...too small a thing...

Worship Haitian Style

Yesterday morning we took the trip up into the mountains above St Marc to the village of Shaddrach where we are going to build the missionary home this week to worship with those we will work with this week. It was a a great two hour service full of praise and plenty of preaching of the Word of God. There was passion for the Lord among the people and great joy in their celebration. Here is a one photo from a time of praise.

We arrived at the site to find that the only building materials that were on the site were the 14 blocks we as a team carried in with us. There is material we have purchased stashed at various locations all up and down the mountain but none of it had actatually made it to the building location. We start this huge task and hopefully will lay some blocks before the day is over. 

Pray for dry weather. Pray for our strength. We ask only to accomplish that which the Lord chooses for us to complete.

This little sweetie pie thought my hat looked better with her dress than it did on my bald head. I think she may be right but I could not let her keep my old hat as I would burn in a minute or two in the tropical sun. The children here are amazing. 

ON MISSION For JESUS

I am leaving this morning for a beautiful Island scenic paradise. But I am not on vacation. I am doing what I have done for years going on mission. The destination is in Haiti. High in costal mountains above Saint Marc. A little village carved out on the steep mountain slope has a school with I would say 150 children. God has laid it on a sweet lady from Cedarcrest Church to go and help, and do all she can do to educate the absolutely beautiful children who live there. To do this she needs to live there. To live there she needs a home. This is where I and several others come in.

We leave this morning and will hopefully be on the coast of Haiti at the base of the mountain tonight. I ask for your prayers as we go for safety for travel and work next week. We will as a team lay block, pour cement, and put on a roof. We will see poverty and hope. We will praise the Lord and work hard. I know I will be blessed.  I will have limited internet, but i will try to put up a few pictures of the work and show the beauty of the place we are working. But most of all I will also put up some photos of the children. They will steal your heart with a smile. 

Thank you to all of you who help to support MTI and make this kind of work possible.   

When Life is a Mess...

Tonight at "Cop Church" I will be teaching about something I am familiar with for sure. "When Life is a Mess" comes from personal experience. I am possibly qualified to be classified as a professional. Some of you may have experience in this work of making a mess out of things that should be simple and easy to do. Some parts of the messy life just come to you and you do not have to do a thing. Others especially family will often help you to make a big mess out of your life. And of course just living in our modern society means you have many messy things that pull at you and cause you issues. Third world people do not ever have to wait on the cable TV guy to show up. They never have to deal with a broken washing machine either. Nor do they have to go get the oil changed in their car. 

But our lives do get messy with all we have to do for sure. Add to this things that you have no control over and sometimes we just sort of get fed up and get an "I don't care attitude." This can be really bad as damage done in the "I don't care" moments in life is very hard to repair. I do know I have been there. 

Tonight at 7 pm I will try to bring in some biblical perspective on some areas of life that are messy. And I will attempt to help us all to realize what the problem might be. Pogo (the Possum) once said: "We have met the enemy and he is us." And this is so true. The reality is that we are our own messy life makers and with help from others and just the demands of living we usually have some messes in our lives. 

The Lord has given us grace and mercy and we should extend this to each other, but often we do not. I have truly experienced this in the last year too. Hard feelings, gossip, bitterness and guilt make life even more messy. Join us tonight for Cop Church at 7 pm at the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge located at 2350 Austell Rd SW, Marietta, GA 30008. 

We will be busy learning to clean up our messes. 

Random Thoughts about A Busy Week Coming

Sunday- Sunday School, Special Church at Mount Calvary where they recognized local heroes from Public Safety. Great program by one of my fellow CCPD Chaplains Rev. Ronnie Cheatwood.  Visits with Mom and Dad, and Football. A nice easy day. 

Monday- Work with CIC, I am still working two days a week until Mission Team Inc is fully funded. Then maybe a ride along with Morning watch if I am up to it. 

Tuesday- Catch up some paperwork and then CCLEA - (Cobb County Law Enforcement Association) meeting at Burnt Hickory. I am so grateful that Burnt Hickory Baptist Provides the space and meal for this quarterly meeting of all the Police agencies in Cobb County. Should be a great meeting with Chief of Cobb County Mike Register as the main speaker. 

Wednesday- Work with CIC for the second day this week. Always a good chance to share Christ with others. 

Thursday- Prep for and then teach at Cop Church Thursday night at 7:00 pm at the FOP lodge. This month the topic is "Stress When Life Is a Mess"  Police have unique things that can and do give them stress but all of life is stressful. When cops have the common problems of life they sometimes can be amplified by their duties as officers. If you miss it you can catch the audio of the event on my web site www.missionteaminc.com.    

