Church and family

Renee, Thank you so much for the two stories you shared. It has been
a long time since anything so specific and powerful has happened in
my life.

I find myself consumed right now with thoughts that are close to home
and family and my mom's situation and I begin to think that maybe I
am being selfish since all my energy seems to just be on MY families
situation rather then solving something bigger in the wold. I
mentioned a week ago how while my family was out in the desert
recharging our batteries a coworker died in a car accident. I brought
close to home the fragility of life and the need to stay connected
with those we love because we don't know how long we might have them
around. That same week the extended family of the lady who died had a
new grandchild born and the entire family has been praising God for a
new life while also praising God for a life well lived. It is a
mystery to me.

I must say that the most honest person on this list seems to be
Johnny right now. He writes that he is on the outside of something we
call "church family", looking in and wondering if it is worth the
effort to participate in church and Christianity and a personal
connection with God. I say he is the most honest because I suspect
many (all?) of us had been in church and had those same questions,
just we are too reserved or uncertain to give such thoughts voice. Or
maybe, it is just me.

All the messages about church and conversion and relationships and
clubs has really struck a nerve with me. I and my family have been
members of a little, small town church for over 15 years. Serving,
being involved, leading Sabbath School, elder in church, leading
children services, running the PA, operating the library, church
secretary, work bees, volunteer time, mega donations, and for what.
The church gets a new pastor, he declares how the church is to
operate and says from the pulpit that if you don't want to get on
board the new plan (his plan), then you might just as well go to
church somewhere else.

And we do, we church at the beach, we church in the mountains, we
church at home, we church in the desert. Lucky there are three of us
so we can be in compliance with the verse, "where two or three are
gathered.....", got that covered. There are quite a number of us who
have stopped attending that church, moved membership, stopped,
switched or otherwise made changes in how we observe Sabbath since
this little church has taken on a tone so righteous, so self
righteous that it is better to be somewhere else. God Bless them. God
bless us.

We also have a number of friends in that church who have sent cards
and letters and called saying they miss seeing us at church. It has
been genuine and heartfelt and we have appreciated the contact.

Happy Sabbath,

Craig

> Renee wrote,
> While we're talking about testimonies, ... let me share a couple
> experiences that have blessed me personally, and where I felt that
> God intervened recently in our lives personally.
>
> I was December 17th, just 2 days after we celebrated our 20th
> anniversary. Brian was driving as we were on our way to church. We
> had been a bit short of sleep because of having had the flu that
> left us plagued with a lingering cough that seemed to attack us at
> night while we were trying to sleep. I was reviewing the Sabbath
> school lesson during the hour drive to church, so that it could be
> fresh in my mind so that I could "teach" and not "read" the
> lesson. About 2/3rds of the way there, my cell phone rang, (which
> it never has to my knowledge on the trek down there). I answered
> it, and a lady named Ashley asked for Catherine. I told her that
> she had the wrong number. She apologized, and I assured her that
> it was no problem, and wished her well and we hung up. Brian's
> response was, "she didn't get the wrong number,... the phone call
> just woke me up." He had just fallen asleep ... DRIVING... when
> she called. I phoned her back after church just to thank her and
> to let h!
> er know that I didn't know whether she was a Christian or not, but
> that God had used her to save us from what could have been a deadly
> accident. The route we take is windy and mountainous, (such as we
> have in eastern Kentucky). There have been many fatal and serious
> accidents on this road, which is currently under major
> reconstruction because of this.
>
> A few days later she called and left the following message on my
> cell phone.
>
> "Hi Renee, this is Ashley. I was the one who called for the wrong
> number yesterday, and I wanted to just let you know that I
> appreciated your message. I am a Christian, and it's funny that
> that happened that way because I was actually reading my Bible that
> morning and a series of events happened where I almost didn't make
> that call..but I ended up making it, and I just wanted to let you
> know that I think that God was working through both of us
> yesterday. So thank your for your call and have a blessed holiday.
> Bye."
>

What a week it was

Well I am back from the desert, back home and reasonably safe and dry.

