Sunday, January 30, 2011

January 2011

Well, January 2011 has just about run its course.  I must say that January has proven to be an interesting month with Tammy and I staying very busy throughout it. As I look to February and March I see more even busier months ahead.
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Pray for Pensacola is entering into its fourth week.
1/30/11 - Pray for the wives of pastors and ministers.
1/31/11 - Pray for community development agencies.
2/1/11 - Pray for the mothers in your community.
2/2/11 - Pray for the impoverished.
2/3/11 - Pray for emerging Christian leaders.
2/4/11 - Pray to end abortion in the county.
2/5/11 - Pray for personal needs.
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One of the new activities I have been engaged in this January is listening to an audio verson of the Old & New Testaments.  www.biblegateway.com is a very good on-line resourse and they have recently added an audio version.  I am finding that hearing the books read to me is quite a different and yet very positive experience than reading them for myself. The biggest difference I have noticed is that I read to myself a whole lot faster than the speakers read out loud. Now there is no shock in that difference but it has made me very aware that when I read to myself I am sometimes more motivated by the urge to complete a chapter or book than I am in comprehending the material.
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One other change this January was switching from MediaCom to AT&T U-Verse for my Internet access, home phone and cable television services. This change means that the @mchsi.com e-mail address that I have used for a very long time will cease to be in service sometime next week.  You just do not realize how many on-line accounts you have and how many places use your e-mail address until you have to change it.  I hope I didn't miss anything important.
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Grace & Peace

Sunday, January 09, 2011

Pray For Pensacola (40 days of prayer and fasting)

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Imagine if a group of Christians in your town from a diverse selection of traditions and denominations came together briefly for a common cause.  To pray and fast specifically for your town, its leadership, its schools, its economy and other things unique and specific to your community. Not a bad thing to imagine and an even better thing to experience!
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Tonight at 9pm starts a 40 day period of prayer and fasting by a growing group of Christians in the Escambia/Santa Rosa County area.  Joe Miller started the Pray For Pensacola movement a few years ago and its participants have grown steadily every year.
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To give you and example of the types of things prayed for I have listed the first weeks themes;
1/9/11 -Pray for your local church.
1/10/11 - Pray for the mayor and the city council.
1/11/11 - Pray for protection from sickness and illness.
1/12/11 - Pray for the fathers in the city to be men of integrity.
1/13/11 - Pray for the homeless and those who minister to them.
1/14/11 - Pray for the local military personnel and their families.
1/15/11 - Pray for personal needs.
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Grace & Peace to You

Thursday, January 06, 2011

New Years Eve 2011

May the new year bring
The warmth of home and hearth to you.
The cheer and goodwill of friends to you,
The hope of a childlike heart to you.
The joy of a thousand angels to you,
The love of the Son and God's peace to you. 
-Irish Blessing
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I broke a long standing family tradition this New Years Eve and did not go to my in-laws open house in Metairie. I think the last time I missed it was 1990 during Desert Shield/Storm.  A friend of mine purchased a couple acres on Lewis Smith Lake in Northwest Alabama and he invited a group of guys to camp, RV and hangout for the weekend.  All in all a very enjoyable weekend inspite of the 5 inches of rain we received New Years Eve. Of course every cloud has a silver lining and because of the heavy rain we were able to hike in the Bankhead National Forest along the Sipsey river and see some very nice waterfalls.
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Tim's RV (aka the Eagle) 
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Camp site for Andy (green tent) and I (yellow tent).  
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Waterfall along the Sipsey River
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Atop a waterfall. (What you don't see is the second 20' waterfall below the pool.)
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Grace & Peace