You’ve come a long way baby…

When I was a kid they used to have advertisements for cigarettes and although the Marlboro Man was clearly my favorite (if you don’t understand why just google his picture), I still remember the famous slogan for “Virginia Slims.” Launched in 1968 (I was 5 years old), it was one of the most famous advertising campaigns in US history.

“You’ve come a long way” (sometimes with “baby” added at the end) was the provocative tagline for a new, thinner cigarette marketed specifically to women. The phrase became a national catch-phrase overnight.

The advertising focused on the emerging feminist and the rise of  “the New Woman,” a woman who was independent, self-sufficient, and eager to demonstrate her confidence.

I’m not here to promote cigarettes.  I never smoked and don’t plan to start. Nor do I see myself as a “New Woman.”  But the phrase does come to mind as I contemplate the ten weeks, 7,800 miles and 140 hours spent in my car this summer.

From Louisiana to the Choctaw Reservation in MS.  From MS to the Cheyenne River Reservation in SD. From SD to the Colville Reservation in WA. From WA to the Hoopa Reservation in CA. From CA to the Navajo Reservation in NM. These, with all of the places in between, made for a summer that changed me. I dare say it changed my teams as well as the people we ministered to and who ministered to us.

The teams….Pisgah BC from Forest Hill, North Monroe BC, Twin Bridges BC from Alexandria, Old Saline BC and New Life International Outreach from Woodworth. Good people.  Hard workers.  Dedicated followers of Christ. My friends. 

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There was beauty at every turn.

The real beauty though was found in the people.  Strong, smart, able, broken, filled with joy and sadness…America’s “First Nations” people.  A people loved and desired by God. A people tied to these beautiful lands and to one another.

Then there are the children. For me its all about them. We had plenty of sports and outdoor fun.

There was Bible Study…

…along with singing and dancing in some cases!

There were always crafts for the little ones…

…along with bubbles, sidewalk chalk, face painting, manicures in the salvation colors…

…and snacks for everyone. Some even got a full meal each day!

Each camp ended with an awards ceremony…

…as well as a Family Night.

There is always a great deal of work on everyone’s part in putting all of this together. The teams, the churches we are working with on the reservations, those who contribute gifts, prizes, and sports equipment, those who contribute through prayer and donations…everyone has a part to play.  Allowing God to work before, during and after each of these camps is crucial to how each individual will be impacted.

We even had a couple of construction projects this year. Some of the guys from North Monroe BC built a Noah’s Ark themed swing set for the kids at Cheyenne River and a team of Pisgah men and youth built the front steps and deck on the front of the new church building that is in progress on the Choctaw Reservation. The team from Twin Bridges BC saw the chance to minister to the owner of the motel where we were staying by offering to repair the roof on one of the motel buildings. The owner is from India and is not a Christian but this simple act of kindness opened doors for our team members to minister in ways that only God could have arranged.

Some of the people who work the hardest get the least recognition. They are the cooks for each of our teams. Their job never ends. They cook for the team, they cook for the camp…they never stop cooking! They do an awesome job…sometimes too awesome. I was trying to lose weight and they were cooking like we all needed fattening up!

Joining our brothers and sisters in Christ in worship and fellowship as well as taking time to enjoy one another as a team is all part of the experience. From worship services, to playing games, having poolside devotions, checking out the local scenery, passing out flyers and eating out…we always have a great time and return home with new friends and a desire to return. Lives are always changed when doing this work…especially mine.

I’ve taken a multitude of roads in this ministry and I’ve loved every one.  Yes, I have “Come a long way baby,”  but the most exciting part is knowing that there are always new roads ahead.

The next road leads to Wisconsin in September and then on to the organization of the Christmas shoeboxes. I hope you plan on joining me!

Happiness comes from your circumstances but joy comes from God…

It’s been a while since my last blog entry. A lot has happened. I was home for a couple of weeks after I got back from South Dakota. I then headed out again in July to meet Open Door Missions in Farmington, New Mexico. The drive there was incredible…

Colorado Plateau Mesa on Scenic Hwy. 550 in New Mexico

Part of the beauty of driving everywhere is the chance to enjoy what God has created and Red Rock Country is always my favorite!

