Deer #3

Sitting in a box blind at the edge of a field. It's dark. I load my rifle, a 30-30 Winchester which was a Christmas gift from my church. Smile. Pray. Check to make sure I have my sermon manuscript in my pocket - it's there. Still dark. Quiet. Sunrise. Life! Birds. Chip monks. Barking squirrels. A dozen noisy turkeys. I glass four does at two hundred yards. Waiting for a buck. More does - 15 deer grazing. No bucks. Waiting. Thermos. Coffee. Sermon. Rehearse silently. Whisper. Quoting Scripture. Memorizing. Underlining. Watching deer. No bucks - only does - all around. Waiting. Praying. Phone vibrates - text message from Darrell. Phone vibrates - phone call from Mike. Text message Kim. Watching. Only does. No bucks. Waiting. Memorize sermon. Repeating scripture over and over. Highlighting. No bucks. Only does. Eight hours later one doe bedded. 150 yards. Rifle. Rest. Aim. Breath. Exhale. Shoot. Kill. Death. Wait. Gather gear. Walk. Kneel. Pray. Thanksgiving. Field-dress. Drag. Drag. Drag. 3/4 mile drag. 2 1/2 hours later check-in station. 30 minutes later butcher. Steaks. Deer burger. Butterflied tenderloin. Jerky. Drive home. Rehearse sermon. Bed. Sleep. Dream of a big buck.

How to Stop Church Gossip

Mildred, the church gossip, and self-appointed monitor of the church's morals, kept sticking her nose in to other people's business. Several members did not approve of her extra curricular activities, but feared her enough to maintain their silence She made a mistake, however, when she accused Frank, a new member, of being an alcoholic after she saw his old pickup parked in front of the town's only bar one afternoon. She emphatically told Frank (and several others) that everyone seeing it there would know what he was doing. Frank, a man of few words, stared at her for a moment and just turned and walked away. He didn't explain, defend, or deny... he said nothing. Later that evening, Frank quietly parked his pickup in front of Mildred's house... walked home.. .and left it there all night!!! You gotta love Frank!

Podcasting Sermons from Norway Avenue Church of Christ

Rob Durst, our church's IT/AV man, told me that over 2,000 sermons have been downloaded from our podcast on itunes this year. When I heard that there 147 downloads last week I was so excited because the gospel of Jesus is being downloaded into 100s of computers - people I've never even met! It motivates me to know that we are planting the seed into the hearts of so many people. It stirs my heart and makes me want to pray and study and do my very best on my sermons for Jesus. Here is my prayer "God bless me and open my heart and mind and mouth so that I can proclaim your word faithfully. Use Jay and Jon and me to preach and teach others about Jesus. Make us fruitful and advance your kingdom through us. Use us. Amen!" I thank God for Rob Durst! He set up the podcast and takes care of all of our IT/AV needs and he does an excellent job! If you want to receive our podcast go to itunes and search "Norway Avenue Church of Christ Podcast" and click subscribe. It's free! The podcasts on itunes is an excellent resource. I download about 40 sermons every week. I listen to sermons from Chuck Swindol, Charles Stanley, Andy Stanley, Adrian Rogers, Ravi Zacherias, Jack Hayford, Joyce Myer, Rob Bell, Rick Atchley, and James McDonald and others. I don't have time to listen to every single sermon but I listen to a lot of them - I average about three or four sermons a day and it feeds my soul. I burn the rest on CDs and keep them for future reference. I keep a steady intake of God's word and it helps my walk with Jesus. I used to spend 100s of dollars ordering tapes and CDs but this is free! Try it!

More Deer for Dinner

First day of gun in WV, I shot an 8 point buck Monday morning at 7:30 a.m. but he got away. I lost is blood trail at 200 yards. I search for three and a half hours. Called my hunting buddy (Bob Mays Sr.) for help but we could not find him. I didn't knock him down with the bullet, so I think I grazed him. I hope he makes it. Monday evening I took another doe. Thank you Lord for meat! I have 8 more days of vacation for deer hunting. This morning I am hunting with my bow in Ohio.

Teaching at Marshall University

I am currently teaching three courses at Marshall University. This semester I am teaching counseling theories, counseling techniques and counseling with parents. Paul made tents - I teach school. It keeps me fresh and current. It keeps me in touch with people and the community outside the church. It's so rewarding! The faculty in the counseling department and the students are great. I believe I am doing exactly what God made me to do. I love to use my gifts of pastoring and leading for the church and I love teaching at Marshall. I thank God for the opportunities he's given me. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming.

Deer for Dinner

I killed a doe last Saturday. She walked about 15 yards in front of my tree stand. I drew my bow and shot her. The arrow pierced her heart. She ran about 50 yards and dropped. I could see her laying on the ground from my stand. I waited 20 minutes, climbed down, and approached her. When I kill a deer I always kneel and say a prayer of thanksgiving. I thank God for the thrill of the hunt and the meat. Deer are graceful. Strong. Wild. Agile. Fast. Beautiful. After my prayer and thanksgiving ceremony I field dressed her. The meat is now in my freezer. I'm going to share the meat with Ralph Larue, one of my shepherds. Ralph had a heart attached two months ago. He had to change his diet to fish and chicken but he ask me for some deer meat because deer meat is so lean. So I'm going to give him some deer tenderloin, steak and hamburger. I love deer meat. Last year I killed four deer and ate deer meat throughout the year. I had just ran out of deer meat when I shot her. But now I have some to eat and some to share. Surprisingly, I haven't seen many deer this year. The drought, lack of mast, and the late rut has left me wondering where they are hiding. I hope God gives me more success as this season continues.

Speaking at Reynoldsburg Ohio

Kim, the girls and I were in Reynoldsburg Ohio this morning. Kim and I enjoyed Gloria Hardy's Sunday morning class. Gloria is great! On Wednesday nights she teaches Greek and on Sunday morning she is teaching through 1 Corinthians 11-14. Jay Collins baptized a young woman before Bible class began. Jay has a heart of gold and he is a wonderful shepherd. Dion Frazier is the minister at Reynoldsburg. Dion is a dynamic, full-of-Jesus preacher of the Gospel. Dion is also a fantastic worship leader and he led the service this morning. Everywhere we turned it was holy hugs and kisses. The people at the Reynoldsburg church are full of the love of Jesus. As I was preaching I could see the faces of the people we love - a beautiful sight! I talked about heaven and how wonderful it would be when we will all be together with Jesus. After service we had a great fellowship meal and visited with all our friends. The girls got to see many of their friends and spent the night with Alex Frankie. It was a great trip. We just put the girls to bed and they were filled with excitement because of our trip. We thank God for our friends in Reynoldsburg. The church website is http://www.reynoldsburgcoc.org/.