Sunday…. WE will be in church together today to WORSHIP!

 

 For today:

I have heard many explanations of why there were actual ‘physical miracles’ many years ago, but seldom nowadays. One is financial. It is true at the time my sister broke her arm the WWII was on and money was tight. I am not sure if there was such a thing as health insurance. If it did exist, dad could not have afforded it.  He certainly could not have afforded the hospital nor doctor.  So I will admit lack of finances may have contributed to the miracles.

Be that as it may, since I think, this is the first time I ever told this ‘OUT LOUD’ in writing (as I remember) here goes:

Our little church was growing. I began questioning God why I did not see miracles?  This church would grow by leaps if ONE miracle could happen.

Then I set that as a goal, I BELIEVED in miracles. I had preached about the Lord’s teachings of fasting. I fasted and prayed. NADA

Finally, I decided, okay, maybe not a physical one. God I am gonna give it another shot. I am not going to tell my ‘Church organizational leaders my problem, but I am going to see them. “God, if just one says, Jack, you have a problem, let’s pray about it!” I will BELIEVE and work myself to death for YOU.”

“If not, I am out of here.

(YEP, I know NOW how obstinate and stupid I was, it is a wonder God hadn’t struck me dead!)

All my church leaders sang my praises of how great a job I was doing, NOT ONE saw my heart to know I was BROKEN.

Later I went to Sherry and said, “Honey I am resigning Sunday, I will not stand in that pulpit and say things I do not believe.”  that broke my girl’s heart.

I had built a steeple and was installing it on another church in the area. That afternoon My sweetheart drove up there and standing on the ground looking up said, “Jack, you cannot believe what you said, that is crazy!”

I said calmly just as I felt, “Honey this (and I swung my arms around to that big church) This is all a joke. There is no God, I am through with this farce.”

She cried some, but it never did shake her faith. For a few years, after Gaston Tech, after joining the USN; I attended church with her regularly, I still respected her feelings.  We did have some trouble once, while stationed in D.C. over ‘my problem’. I have probably told that before in a different context.

Maybe we will talk about that later. ;-)

Thanks for coming this way.

Nite Shipslog

 

PS:  Sometimes I still worry about my sanity.  LOL  Some of you humans are a little crazy at times, maybe I am just a little more crazy!

I ask myself now, (as maybe you just did), how could you have seen GOD work and just forget it??  I have looked at scripture and wondered how someone could have seen Jesus and the great things he did and then turn and walk off, but some did.  CRAZY, isn't it?

 

Saturday… A little more (a miracle, did I make it up? I do not think so, )

 

So, for today:

I was raised in a Pastor’s home.  My beliefs and standards were set by what I saw at home and what I took time to listen to in church, which was as little as possible as a boy. Let me say here, I think Children’s Church is a great idea, but I also think children should be in ‘big people’s church’ at least once a month.

  Since I came along long before Children’s church, I sat thru ALL big people’s church services. Singing was okay however I, and my buddies, tried many ways to pass time during sermons.

One of us had a watch, we passed time seeing who could hold their breath the longest.  If I remember right it was seldom over a minute; the average was about 45 seconds.

But away from church services, my mama and daddy were just as humble, honest and true behind scenes in our home as they were in church. Since I was raised around church, I heard many pastors, VERY FEW had anything bad to say about church members. To my dad, his church was his family.

My present pastor has no qualms of speaking of ‘terrible members he had at previous churches’.  The pain church members caused his family and wife, etc. I wonder to myself. “If he would go to pastor another church, would he have the same statements about us, his present members?”

When I hear those or similar statements, my mind goes to my upbringing, I NEVER ONCE heard my parents say in private at home or at church, ANYTHING bad about the church members, past or present. Over the years I have had many people come to me and tell me of good things my parents did for them during his pastorates.

Something from my childhood set the stage for my misgivings about my role in life to be a ‘Preacher’ and the same thing set my life up for loss of faith. You ask, how could that be?

I was 4 years old, my sister was 6 or 7. The parsonage was beside the church. WE were playing on the church steps, she fell and screamed so loud it brought dad out of the house. I looked and Shirley’s arm was broken. Even to a kid I knew the arm should not bend between the elbow and wrist.

Dad took Shirley into the church, she was screaming and crying, he was praying. I and friends followed. He placed Shirely on the alter, kneeling beside her he straighten her arm and continued to pray and Shirley quit crying. I had witnessed what my dad had preached about, MIRACLES. It wasn’t more than 10-15 minutes, and we were playing again after daddy told us to be more careful.

WE all went on about our lives as if all was normal, and to us it was.

 

Nite Shipslog

PS: AS far as I remember, I NEVER heard dad say a thing about that, it was as if it was just normal. That was my one and only miracle. I have heard of many, but that is my only one.

Sorry this is too long I will continue..

This is Friday with some history

 Today’s picture:

 

Key West Methodist Church Kid's Day (many years ago)

BUT for today:

We all have a history.  That history is determined by decisions we make as we travel this road called life. Some decisions are made for us. As I navigated thru life, some years were directed by the Government via the military. They decided where I would live and the jobs, I would be assigned by tests I took. My first enlistment was the USMC for 2yrs. At the end of an enlistment, I could re-enlist or get out and find a job; I have done both. I always missed the regimentation of the military, when I took the discharge. Then came the USAF a 4yr enlistment.