When everyone arrived we had to hit the ground running.  We had to prepare for, set up, and begin a VBS all on our first day there! Thanks to Jessica Dubea, David Anderson and my good friends at the Louisiana Baptist Convention, I had the literature for everyone when they arrived or we would have been even more overwhelmed than we were.

We had VBS during the day.  We did this year’s Lifeway VBS, Colossal Coaster World, for an Anglo church in Farmington.

Then, each evening, we held revival services and handed out backpacks with school supplies in several Native American churches in Bloomfield, Aztec and the surrounding areas.

Tammy & Morgan Hanson handing out backpacks to some of the children on the Navajo Reservation

My mornings consisted of this…

The three fifth and sixth grade boys in my class during VBS

And my evenings looked more like this…

Loving these babies!

Bro. Lavelle Spillers,  a pastor in Homer, LA as well as a board member of Open Door Missions was our leader.  I always enjoy working with Bro. Lavelle and his wife Diane.  This year I got to room with their daughter, Pamela Mathews, and their two grandchildren. Poor Diane broke her arm while we were there and the woman never quit!  Bro. Lavelle was preaching, pouring his heart out each night.  They are both devoted and determined to share the Gospel with everyone they come in contact with.

Diane & Lavelle Spillers

16 adults, youth and children accepted Christ while we were there!  Here are a few of them from Gospel Victory Baptist Church on the Navajo Reservation.

Some of those saved at Gospel Victory Baptist Church on the Navajo Reservation

Before heading home I made it a point to visit Monument Valley, part of the Navajo Nation landmarks in southern Utah. It’s a place I’ve wanted to go ever since I saw my first western movie as a child.  I wasn’t disappointed!  Driving in I got my “Forrest Gump” shot.  You know the one where he was running and he just stopped and turned around and went home?  Here it is…

My “Forrest Gump” shot heading into Monument Valley

Then I proceeded on.  It was hot. The sun was high in the sky.  It was dry and dusty.  The road through the valley is only 17 miles but is a terrible road.  I had red dirt covering everything…inside and outside of my car.  And I loved it all!!!!!

A picture I had been waiting my whole life to capture!

Monument Valley did not disappoint!

The summer didn’t end here though.  After a couple of more weeks at home it was time to join my friends at the annual “Gathering” at the Bible Baptist Church on the Lac du Flambeau Reservation in Wisconsin.

These north woods are as different as night and day in comparison to red rock country but none the less beautiful.  For as much dirt and rock as you see out west, you see just as much grass and water here.

North Woods country

Fall was even beginning to show it’s colors in a few of the leaves and the underbrush…

The underbrush was already beginning to change colors

I’m always at peace on this reservation.  There are cool, dry breezes that make the leaves sing and being here is like slipping back in time.  But the true peace that pervades my soul while at Lac du Flambeau is found in Christ who resides in these good people.

Our days were spent attending discipleship classes in the morning, gathering in the evening for jam sessions outside and services at night.

Evening jam sessions

The kids would just do their own thing during these jam sessions…

Sometimes I would just sit back and marvel at the mixture of races coming together…all of us one because of Christ.

The best part was that the leaders for this gathering were also Native American. Pastor Wesley Castillo of Pine Hill Baptist Church and his wife, Paulette, their daughter and three young brothers from their congregation came all the way from the Navajo reservation in Cuba, New Mexico. We were blessed by what God did through them.

Pine Hill Baptist Church from Cuba, NM

They ministered through music, testimony and sermons that left me in tears each night.  And just when you thought everything was coming to a close, the Holy Spirit would keep it going.  I won’t soon forget any of it.

The group of believers at Lac du Flambeau are strong.  Pam and Dar, Kevin, Mrs. Virginia and Mr. Ed, Mrs. Judy, Bernadine, Mr. Buddy, Pastor Bill and Bridget and their family…they’ve all become my family. But upon returning home I found out that I lost a member of that family.

Mr. Ed Seneca, probably one of the most original men as well as one of the most devoted Christian men I’ve ever known (Red, Yellow, Black or White), went home August 27, 2013.

Ed Seneca…an original!

