Unfaithful at Some Things...

I have learned that my new life as a pastor enables me to fulfill the calling of God on my life. It is a satisfying and gratifying feeling that cannot be explained. Even at the most difficult moment, it is not in my heart to turn tail and run. I have worked tirelessly at promoting and sending out cards and invitations, organizing and cleaning and doing all things possible to ensure a warm welcome and a spirit of worship. The stage is set so to speak. It is an unending job where there is never ample time to do all that I would love so much to do. I yearn to paint and hang new lights and do other work, yet souls are in need of rescue. So, I pace myself and do what is needful for now.

Really, pastor, is a new identity that is unlike who I was before. Not entirely, but mostly. It has meant the death of parts of me or at least rest. I am not the avid gardener I was, that part of me just does not have the time to come out. I am not such a busy neat freak. That part now sleeps. I am not complaining, but for now those things that identified me before are as the old cliche goes..."back burner." Even blogging is one of those things I have so little time for. I ask myself now what I think I am doing. Time moves so quickly. Where does it go? I would love to tell the quirky crazy stories here I once did, but I just incorporate some of that insanity into the pulpit.

So if you wonder where I have been, I am not dead, just parts of me wait until the day is spent and the work is done. That crazy preacher has just redirected that energy to a different place. I may seem unfaithful here, but in other areas I am giving my all. Maybe soon I will have some hilarious, riotous story to post. Don't count me out. Lord willing I will post again!

Okay, I Can't Stop...

I thought I would try one more desperate attempt to redeem myself. Let me first say that I picked a more mature (probably in many ways) man than I with a wee bit of gray around the edges (cause there is only hair on the edges) Just kidding. I want to be sensitive here. I ran some one's picture besides mine to see what results would come up. If the program runs me as older, then someone more advanced in years should probably come up looking like the Crypt Keeper. Well, la ti da, guess what...they didn't!!! I am still older. Bro Ray, than you for volunteering for this experiment (well, maybe I volunteered you) and being such a good sport.

I will not whine or cry (at least I am not typing those sentiments). *bites lips* Okay! That is all okay!

Celebrity Collage by MyHeritage

MyHeritage: Family trees - Genealogy - Celebs - Collage - Morph

GRUMBLE!!!!!!

Even a not very good picture of my adorable bride brings much better results than the old man!!!!

Celebrity Collage by MyHeritage

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Not A Bit Better!!!!!!!

Well, I may have to take that back. The beady eyed Pierce Bronsan was on this list. That first one though, Joe Perry, he looks like he was beaten with an ugly stick and his neighbor...eeewwww!!!!! Really. I am so not being nice today, but it is true. People know when they are ugly. I am apparently having to come to terms with that. Reality, how harsh, how cruel. I really do not think that I will perform another such test. It just keeps geting worse. Alas, I will alow you to go back to you daily tasks as will I! Cinderfella is just to ugly for the ball...home for me...a life of scrubbing floors...chores!!!

Celebrity Collage by MyHeritage

MyHeritage: Family trees - Genealogy - Celebrities - Collage - Morph

Celebrity Collage by MyHeritage

MyHeritage: Celebrity Collage - Descendants - Blank family tree

I Look Like Old Men...

AUUUUUGGHHHHHH! I saw on some one's myspace how they did the celebrity look a like thing. I had a patient tell me one time that I looked like Brad Pitt. Although I think that is far from the truth and I am not a Pitt fan, I took it as a compliment. Well, one of my coworkers has always mouthed about that and just hee hawed! That is southern for laughing to the point of incontinence. Ahem. Now where was I. Oh, yes! Look alikes my foot! These are all old men. I was expecting quite different results. I picked my professional picture...AAAAAUUUGGHHHHH!!!!! These are all old men. Now, if you find yourself in the same age range as these people please do not be offended. There is nothing wrong with that if that is how old you are but to have my youthful essence and be classified as ancient is unacceptable. You could probably put your pictures in and look like a young Shirley Temple or Ron Howard. I look like him now!!!! Not Fair!!!!! Okay, maybe I am being offensive again. Perhaps I should be honored to rank so highly among the more mature men. Come on Dan Rather!!!!!!! I don't look like Dan Rather!!!!!

All of this with my birthday less than a month away! I think I shall forget the day all together. The way I look I probably will anyway!