Also on Thursday morning I have meeting with Ross memorial to evaluate Mom's care and  plan of treatment. 

Friday- Friday will be my day to pack and get ready to head to Haiti on Saturday. 

Saturday- Haiti for building a home for a Missionary. I will try to post some photos next week but time may be limited. 

A busy week coming for sure for the first few days of fall. I covet your prayers for me and the Team. 

The Photo is from last year. A swimming hole for the kids about 200' from where we are building the missionary home. It is like paradise. 

 

Update on Mom and Dad

It has been a while since I put out a public update on my Mom and Dad. So many of my friends know and love Pete and Sue Davis. Mom is now 84 and dad is 91. There is not a lot to say about their condition, but they both are struggling with minor health problems and dementia. They have been together for the last two and a half years in Assisted Living. But a week ago Mom had some problems and entered the hospital for a week, and is now at Ross Memorial for rehab. So dad is alone at Assisted Living, but he seems to be holding up OK. I try to visit them both daily and this is difficult as at every visit they both tell me that would like to be back HOME. They tell me this daily and of course this is impossible as they both have great difficulty walking and need help with even their basic care. Life separate for them for a while is going to be difficult and yet because they are forgetful they seem to be able to cope better. They need your prayers and so do Kathy and I.

I am blessed to have wonderful an loving parents. They have had a wonderful and full lives. So many of you remember Dad from Lake Nottley. He taught so many to ski and fish. Momma fed everybody who visited with catfish and hushpuppies. It is sad to think they will never get to visit the Cabin again. But as the Lord allows them to live on I know there is a a reason. So I continue to try my best to see to their care and end every visit with several "I love yous" because I do. They both light up when I walk in to visit. They love me too. I am so thankful for my wonderful and faithful wife. Kathy is right there with me, Even as we get called in the middle of the night, or make a Wal-Mart run for the things they need. She is a trooper. Mom and Dad love her too. 

They get confused now, and struggle to stand, and walking is now almost impossible for either of them. They have lots of aches and pains and cannot do even the simplest of task. But they both have faith in the Lord. Daddy  to pray for them and with them is a blessing and to thank God for good parents is my blessing. 

Exodus 20:12 NLT "Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

Cruel Irma

It seems so odd to me the way we look at hurricanes. We give them names and hours of news coverage. We watch them for days and anticipate their coming to visit. It seems some are infatuated with this cruel mistress, who does nothing but destroy and wreck our lives. 

She steals onto the scene from a distance. Hardly noticed by many, but as she is revealed everyone is aware that she is coming.  Grabbing more and more attention and time on the news, she soon takes in everyone with her mystery and fickle behavior. She seems to invade into  everyone's life. She is not welcome here or anywhere.We all know that she is destructive and dangerous. But some cannot take their eyes off of the television and want so much to see what she has done. What is her wind speed? How big is she? What is her category now? She is indeed a cruel mistress. 

When she arrives she has changed everything. We tried to prepare, but her power is more than we anticipate, and we are forced to just sit and wait for her show to finish. And, yes finish she will and we will be left to pick up and repair the damage. 

I know that we need to know that a storm is coming, and to save lives and property we must have evacuations and make preparations. I have lived in north Georgia all of my life and I have never seen this affect us like what we have today with this beast of weather we call Irma. She is making a name for herself that is for sure. But, I and all of us must be careful not to become absorbed in her wickedness. 

I heard someone at church yesterday say, "She has turned and we are no longer in her path." This sounded almost like an expression of disappointment. There is a sense of anticipation today as we watch the wind and rain coming. There is an odd sense of excitement today anticipating damage. We do not wish for destruction for anyone, but if it comes we will share it on the news, and by word of mouth. We will share the news of the trouble and disaster of this cruel hurricane for some time. When  we gather we will tell our stories of what this cruel storm did to us.

Harvey is gone but his effect is going to impact Texans for some time. Irma his soul mate is making her mark stealing the attention from his work and having everyone admire her size, form, and strength.  There will be comparisons of these two villains and their heinous work. 

Through all of this, how much praying do we do? Are we willing to spend today praying or are we more absorbed in seeing how she has ruined lives. Are we trusting God to deliver us safely? A hurricane is called by all of us an Act of God. But when we make Irma personal we seem to think of her as a cruel and evil entity unto herself. She almost seems to have personality and a plan.  She will be gone in a few days with nothing but destruction in her wake. We will be left with the experience of today. We will be remember how and what we did today on 9/11 once again.

Sixteen years ago the events of that day drove America to our knees. We were taken by surprise. Today we have a similar destructive event yet we have already knew she was coming for over a week.  Will you pray today? Will you seek the Lord today? He is with us while we deal with Irma. 