Mr. Ed loved Jesus, Mrs. Virginia and music…in that order.  Last year I sat with him in the hospital and found myself amazed that he rejoiced at being there because it gave him the chance to minister to the doctors and nurses who attended him. I’ve listened to him sing in English as well as in his native tongue and each time it left me in tears.  I recorded some of his stories and his songs because I didn’t want to ever forget his voice. I spent as much time with him as I could but it’s never enough is it?

My heart grieves for Mrs. Virginia but rejoices with Mr. Ed because I know he was dancing a jig at the throne!  It makes me smile every time I think about it.  I look forward to seeing him again and I’m grateful God allowed me one more visit with him before He took him.

Mrs. Virginia & Mr. Ed being silly after his stay in the hospital in the spring of 2012

This has been a summer filled with beauty, sadness, tears, sickness, frustration and overwhelming joy but more importantly it has been filled with God’s Holy Spirit.

I’ve traveled 12,560 miles. I’ve had the privilege of ministering and being ministered to on reservations in Washington State, South Dakota, New Mexico and Wisconsin. I never had to worry about finances and there were some obstacles but they pale in comparison to what I  witnessed God doing.  I saw lives changed, people saved and experienced God at work in my own life.  I was allowed to minister with some amazing groups…Pisgah Baptist Church in Forest Hill, Twin Bridges Baptist Church in Alexandria, Vicki & Fred James of Morning Star Ministries in Washington State, North Monroe Baptist Church in Monroe, Open Door Missions and Jed & Sally Jezek at LaPlant Baptist Church in South Dakota.

The best part? It never ends!!  I’m so thankful to all of you for being a part of this ministry!  I appreciate and pray for you all.  I’ll keep you posted on what’s next. Until then, I hope you are all happy, happy, happy but remember…happiness comes from your circumstances but joy comes from God! 

Not even Phil Robertson…

Today I traveled the Oregon Trail.

Unlike Lewis and Clark, I had a GPS to lead the way. And unlike the settlers who traveled in wagons, on foot and on horses, I was in a 2007 Saturn Ion.

It got me to thinking…how on earth did they do it??? I mean, there are rivers…long, deep, wide ones…

…and mountains.  Big, tall, rocky ones….

…and miles of undulating, massive ones littered with black, volcanic boulders.

Over and over again I kept asking the question, how did they do it? How hard it must have been to travel over that kind of terrain for that many miles in a wagon!

It brought to mind that song Bonnie Tyler sang in the 80’s…”Holding Out for a Hero.”  Remember the line, “Where have all the good men gone and where are all the gods?” Well, we know there is only one God and He reigns supreme so there’s no question there. But really, where have all the good men (and women) gone?

I thought of myself and my circumstances at the beginning of my trip…a little story I like to call “the puke fest of twenty thirteen.” Yes, I drove 11 hours, most of it in Kansas, nauseated and throwing up.  Yes, it was extremely unpleasant to only have enough time to pull over and grab a bag to hurl into only to find that the bag is leaking. I then tried to empty the bag out the window.  Remember how I said I was in Kansas?  Kansas is mostly prairie…no trees…lots of wind.  Therefore, the contents of the bag attempted to re-enter the car.  You can imagine my delight.  And just when I thought there would be an upside to this story, since throwing up usually stops the nausea, I found that all I was going to be allowed was about 2 minutes of relief before the waves of nausea hit again.

I spent 2 days getting over all that and I felt very sorry for myself.  But now, I think about women traveling for months and months in a wagon.  Some of them pregnant…giving birth on the way and suddenly my nausea isn’t quite so bad.  I checked into a motel to recover…not a fancy one but it had a bed, an air conditioner and running water.  That’s a whole lot more than those women had.

The “check engine” light came on in my car and I whined because I couldn’t believe something else was going wrong. Ha! All I had to do was find a mechanic and get it fixed. Then I’m on my way down the road at 75 miles per hour. If something happened to their wagons or their horses, it took ALOT longer to fix.  Sometimes they were stuck for days, even months.

I know you all didn’t ask for a history lesson. But, like Bonnie Tyler, I’m asking, “Where have all the good men gone?”  We’ve all gone soft.  We’ve got cars and hotels and fast food and hair dryers and hospitals and air conditioning and anything we need right at our fingertips!  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to go back to a time when we didn’t have those things… especially air conditioning.  Not only do I not want to, I don’t know that I could.