What a week on the list, miss a week, miss a lot. I want to respond
to several remarks on the list and then bore you with a short
travelog of our desert trip.

Johnny, no one else on here will say this so I will. You are going to
hell, H E L L. And so am I and so is David and so is Renee and so is
every other person on earth. Except for the love of God, off to hell
we go. I see it this way, I must live my life, live an honest life,
be true to myself, care for my family, care for my fellow man and
love my neighbor. After that it all seems to be one big argument
about doctrines that belong to various denominations and I will leave
that for God to sort out later.

Dave, the various notes about the passing of Pat touched me and I
thank you for sharing. While my family and friends were off in the
desert having fun, a very dear coworker and PUC employee was in a
severe car accident with severe head injuries and her recovery is
uncertain. The ebb and flow of life is uncertain at best, hug someone
today.

OK, we went camping for Christmas. Just gotta say what fun it was to
be away from home, from coworkers, from the daily rituals.

Started out at camping at Red Rock state park outside of Mohave, CA
meeting with friends Gerald and Quincy from Upland. We camped a total
of 4 nights but we were in wilderness for six days. We drove in a big
loop totaling about 400 miles with about 250 miles on dirt roads with
mixed in difficult 4x4 spots.

From Mohave with drove east to the Panamint mountains and traveled
up Golar wash and into Death Valley National park where we spent one
night in the Russell cabin on the edge of the park. In a remote
valley on the southern edge of the park there are three historical
cabins that are free to stay in on a first come first stay basis.
Each cabin has a stove or fireplace, running water and a lending
library of books and magazines chewed on by the local mouse and pack
rat population. Bring your own firewood, treat the water, add paper
in the outhouse and the place is yours. A small group in a 1968 Land
Rover had just left our cabin when we arrived and the place was clean
dry and warm with hot coals still in the stove. After a warm supper
and long evening around the fire ring outside, we slept with the mice
visitors and started the next day with eggs, vegebacon and potatoes
over an outdoor fire. What a life.

Next was the long drive down into Death Valley proper, past an old
abandoned resort called Warm Springs and then mostly dirt roads south
to Baker, CA. From Baker, after gas and ice, we drove east into
Nevada and south to near Needles, CA and the start of the Mohave
Road. This old dirt road is the historical route of the military
supply wagons that served Arizona territory before the arrival of the
train tracks in the late 1880's. This road would take us almost all
the way back to Barstow across the Mohave.

We drove down to the Colorado river in the dark and started our
historical journey. Starting the drive in the dark was never the
original plan but we had maps, gps and a twenty year old guide book,
what could go wrong. We camped after just ten miles of driving and I
set off some wonderful fireworks I purchased in Missouri this summer.
For the next three days we drove, camped, hiked and reveled in the
solitude of the desert. We ended each day with huge cooking over the
campfire, started most days with more camp fare and generally acted
like kids on holiday. Miles and miles of sandy trails, short sections
of technical driving and bumpy drives over ancient lava beds led us
continually west. On the last day we each collected a lava rock in
accordance with road tradition to add to the growing rock pyramid in
the middle of dry Soda Lake. Crossing the lake was the only real
concern section of the trip. If winter rains had added to much water
and the lake was no longer dry then we might have problems. The lake
was only damp and we added our rocks to huge pile that support a
historical marker in the middle of the lake.

The last day ended with sand play with the trucks in the dry Mohave
river and Gerald getting his Nissan pickup stuck and then shattering
something in the front differential making his and instant two wheel
drive vehicle. We winched his truck about 300 feet through the sand
to solid ground where we unlocked and disengaged the front drive so
he could drive it home.

Last night, upon arrival in the Napa Valley we found that home had
received 16 inches of rain since Christmas, 9 inches from Friday to
Saturday and all roads home were closed and flooded. We had to add
miles and hours to our trip as we tried different roads, spoke with
CHP officers and finally drove to Santa Rosa, Calistoga and home.