My dear comrades,

As I sit and write to you tonight, I am finishing up my second week of camp.  So far, I must admit, I am enjoying my new appointment.   The staff is great, and have welcomed me over and over.

Now, my quarters is another story, but basically the neighbor's townhouse flooded, which caused a bunch of water to get into my place as well.  DHQ is taking care of it, but it is a pain because I am not there.

Tonight the Youth are enjoying a concert of 3 bands, and I must admit I have my earplugs in!

God bless, Be well, and Keep in touch. 

My dear comrades,

Well, I made it to my new appointment!  Camp is great!  I have been here since Sunday night, and been warmly welcomed by one and all.

I went down to Charlotte on Sunday night, and we got to see the quarters.  It is a nice 2 bedroom condo/townhouse.  Monday I unloaded the truck (with the help from Matt at CWJ, Thanks Matt!)  and went back to CWJ in time for lunch.

Mom left this morning after nearly 2 weeks of helping me pack, load, clean & move.

So now, I get to enjoy my summer and my new responsibilites.

God bless, Be well, and Keep in touch! 

My dear comrades,

No, this is not a blog about condiments, but for your information, basic mayo is oil and egg whites.

Actually I was thinking about spiritual malaise, or in east Tennessee terms, a rut.  I have been there for about two months.

Looking back on my officer life, and even a few years before, I can recognize times when I was in a deep spiritual rut.  You know what I mean?  Just going along, doing my thing, half-hearted singing of the songs, thinking about lunch during prayer, speaking on boring subjects or verses.

Life is a series of hills, mountains, and valleys.  To use a cliche, we can not always stay on the mountain top. Simon Peter tried desperately to stay atop Mount Tabor -

He was willing to build semi-permanent dwellings.  I am sure with decent (although impulsive) motives.  Almost immediately the clouds dissipate, and they start down the mountain.

We in the South have a great series of meetings coming up in a week, Go Deeper with God! Holiness Congress 2008. I am ready to be energized, challenged, and ready to climb up on a mountain for a few days, and get renewed, refreshed, and recharged.

By the way, speaking of fast food, I am giving up diet soda this summer and switching to water and/or tea while at camp. Pray for me!

God bless, Be well, and Keep in touch! 

My dear comrades,

Now that I have your attention......

It has been just about two weeks since moves were announced, and except for my office, I have done very little in the way of packing.   I spoke with a friends of mine who are also moving, and they told me that their house is 99% packed! They are ready to go! Today!

My good friend Chris McGown's latest blog entry made me think a lot about these next few weeks.  I do not need to "check out" early, but I do need to prepare.   So basically, I am trying to pretend that I am not moving, and move the schedule and the mission along.

Of course, in doing so, my last 14 days here in Sevierville are becoming event after event after meeting.  It will all get done, and on June 22, I bid Sevierville farewell, and move across the border to my new appointment.

The disciples often worried about their ministry.  Jesus must have sensed this and He told them:

This should be my life verse.  The NIV says "worry", but sometimes, I like anxious more.

Well, my mother is coming next week to help me pack.  I better go get some boxes.

God bless, Be well, and Keep in touch! 

My dear comrades,

First of all, please forgive my nearly week long delay in writing something to you.  It has been an interesting week, and quite frankly a busy one.

As many of you know, once that phone call happens, you must begin the task of planning to move and actually getting ready to move.  That means boxes, lots of them.

I have been in Sevierville three years, which makes it my longest appointment since commissioning ten years ago!  As I looked around the garage yesterday, I realized that much of my "stuff" was unpacked and put somewhere in the house.

I was recalling my first move.  I received the call at camp and my then wife had just been called as well.  I called home, and she was already packing!  When I got home six days later, the house was 75% packed.  Needless to say, we had to dig in those boxes a few times over the six week transition time.

The next few moves (as many of you know) I did alone, and I basically took my time in packing.  As I mentioned in an earlier blog, I generally downsize and get rid of junk, or old things that I do not need anymore.  For example, when I left Elizabethtown, I brought two full boxes of binders to the office.  I had them since training, and I was tired of haling them around.

Sevierville is getting at least one box of books.  Maybe more binders, who knows what I will find in the garage as I start moving things around.

Well, happy packing to those who are moving!

God bless, Be well, and Keep in touch!