I honestly don’t think I know anyone in the world who could successfully handle that kind of adversity and hardship today….not even Phil Robertson.  He’s old school and can handle a simple life but he ain’t that old school!

Yet, as I type this I remember…the same God who traveled with those early settlers travels with me.  The same God who healed them heals me. The same God who protected them protects me.  The same God who guided them, guides me. So, I guess we’re really not that different after all.

I’ll keep that in mind as I join my team in Washington and we minister to a people group who know great hardship but do NOT know our God.  Please pray that they know Him before we leave.

Interstates, Toll Roads, Pig Trails and Conestoga Wagons…yeah, it’s long but not too wordy!

Unless you have been in a coma you are aware of a certain angry young woman named Sandy.  She and I almost met personally since I was in Connecticut and Rhode Island when she decided to visit.  However, I’m no fool.  I’m from Louisiana.  I KNOW when it’s time to leave!  So…I packed my bags, loaded my car and headed home three days early.

Sandy, no matter how scary she was, was only a small part of this trip.  There were people I met along the way; places I discovered; kindnesses shown; experiences had and beauty each step of the way. I told you all in my last blog entry that I had found places to stay along the way and while I was in Connecticut.  These places were an important part of this journey.

My first stop was in Benton, TN at Camp Agape.  This place is surrounded by beauty…mountains, a lake, trees.  Erick Swallows is the camp director and I appreciate him so much!  He put two cots in a spare room in the welcome center just for me.  I had everything I needed and was pleased that I had made a new friend and contact as well.

 I was up before daylight the next morning.  I watched the sun come up over the lake and then got back on the road.  This time I was headed to Virginia where I would stay for two nights.

I arrived at Camp Shenandoah Springs in Madison, VA right before sunset.  To get to this facility you take a small dirt/gravel road that seems like no more than an old trail.  Then you get to the gate and realize that you have arrived.

The owners and directors of this Christian campground are a wonderful couple named Doug and Anne Farmer.  I enjoyed their company and their facility.  They offered me an apartment above the office.

It was perfect! A bunch of stairs but perfect none the less. 🙂

The next morning I set out to see some of the sights.  Anne had told me about an Apple Harvest Festival right down the road so off I went.

Virginia is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been..especially the Shenandoah Valley.  Of course I took a drive to see as much as I could.

I happened upon a road that caught my attention.  It was a smooth drive on nice black top…at first.  As soon as the black top ended I saw a sign that proclaimed that the county did not maintain this portion of the road.  It didn’t look too bad so I kept going.  As I drove further and further up the mountain the road got rougher and rougher.  I was having so much fun taking pictures and I ran into someone who told me my car could handle what was ahead. He lied. This so-called “road” couldn’t have been much more than a pig trail.  It was beautiful…

…but the ride became…challenging.  The road got rougher and steeper.  Then it started to have mud holes…some that covered the entire road.   The further I went, the worse it got. Conestoga wagons drove faster than I did on that road. I rarely reached 5 mph.  Why did I continue you ask?  Because I’m obviously not the brightest bulb in the box.

I can’t tell you how many deals I made with God on that road.  My one consolation was that I wasn’t going to have to go back the same way I came in.  The guy I ran into told me it kept going until it got back to black top in the Shenandoah National Park.  He lied…again.  I reached the end only to find that the road into the park was barred.  So…I turned around and went back the way I came. Later, that same year, I was back on black top and thanking God that my car still ran.

The next morning I headed out once again on the final leg of my journey…and by the middle of the day I would have gladly driven on that pig trail again.  You see, I’m used to driving in the midwest, the southwest and out west where the roads are traffic free and the spaces are wide open.  I wasn’t in Kansas anymore!  Take a look at the comparison.

Awful…and expensive.  I took the toll roads because they were supposedly quicker.  I found out later that the route I took using these toll roads only saved me 15 minutes and they cost me nearly $50!  To add insult to injury my GPS said to take the next exit to the left and when I did I ended up in the Bronx.  I was not impressed and the deal making with God started anew.

