six week drought began in June and the crops turned brown and were slowly withering away. They turned to the only hope they had – intervention by God, and appointed a solemn day of humiliation and prayer.

The Pilgrims assembled one July morning under a hot, clear sky and for nine hours prayed. Their prayers were answered the next morning, wrote Edward Winslow, and for the next two weeks distilled such soft, sweet and moderate showers that it was hard to say whether our withered corn or drooping affections were most quickened and revived. Governor Bradford ordered that July 30,1623 be set aside as a day of public thankfulness.

Pastor Dan encouraged us to put five kernels of corn next to each plate on Thanksgiving Day. Each person is to take each kernel and tell something they are thankful for. We are going to take his advice at our Thanksgiving meal.

I thought I would get a head start and tell you five things I am thankful for.


CYNDA AND GAVIN
Photo by Jeannie Amos

I am so thankful for my family. My parents, sisters, kids, grandkids and extended family. I feel sorry for people who do not have good family ties.


JANSSEN PARK IN MENA, ARKANSAS

I love the little corner of the world that I live in. I'm thankful that I can live in a small town surrounded by such beauty.


WITH FRIENDS IN SAN PEDRO, BELIZE

I'm so lucky to have so many friends. I am amazed when I realize that I have friends around the world. I'm thankful for friendship. It makes life so interesting and meaningful.


TEXAS WILDFLOWERS

I'm thankful for the beauty that God shows us in nature. I see beauty every day, and I am reminded that God is the creator.















I am thankful for my church family. The warmth and love that I feel each week when I attend church is so special. I feel spiritually blessed, and emotionally fulfilled being apart of this church.

Now it's your turn. What are you thankful for? Remember the story of the five kernels of corn