I have a yellow carpet

Our museum Palo Verde is in full bloom providing delight for bees and hummingbirds, and now that it has been blooming for several weekss. A gentle breeze brings a snow of yellow flowers to create a rich carpet.

I enjoyed using visuals on Sunday. This has been standard for fifteen years in most churches with the advent of digital theater projection systems but not in traditional settings previous to that.  Our building is not set up for it so we have to bring things in, set them up, and take them down quickly.  A number of people said they were helped by seeing the scripture while I was speaking.

It's a tool for learning, both audio and visual. Some churches have overdone it, but it has a real place in preaching and teaching in our generation.

Golden Moon

I enjoyed my annual effort to produce a decent moon shot. Tried all kinds of manual settings to capture the light. A full moon always commands my attention and a special one is especially enjoyable.

As I was giving up, my nose started bleeding, something that our dry weather has been happening a good bit lately. "No connection I am sure", he said in a draculean tone.

Enjoy you Sunday and the rest of this week. Use all you five senses while you develop your spiritual eyes, ears, nose, fingers and tongue to drink of the life aionian.

Finding streams in the desert

I am always amazed when my life of study enjoys a serendipity, an unexpected find.  While looking somewhere for this, I find that, or am led to just the idea I desire to pursue. I feel like a detective of ideas and truths who has an unseen Helper showing me the way.

I have been trying to demonstrate that eternal life is not something that begins after death, but that the Bible speaks of that quality of age enduring life begin as we walk with the King indwelling us in this life,...and out comes a free E book that some website mentioned that I knew nothing about, which really develops the concept, and I am  blessed by the free offering of this man's heart and study.

I am pretty sure this continuous dialogue between my mind and heart and the minds and hearts of others, and the Mind and Heart of the One who does not dwell in temples built with human hands, is part of the essence of aionian life, life that endures the ages.

Friend of a Friend

This is the storage area for Casa de Amor helping ministry in Mesa's poor neighborhood.

Sometimes you begin following a life online and you have never met the person in this E life. I have a person now whose life is crashing and burning with finances, health, unemployment. Hard to be connected to that pain. She is being prayed for and helped by some of her friends.

I hit rock bottom in the early 80s financially. I remember the anxiety and fear with the knowledge that I had mouths to feed and rent to pay. Those times are part of the plan of the ages, worse for some more than others, but it will provide such a great contrast when we are delivered.

In the midst of it though, God tells us not to say, Be well to those in the midst of those struggles but to help.

God Bless the USA

I attended a Day of Prayer event this morning at our sister community Sunbird. Very well organized and presented with an excellent speaker, singers, and prayers.

Lots of confessions that we are on the wrong path, lots of Israel scripture about cleaning up our moral and societal act, yet lots of prayers that the country will not get what it deserves.

All these quotes about national repentance from a nation that in fact did not repent, did not recognize the day of their visitation, and were, in fact, judged through the loss of that nation.

Always feel tugged about in those situations.  I agree totally with the songs, God bless the USA.

Facebook tribute

The Koi Pond at The Point at Poipu Kauai, where we have enjoyed the island and hated the investment.

Well, I never bought Microsoft or Apple stock, both of which would have been nice, but I am not going to buy facebook stock either. The thing could be profitable, or it could dissappear in a week with some better thing or by making one too many stupid changes. No thanks.

What I do like is the opportunity to use the tool to thank someone from the past for their contribution to your life. I did that today for Mrs. B, my college and seminary speech teacher.

Saw an hour long documentary on the beauty of Washington State and the Seattle area and it was so good, but not one shot of a rainy or overcast day.  Was that false advertising? Thanks Eden.

Wow, the lawsuit against my timeshare made national news today and raised the issue of the ethics of the time share industry. The Point at Poipu was pictured in USA today.  I got my letter from them this week threatening to sue me for not paying what they asked. I sat down and counted how much my days of vacation cost me when I was told I was purchasing future inflation free vacations. Over $800 a night. Very interested to see how this thing will play out.

Tuesday the week is already in gear and I am not

I kept trying to catch this toddler coming at me but he kept toddling to quickly back and forth. He was clearly in his own little world and enjoying himself immensely.

Too many thoughts playing billiards in my head to focus on one this morning. Took yesterday morning off to play a round of golf with soon departing friends and today I already feel like I am playing catch up. This is why I stopped the traditional Pastor's Monday day off decades ago.

Wishing April had lasted longer, everything was so fresh, breezy and springlike.

Should teachers say, "the bible says" when offering interpretations of theology? Probably not. When reading scripture publicly of course we are reading what the Bible says, but when we tell people how that verse fits in this or that view we should be honest and say that this is what has been taught or what I believe it means.

Listening to a prophecy teacher of long decades of teaching show how he finally saw America in Daniels prophecy and now as the final countdown to the end of the age is interpretation, resting on theological views and expanding upon them, and confirming them by reading news articles.

Discovering from talking to seniors in the hospital that more and more treatments and drugs are not being paid for by medicare and personal costs are rising, like most of us expected.

Made a new friend of present friends who is a cancer survivor living on "gift" time, longer than doctors expected. Makes you appreciate each day.

Encountered the term "angel investor", individuals lending money to business start ups that have a helpful effect on the world and meet needs. Nice idea.