I arrived in Connecticut at dusk.  The house I was staying in is owned by a church in Connecticut and is located on the Willimantic Camp Meeting Association property in Willimantic, CT.  It was a blessing!

It was way more than I needed but so nice to have.  3 bedrooms, a screen porch where I had breakfast in the mornings, a washer and dryer, fully stocked kitchen…it had it all.

I spent the next several days meeting with different people about the possibility of reaching out to the Native Americans there.  To read about that you can go to the page marked “New England” on this blog.  I also had the opportunity to give a presentation to a group at the campground where I was staying.

Besides the meetings and contacts I was making I also went to Rhode Island to visit with old family friends, Ronny and Sug Grant, and that was such a pleasure.   I did a little exploring while in Connecticut as well.  You know how much I love cemeteries and you can’t drive 10 feet without coming across another one while in New England.  And they are ALL old!

I got a chance to drive to Mystic, CT.  Mystic is a town that revolves around its seaport and was featured in the movie, “Mystic Pizza” starring Julia Roberts.  And yes, I had a slice and it was pretty good. 🙂

The colors were fading but the ground was covered with leaves…

The architecture in New England is beautiful and very…well..very New England.

I got the chance to go to Kent Falls State Park, a little piece of land in CT with a beautiful waterfall…

I also got a chance to go into historic Litchfield, CT.  It was a beautiful day.  The wind was blowing and the sun was shining.  Here is an old church  in Litchfield…a Congregational Church….very popular in New England.

Decorations were as plentiful as leaves.  They ranged from beautiful…

…to bizarre!

Everyone I met was especially kind and welcoming, which kind of squashes the theory that New Englander’s are unfriendly!  And…while I was the one with the accent to them, I could have listened to them all day.  One gentleman sounded like every Mark Whalberg movie I had ever seen.

New England is quaint, historic (for America), beautiful, crowded and small. No matter where I was, it didn’t take long to get anywhere else…even other states! But even with that fact, I did alot of driving and I must admit, I’m a bit tired of it and I’m glad to be home.  I’ve put almost 20,000 miles on my car just since April! But there is one thing I know for sure.  God’s Holy Spirit is in New England.  I experienced Him in His people and I am a better person for having gone there.

The next few months are going to be dedicated to speaking in churches, raising funds for next Spring, Summer and Fall and working on schedules, programs and groups for the different areas I am going to be serving in.  I am also headed back to the Lac du Flambeau Reservation in Wisconsin the week after Christmas. We’ll be bringing shoebox ministry gifts to the children there at an “After Christmas Party” at the Lac du Flambeau Bible Baptist Church.

I appreciate all of your prayers and contributions.  God is so faithful through each one of you and I couldn’t do any of this without you!  I hope I’ll get the chance to visit with you while I am home for the winter.  God bless you all!

I Can Only Imagine…

Tomorrow I head out again.  As I was getting ready to go I realized I had not updated everyone on my last trip.

After I finished with my work at the Pine Ridge & Cheyenne River Indian Reservations in South Dakota I headed on to the Lac du Flambeau Indian Reservation in Wisconsin.  I had a wonderful visit with my friends there.  You may remember that I was there this past April/May and we worked on getting a children’s church started for the children on the rez.  At that time they did not have a pastor but I am proud to report that they do now…and he’s a Louisiana man!  His name is Bill Earl and he and his wife Bridget and their children are from Elizabeth, LA.  I can’t tell you how good it was to have a few more southern accents on the rez!  Bill and Bridget are a perfect fit for the Bible Baptist Church there at Lac du Flambeau.  The people there love them and we already see God doing wonderful things through them.

I am looking forward to returning to Lac du Flambeau in December to help distribute Christmas shoeboxes to the children there.  By the way, if you would like to help out with that ministry just give me a call.

Now most of you know me by now so you know that I took each chance I got to enjoy the scenery.  And boy was there some scenery to enjoy.  I’m a bit of a fanatic when it comes to Fall colors and the leaves were at their peak while I was there.  Heaven!!!

Every where I went there was gold…

And orange…

And all colors in between….

I think my favorite may be the trees that were just beginning to turn…they were a combination of lime green and yellow and their reflections were stunning.