Really, I am not that shallow (those wrinkles evidently look like glaciers receded across my face). Let me also say that David Carridine is homely! (pause for laughing). Really, he is! I am going to have to find a more scientific site and see who I really resemble. This is too much!

Where Have I Been...

Oh, my!! Nearly a month has passed and nothing from me! Not a thing. Well, lets see what all has taken place. I had surgery...yes, oral surgery. Don't try to down play that like it was nothing. I got up the next day like a had cheeks full of nuts. the next day was even worse, cheeks full of grapefruits (whole grapefruits). I wish I only had pictures with me now to prove it. During all of that I was contacted by Bro Dewayne Smith about pastoring a Church this year. That dialogue went on for a couple of days. I accepted because I had always felt a connection with that Church. If there ever was a place to start I knew it was there in Paragould, AR. I thought I better say where. It is about 30 minutes from my home. So no moving involved now. I did have to move from the Congregation I love so dearly though. Jonesboro is such a wonderful place, the Church. It is all about LOVE! You can feel it. It was no small undertaking moving out of the Children's Church room there. I had so much stuff that now takes up nearly half of my garage.

Once done there is was time to start moving into Paragould. It is a really cute little country church type feel. There are some opportunities for building improvements. There are really great members, though few. Thus far many have visited with us. Some neighboring Church members, some first time guests. It has been great. I have really enjoyed it thus far.

The day is slipping away from me and I have yet to get my CPMA service together for tonight. God bless you all! More later!!!

A Little Behind...

I am just a little bit behind my goal for posts in 2008. Not by very much though. I am also behind in information. Let's see...Hunter, my nephew, came home from Arkansas Children's Hospital last week. He had a check up on Monday in which they said he was better than when he was discharged. So that is wonderful news. He came to Church on Sunday. That kid needs a haircut. He was cooped up in the hospital for a month. He is looking shaggy. It was a great sight to see him home though. He is still on a special children's renal diet with all kinds of restrictions about what he can and cannot have. No milk, not bacon, no nuts, no salt, no chicken nuggets. I am not sure if the kid can eat anything really. Don't think that he can have his favorite condiment either, ketchup. Poor, poor, Hunter. I think the girls are glad to have him home and their mother of course. I have felt so sorry for all involved. It has been quite an ordeal. Hunter really was spared, THANK YOU JESUS!!!! Although he looks quite ghostly (pale white) he is very lively. It is wonderful.

In other news, since my last post I have continued comping at Wal Mart and coupon clipping. At Kroger the other day, I saved $27. That falls short of the $35 at Walgreens just days prior. I have had other savings in the past couple of weeks in excess of $100 total. It has been very impressive. It is a thrill to go into the store and walk out with free stuff and have done nothing illegal. With double coupon the other day at Kroger that is just what happened. Free stuff!!!! No five finger discount. No dash out the front door. No security chasing me! I think that, too, might produce an initial thrill but guilt would set in later.

Well, I am a post closer to my goal and really must be cutting this off. I have much, much, much to do. Have a great few days!

I Did It...I Did It...

Finally I have found some kind of template out there that I could make work. When everyone else had such cool blogs, I was stuck with Mr. Soto. Now that everyone else has just about quit blogging, I finally figured it out. It seems I am often a day late and a dollar short. Speaking of dollars, I hope, I think it is payday. I had $4 in the bank yesterday. I felt poor. I have been spending a little extra lately in an effort to save money. That sounds crazy so let me see if I can make some reason out of it. I heard somewhere that you don't buy things because you need them right then. you buy because the price is right to buy them. Like for instance, Walgreens had Windex, BOGO at $2.79. I also had a manufacturers coupon for $1 off. So I got 2 bottles of Windex for a little over a dollar bottle. I also bought instant coffee at such a terrific bargain. I saved $35 in there.

I have turned sale watcher, coupon clipper. It really pays. I am not one of these people that are terrified about gas/food prices. I am being wise though and making an effort to reduce spending and store up some things. I found canned goods on sale the other day and filled the pantry back up. I am not going crazy though. I will not have to buy vitamins for a year. I think it is kind of like the thrill of the hunt. I love a bargain. The other day I went to a local thrift store and found 5 student desks for our children's church room. They were $5 each and in great shape. They even had the books of the Bible taped on top on a bookmark. I went to TSC the other day and found dog food for about $4 less per bag than Wal Mart. Good times!!!! It is great. At Wal Mart, I found cereal in the bag for $1. My old way of shopping was crazy!

