Excited & Exasperated

12,18,2018

Morning, mountain! Wow, another beautiful day. This is such a relief to me from the last month or so, much better weather. The older I get the less I like too hot or too cold—I want it just right! Hope you’re not suffering from this malady and you get along fine with where you live.

Ever have one of those ideas which would formulate into a plan and you really think it will work? I had a good one yesterday. Not gonna talk about it till there’s more details and definitions worked out. But, I awoke this morning with a clearer picture on some of it, and some things it will take, though “clearer” will be difficult to bring to the finish line. It’s all about the Water with Alkalinity business, so it’ll not be interesting to all of you. I’ll try not to be boring about it as it progresses, if I mention it at all. 

The second time I awoke this morning the SIMH was “All About That Bass, No Treble,” —Meghan Trainor wrote and recorded it, as well as others. Not such a pure song, but great music, sticks in one’s mind. this was remarkably popular a few years back. Probably made her and her co-writer have a great year.

Yesterday evening I was fairly frustrated at my ineptness during the day and was not sure what the outcome of the bible class would be. Of course, I still don’t know if it was edifying or a good evangelistic plea, but I really never do anyway. But, I want to thank the Lord for His grace in seeing me through it. He alone brought me to the finish of it. 

There have been many such times over the last 42 years when I didn’t feel like it or thought I wan’t prepared or couldn’t seem to get the message framework enough to go on. But, if I remember to say to the Lord, “It’s yours and not mine. I’m willing, but my flesh is in the way,” then I can honestly say, I’ve experienced His hand in mine. If I am willing, He will provide for me in the message. I hope you understand how I’m saying that. He doesn’t speak to me audibly, I don’t actually “feel” Him near me: it’s more like beginning a sentence with words which He corrects as I go. (Actually, that’s too mystical, it’s more spiritual than that.)

The words are worth nothing if they are not from His word, the KJB. But, when they are words from the bible, and they do fit the subject matter, and it can be supported by actually reading the verses, that’s when I know His Spirit showed me that, I wasn’t memorizing anything, didn’t have notes to read, mostly because I didn’t really want to be there.) I hope I’ve explained it. and let me say this: In my spiritual life I have always wanted to be right there, speaking what God wanted me to say to whomever He has brought my way. The fleshly side of me has always gotten me distracted from the greater purpose —sometimes it doesn’t take much interference. I understand why Paul wrote, “O, wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ!”

The other operative verse for a preacher to always see in himself, especially when it’s a time like last night, is this: “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” And, I gotta tell ya, it took me years to ever be able to verbalize how much that verse means to me. Sometimes, still, I would love to quote Gal.6:14, but my emotions stop me. It is that close to me.

I’m thinking how’s the new year going to unfold for bible conferences? I know we’ll have at least one less than last year because of the combining of the Winter Gathering with the Gatlinburg conference (they not only are geographically close together, they were scheduled close together, so it makes good sense for the Gatlinburg Gathering to be one conference, first weekend in March), so I’m wondering if there’ll be another new one, or any more decisions to not have one. Since I don’t host one, as they say, “pay attention, others will decide.” Who is Will and how come he gets to decide? My friend John Sanford said he would always look around during invitation services, because the preacher kept asking for Will Others to come forward. Who’s Will Others??

Thanks for reading, the Elder