Everywhere I drove was beautiful.  There was absolutely no escaping the beauty…

The beauty was there even when you looked up…

I took a walk down a trail one day and prayed.  I told God I couldn’t imagine heaven being any better than this.  But what’s so incredible is that it is better than this.  Mercy Me phrased it most accurately in their song; “I Can Only Imagine.”  I can only imagine how incredible heaven must be.  How beautiful. How breathtaking.  What I see on earth now is just a “foretaste of glory divine.”

I digress. 🙂  Instead of heading straight to Connecticut after leaving Wisconsin I came home instead.  I needed to raise some more funds and get some things in order before heading to Connecticut.  I decided that I was going to have to work a little harder at finding inexpensive places to stay while on these trips.  So…I got online and found three Christian Campgrounds in Tennessee, Virginia and Connecticut.  I contacted them about lodging and as a result my total cost for lodging on this trip is $30.00!  I’ll be staying at Camp Agape in Benton, TN my first night on the road.  They are a Southern Baptist Campground.  I’ll be staying the next two nights at Shenandoah Springs Campground near Shenandoah National Park in Virginia.  They are an inter-denominational campground but the pastor and his wife are Southern Baptist.  Then, in Connecticut, I will spend 9 nights at the Willimantic Christian Campground; owned by an inter-denominational Christian group.  God is good!

Now let me share with you a way that God provides when we least expect it.  I needed about $1,000.00 to pay my bills and make this trip.  I started out with $150.00 but I kept making my plans like I already had the money I needed.  I am leaving tomorrow and by yesterday I had received $990.00.  Again, God is good!  I also had a donation strictly intended for me to get AAA Auto Insurance in case I have problems while on the road.

I can’t begin to tell you how exciting it is to see these kind of things happen.  I’ll admit, I get a bit nervous at times but God always provides what I need, when I need it through people like you.  Thanks to you all!

I’ll head out in the morning and I’ll keep you all posted as often as I can while on the road.  In the meantime, please be in prayer for the contacts I make to work with the Mashantucket Pequot tribe in Connecticut.

 

One down, three to go!

My visit at Pine Ridge was a great success and blessing! I joined a wonderful group of ladies at the Lakota Baptist Church in the town of Pine Ridge on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and they were all such a blessing to me. I had the privilege of sharing a bunk house with Jan Turner of Truly Free International, Julie Peyton and Debbie Techentin of Fit for the King Ministries and Linda Grajewski and Allison Rolston of Gaits to Heaven Ministries. These ladies all came together to work with the women of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. They spent several days visiting and praying with many of the ladies on the reservation and ministering in the women’s prison. They completed their week in leading some of the ladies of the reservation in a Women’s Bible Retreat.

I joined them at the Women’s Retreat and, as far as I’m concerned, I had the best job! I got to work with this crew…

Then it was time to head to LaPlant Baptist Church on the Cheyenne River Reservation.  Mae Rodriguez, a wonderful Lakota Christian woman joined me for the four-hour drive.  Here’s Mae…

We visited with Jed and Sally Jezek, the pastors of the church in LaPlant to see about Mission Ventures providing them with a Bible Camp for the kids and Mae providing them with a ladies’ Bible Study next summer.  The visit went well and it looks like we’ll be returning next summer!  I enjoyed the visit with Jed and Sally and I especially enjoyed Mae’s company.  She is such a dynamic woman with a heart for God that is rare.

Of course, there’s no way I’m going to make a trip like this and not take the opportunity to photograph the scenery!  Fall was just beginning to show off its colors on the reservation and I could not get enough of it!  Take a look…

Stunning!!!

The wildlife is even more abundant than the fall colors.  I encountered horses running free, buffalo, a fox, pheasants and turkeys galore, antelopes and more deer than I could count!  Here is one that posed for the camera…

I also captured a photo of this horse as it was running toward me…

I also came upon several crops of sunflowers.  There were sunflowers as far as the eye could see…

On Sunday I got to worship with the good people of Lakota Baptist Church.  Like all good Baptists we had a meal…

And, as always, I enjoyed the kids!

I always love my time at Pine Ridge. The land is beautiful and the people are even more so.  Behind the beauty though is a spiritual darkness. And, as you can see, the poverty at Pine Ridge is extreme.