Well, I gotta go. There are bargains outs there calling my name, if my check hit the bank! I will have to find that out first. I off to find a bargain!

Crossing the Dela"where"...

A Scene From the Wizard of Oz

Watch Where you Put Your Foot...

Seally Kids!

Petting Zoo...

ZOO TOO (I mean 2)

Okay, I had trouble getting the pictures on here, Rather than give a big long narrative play by play I will let what pictures I can get up do the talking.

It's a ZOO Out There...

In our Children's Church we have been studying "fearfully and wonderfully made." We have looked at the diversity of creation and the brilliance of the Creator. So to kind of cap this off we made the hour trek (sounds like we walked it, barefoot and in the snow) to the Memphis Zoo. I have long wanted to go to the Zoo. Do you perhaps see a bit of ulterior motive there? Well, we got there with our children clad in F.R.O.G visors which I stayed up until 2 am finishing. Some people are such procrastinators. PITIFUL!!! The F.R.O.G of course stands for fully rely on God. You may catch a glimpse of them in the photos.

We had a very good time. I did notice that children are not like they used to be. I am still a child, pretty much. I wanted to see everything, bounding around like an escaped ape. I am mystified by the awesomeness of creation. I think all of the kids took at least a little turn riding in the rented stroller. These are not all small children. Hmmm! Lazy bums!

Treasure Hunter...

I was trying to come up with a phrase that had Hunter in it. At first the title was "Great White Hunter." That seemed a bit racist or something. Anyway it was not the right fit. However that kid is ghostly white. I heard that he was even more pale in his illness but that his color had returned and swelling reduced but he still has a way to go. His other grandmother, Brenda (that could be confusing because my mom is a Brenda as well) asked a nurse if he was out of danger. The answer was a stern, "No."

He is making progress though. His kidneys are producing minuscule amounts of urine. There was a set back on Wednesday as his dialysis catheter clogged and a new one had to be inserted. That typically is an almost surgery like procedure performed in the xray department. He returned to dialysis on Thursday and had 700 ml filtered from his blood. That was the most successful dialysis session he has had. That is really a lot of fluids to be floating around excess in a small child's body. He has lost 5 more pounds, leaving him somewhere around 28 pounds.

The poor kid has not been able to eat or drink due to vomiting and fluid control. Last night everyone that entered his room was quickly informed by a near 2 year old that he wanted his cup and he was hungry. They finally decided to allow a Popsicle which he was so grateful for. If he did well with that he might get something else.

He has been playful the last couple of days. He has had his oxygen line wrapped all around him. He even knocked it off during the night and his saturation level remained high. That means that although he has very rapid, labored breathing that it is for the most part effective.

Jeremy has said that this experience puts a lot of things into perspective. they normally only allow one parent to sleep in the room with him. Jeremy will not even leave the floor to rest in the family area. He just camps out on benches or whatever he can find just outside of the unit. He really does not want to be that far away. they have discovered what a treasure they have in Hunter and all of the others. I am sure they knew that all along but this experience has really changed the way they look at things.

Last night Momma came over with the girls to pick up some cards and things from people at Church. they were on their way to Wal-Mart from our house. Low and behold...if Cameron would not go with them. She stayed with me and Tabithia and Scooter while they shopped. She would say "Scooter Pooter." She said she was our little girl and that Scooter was her brother. that kid is such a mess. Due to her eye condition, she really does not open her eyes fully outside that often. When she does it is very quick. I tried and tried to get a wide-eyed picture to no avail. I really believe she would have stayed the night. She was well behaved much unlike her behavior I heard over the telephone earlier. She just played in the rocks around the pond and the sand between the cracks of the brick patio. I guess I should say the sand that was between the bricks. They miss their little brother and I was glad to give them an excursion. Cameron had said the other day that she was going to come to my house and get in the pool. When I asked her about it she said it was not the big one. On Memorial Day I placed a small pool out just in case the big pool proved too much. She was willing to drive 20 miles to get in a little $8 kiddie pool. Well, she doesn't drive but whatever.

I am on the eve of going to work with very much to accomplish. I will try to update this information with what I know over the weekend. I don't know how busy I will be, but I will try. Please keep praying. The results are those prayers are seen and felt already!