Psalm 91:1-7 NLT

1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High

will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

2 This I declare about the LORD:

He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;

he is my God, and I trust him.

3 For he will rescue you from every trap

and protect you from deadly disease.

4 He will cover you with his feathers.

He will shelter you with his wings.

His faithful promises are your armor and protection.

5 Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,

nor the arrow that flies in the day.

6 Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,

nor the disaster that strikes at midday.

7 Though a thousand fall at your side,

though ten thousand are dying around you,

these evils will not touch you.

A Worthy Event

This morning as we prepare for Hurricane Irma prayers go out to those who have already endured the storm and those who are preparing for the storm. I am getting my Chainsaws out and ready if trees come down. Some have lost lives in the islands of the Caribbean. Others are surely at risk. All need prayer and courage as we face this time ahead. 

But I also want to post a very worthy event that is coming in a couple of weeks after the storm. Officer Fredde Norman was the most recent officer that died in the line of duty from the Cobb County Police Department. He will be honored at this years Walk-a-Thon  as the "Highlighted Victim." Please consider this as an event worthy of promotion and your consideration to participate or donate. Here is a bit of Freddie's story. 

OFFICER JAMES FREDERICK "FREDDIE" NORMAN

Home City: Austell, Georgia

Crash Anniversary: April 17, 1988

Cobb County Georgia Officer Freddie Norman was given less than a 1 percent chance of surviving after a teenage drunk driver slammed into his patrol car as he was responding to an emergency call. The crash left Officer Norman a quadriplegic and unable to talk, but he persevered and was able to communicate through a computer. He received the Blue Star Award, given to officers injured in the line of duty, and saw his daughter Christi Norman sworn in as an officer with the Austell Police Department.

Officer Norman succumbed to injuries sustained in the crash 21 years later, on February 14, 2009. He is survived by his wife, Faith, three daughters and three grandsons.

“It is heartbreaking to see a loved one deal with severe disabilities all because a 16-year-old made a bad choice by becoming intoxicated and choosing to drive instead of calling a taxi or having a designated driver. Freddie was confined to a wheelchair with limited movement and unable to talk for 21 years. It took a toll on his body. It is devastating to lose a loved one as a result of drunk driving. As an officer, one of Freddie’s main goals was to keep drunk drivers off the road. What happened to Freddie does not have to happen again,” said Faith.

Can we count on you to help us end drunk driving? 

Here is the Link to sign up or donate:  5K Walk Like MADD Event

A Good Devotion - But I added one thing.

There are so many good devotions on the internet and I try to read several every day. I found this one interesting.

https://johnpavlovitz.com/2016/02/29/on-the-day-i-die/

Many would not like to think about the day they die but if you live long enough it will happen. Click and read this thought and then see if you agree with my thought to add. 

Here is my thought... Well it is not mine, it was written by Paul, but it is what I thought of when I read John's article. 

1 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. 4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him.10 For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body. 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 NLT

 

 

 

Working on a Thought - A Labor Day Thought

 

You may recognize this 3rd verse of a common hymn. 

3. Let us labor for the Master from the dawn till setting sun,
Let us talk of all His wondrous love and care;
Then when all of life is over, and our work on earth is done,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.

I grew up Southern  Baptist and in the Baptist Hymnal are many songs about Heaven. A place we will cease from our "Labors."  I also grew up knowing that hard work pays off and so I learned to work hard. Labor Day always seemed like a great holiday to me as a day to honor the working people, and to rest for a day. That is good, but God says we are supposed to rest one out of seven days, and some of us are prone to abuse that day. Too often I found that "Labor Day" was a great day to get some work done around the house. It seems I have used "Labor Day weekend" all of of my life to get some of the bigger jobs done. 

Not to miss out this year, Saturday I began a work of removing a stump in front of my house. I thought the roots would be rotten and that it would come out easy. Not so, and by yesterday afternoon I found myself at nearly 4' down in the ground all around this monster. In addition I had blistered hands, sore body, ant bites on my legs, and a yellow jacket stinger just above my left eye brow. And, I was still fighting a stump in the ground. So much for easy. But perseverance paid off, and the stump came out of the ground. But here is the thought from my Bible reading this morning on Labor Day.

_{15 So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them under the sun. Ecclesiastes 8:15 NLT}

So I work on a thought this morning with my poor old sore beaten up and hurting body, was it worth it? Some things matter more than others. That old stump really wasn't hurting a thing. I am glad it is out of the ground, but was it worth it? Probably nobody cared but me.

I guess I will "rest" some today, well except for working on the tractor which I seem to have broken a hydraulic line on while working on the stump.  The stump is not gone from in front of the house (Tractor broken) but at least it is out of the ground.