While there, we encountered a great deal of late night fights, sirens, etc.  We were safe in our barbed wire enclosed fortress at the church but the we couldn’t deny the sounds we heard.  Please take the time to pray for the beautiful people of Pine Ridge.  Pray that they will embrace Christ and allow Him to change their hearts and their situations.

I’m heading to Wisconsin tomorrow where I get to visit with my good friends at the Bible Baptist Church on the Lac du Flambeau Reservation.  I hope you’ll continue to pray for me as I travel and I’ll update you as I go.

Bless you all!

 

 

 

Confused in Kansas…

I spent 8 more hours on the road today.  It was basically uneventful but there were two instances that caused me to pause and wonder and one instance that just sent me running!

The first instance was the one that sent me running.  It was a routine (or so I thought) stop at a gas station.  I had swiped my card, pressed “yes” for a receipt and then I saw them…yellow jackets!  They were flying around the trash can by the pump.  What in the world were yellow jackets doing at a gas station trash can???  Many of you know about my recent experience with my Uncle’s 37 stings and my one little one (that hurt BAD) and I did NOT want another one!  So…I pressed cancel and drove to another pump.

The first instance that made me say “hmmmm” was when I requested that my GPS lead me to the nearest Wal-Mart on my route.  When I arrived this is what I found…

Definitely NOT Wal-Mart!

Then, after I found the REAL Wal-Mart, I got back on the interstate where I happened to see this…

Now, I don’t know about you but to me that bares a striking resemblance to one of those nuclear blast mushroom clouds.  I didn’t stop but I put the window down and took this while I was driving….just in case it was the real deal.

I’m in a hotel in Nebraska tonight.  There’s been no news about a nuclear blast so I suppose all is well. 🙂  I am arriving at Pine Ridge tomorrow and I’ll probably hit the ground running so this may be it for a few days.  I’ll post the ministry details as soon as I have a chance.

God bless you all and thank you for your prayers!

A Plague of Biblical Proportions…

I really didn’t think I would be posting anything so soon into this trip.  However, I had a small experience I thought I would share with all of you.  As I was driving down the highway listening to the Touched by an Angel soundtrack, I passed this field…

Where, to my delight, I saw this beauty!

So, I quickly turned around to go back and take a picture.  I pulled off of the road and proceeded to walk through the cut grass so that I could get a closer shot.  It was all good until I realized that there was lots of hopping going on around me. When I looked to see what exactly was moving around in the grass I encountered enough of these to classify it a plague of Biblical proportions!

I HATE BUGS!!! However, I really wanted to get a closer look so I kept on going.  And it was worth it just to get to watch this sweetheart enjoying her mid-day snack…

 

Well, that’s it.  It’s just kind of nice when God gives you a sweet moment as you travel.

7,891.8…

In my last entry I told you that I was picking my Mama up at the airport in Denver to enjoy a final week on the road in Colorado.  And enjoy it we did!  We saw some more of my beloved red rocks at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs…

Mama and I enjoyed the trails that led through these giant examples of God’s imagination.

We discovered every inch of this place and the only reason we left is because we had so little daylight left.

We visited the Manitou Springs Cliff Dwellings.

These dwellings were the home of the Anasazi Indians. The Anasazi lived and roamed the Four Corners area of the United States Southwest from 1200 B.C. to A.D. 1300.  It seems that the stones were taken from a collapsed Anasazi site near Cortez in southwest Colorado, shipped by railroad to Manitou Springs, and assembled in their present form.

Mama and I both decided that we would rather see the dwellings in this setting where it was easy to get to than to hike and climb to see the ones at Mesa Verda National Park!

We also spent a day at Rocky Mountain National Park. As my little Saturn faithfully climbed higher and higher we were overwhelmed at how majestic God’s creation really is.

And speaking of climbing heights…we also went to Pike’s Peak! That was the climb of a lifetime!  We could have taken the Cog Train up the mountain but I wanted to drive it.  So…we turned the A/C off, dropped it into a lower gear and headed on up to what felt like the top of the world!

The drive was scary!  Much of the road had no rails and sometimes it felt like I was going to drive off into the sky.  My knuckles were white from time to time and when we finally got to the top I had a mild case of altitude sickness.  Headache pressure, heart fluttering, shortness of breath and dizziness.  Mama was fine…You weren’t gonna catch me sitting that close to the edge!!

 

 

 

The drive down was much better.  I was able to pull over and enjoy some of the scenery…

I’m glad we went but I must say…I was also extremely pleased to come down to earth!

We also spent a day on the Peak to Peak Scenic Biway…a beautiful stretch of road between Estes Park and Colorado Springs.  We started with a stop at the Stanley Hotel, the hotel that was used as the setting for “The Shining”…a novel written by Stephen King.

Once on the road we stopped and enjoyed the COLD waters of a mountain creek.

We also took a wrong turn and wound up in a little town called Lyons.  We were glad we did though because we got to see this…

…another spot ripped right out of an old Glen Ford western. Red rocks, cactus, red dirt, sagebrush…you get the picture.

Back on the correct road we encountered more mountain grandeur…

…and we ended the day with this view…

After several days on the road and our souls satisfied with a taste of God’s country, we decided to head on home.  We arrived home…tired but satisfied.  I had a few minor things go wrong on the road but all in all I had been beyond blessed!

I  kept a running tab on my GPS of all the miles I was travelling and took this photo when I got home. Seven thousand eight hundred ninety-one point 8….that was the final tally on my GPS after 56 days on the road.  You can actually add about another 150 miles to that since I didn’t use my GPS during my time at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.  That’s a lot of miles…alot of time away from home.  And, if you’ll forgive my tendency to be melodramatic, it’s  a  number that has forever changed my life.

This number represents a two year period of prayer to make sure I was hearing God’s call and not my own desires.  It represents a leap of faith.  It is a number that speaks volumes about the people who believe in and support this ministry.  And above all else, it is a number that symbolizes God’s faithfulness.

Yes, I am home right now and even though I’m melting, I’m glad to be here…but my heart is still “out there.”  On the road. With those children. In a land with no humidity!

My next order of business is to work on my financial statements, visit with friends, speak in some new churches and plan my next mission.  My heart’s desire is to work with as many Native American tribes as possible.  The fields are ripe and the laborers are few…won’t you join me?

And the journey continues…

Here I sit…another night in a motel.  I’ve been to Oklahoma, Arkansas, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona and now New Mexico.  My last mission for the summer is complete and it’s a little bittersweet.  I’m anxious to get home and see all “my people” but I’ll miss the days on the road and the scenery.  More importantly, I’ll miss the children I am leaving behind.  Some I will see again…others I won’t.  My biggest concern is that I see them ALL again in heaven! That is my prayer. Look at these faces…

How can I help but miss them!?

So, what now?  I’m picking my Mama up in Denver on Wednesday and she and I are going to explore Colorado.  But while I am waiting I decided to see a little of New Mexico.  I lit out today for a trip to Angel Peak Recreation Area.  It is the Badlands of New Mexico.  Take a look…

 It’s the same concept as “Badlands National Park” in South Dakota but the colors aren’t quite as vivid. There’s a starkness about this place that makes it beautiful and eerie all at the same time.  I was all alone except for this little guy.

We had an agreement…he would be really still while I zoomed in on him to take his picture and when we were finished he wouldn’t come near me.  He stuck to his end of the deal!

While I was there the clouds began to roll in and I even got a little rain.

And don’t ask me how but I manage to find a grave everywhere I go!

The world was quiet here and I felt small in a place that was so vast.

 It’s as if God just let His imagination run wild in this place…

…creating beauty in the wild and dark…

 …and then throwing in a pop of color just to mix it all up!

I probably won’t do anymore site seeing here in New Mexico.  I’ll take the day off tomorrow to rest, balance my checkbook and get my things together.  Then I’ll head for Denver and another adventure…this time with my Mama!  I’ll be glad to see her.

In the meantime, please keep us in your prayers as we travel and head home and even more importantly, please pray for all those we came in contact with this summer…that they will all find Christ and lead others to Him as well.  I can only imagine what heaven will be like when we all get to see one another again!

Blessings to all of you and I’ll keep you posted on what comes next!