The tests I took sent my life into into Computers. I had extensive schooling in Analog and digital computers. My last assignment in the USAF was a great one, I was a computer repairman at a small radar site near Kirksville, MO. At the end of that enlistment, I took a discharge because I had started a ‘side-job’ in the religious world of entertaining kids.i.e. chalk talks, drawings, ventriloquism and magic.

Instead of staying with kids, I decided to become a pastor. One short pastorate in Missouri, Another short pastorate in Rutherfordton, NC and then Sherry and I organized and built a church near Belmont, NC. We had wonderful people come and join with us.

The church grew; there was a lot more involved in that period. At this time I will not go into detail, but I lost my FAITH, my beliefs. I refused to stand in a Pulpit and say things I no longer believed, so I shocked my wife, my friends, my church by immediately resigning as soon as I came to the realization I was having a problem with my faith.

Above is the church we started now. The part to the left is the original we built.  It really grew.  We had a great location.

I told the church I was returning to school. WE bought a small house for $3000, moved out of the attached parsonage and I enrolled at Gaston Tech to study surveying.  BUT in all my wanderings and ‘still-times’ my mind kept hearing calls back to the military.

So, after one or two semesters at Gaston Tech, I enlisted in my 3^rd branch of service, the USN.  Again, the tests I took sent me to IBM repair school; I became an IBM repairman for Naval Intelligence Processing aboard the aircraft carrier, USS independence CVA62 at 28 years old. Our old house-trailer had been rented out. We moved it to Norfolk, VA. for a place to live. While at sea Sherry took care of our 2 boys and home.

Nite Shipslog

PS:   Thanks for coming our way (Maybe I Will continue tomorrow.)…

THURSDAY… Self control and SUNDAYs

 

                                (I did 'sink'** into her arms!)

 For now:

Sunday WAS respected in the past, by MOST folks whether religious or not. No one would ‘cut their grass or go hunting’ on Sunday. Most businesses closed so employees could rest AND/or go to church.

I am still amazed that ‘Little Leagues’ schedule games or practice on Sunday morning; looking back, most kids in our area were in Sunday School at that time.

As I ponder today’s world and the headlines such as:

‘MAN KILLS WIFE OVER FOOTBALL GAME ON TV’

‘WOMAN KILLS INFANT BECAUSE IT CRIES”

‘Driver Shoots Man for Driving Too Slow’

‘MAN THROWS BABY AGAINST THE WALL BECAUSE HE LOST VIDEO GAME’

Every day we read of someone with NO Self Control, doing something irrational in the heat of the moment and ruins their life and the lives of others.

WHAT has happened? Could it possibly be that we lost knowledge of right and wrong.  Have you ever taken time to look at the 10 Commandments? Yes, they are connected to a religion, BUT have you ever just considered them as plain COMMON SENSE!

Sunday School taught the Ten Commandments, kids heard, and they became part of our lives. So in my mind I somehow relate our worlds’ loss to lack of respect for a Supreme Being. 

Is Sunday the Sabbath? Is Sunday the first or last day of the week. I think we just need a day set aside to consider our life….

I have respect for other religions. I leave that up to GOD to decide the TRUTHS and UNTRUTHS in that respect. I do think we should ALWAYS keep in mind there are consequences (legal, physically and morally) of our actions. No matter THE regrets, how many times you say ‘I am so sorry’, wild actions and words CANNOT be UNDONE!

It seems that the crazy actions and headlines will continue until we regain respect for our fellow man and get back to following the TEN COMMANDMENTS.  I was taught them, I relate them to Jesus.

A blog that many follow begins this way:

It is no point having faith in a Master who walks on water if we do not trust Him enough to follow Him.

Quoting my dad, “In this world, Some are so heavenly minded that they are no earthly good”. So here on earth we must still relate to our neighbors. An example: Old Vic suggests you follow Christ.  He also has not lost his sense of humor. He also says:

**A man who sinks into a woman’s arms… will soon find his arms in her sink.

Au revoir!

NiteShipslog

PS:  Thanks for taking your time to stop by!

This is Wednesday, Taxes…. House or mobile home

 Today’s picture:

That is our neighbors Trailer in Kirksville, MO we were in the USAF at the time.

We have build and lived in some nice homes the one below had an indoor pool.

 The double glass doors at the end was our bedroom pool was 91 degrees year round...

Some folk don't believe it, but my sweetheart and I are just as happy in a trailer as the houses I have built.

BUT for today:

It is according to your needs and personal feelings.  Many years ago we came to the conclusion that a trailer, mobile home, was best suited for military life.  And with a change of duty stations, it made moving time simpler (No packing and unpacking) and no need to adjust your living arrangements with every move.  It served us well and we never felt looked down on nor as I have heard in later years, as far as I know, we were never called ‘Trailer Trash.’

Here is Florida we have owned & lived in one house and 2 mobile homes.  AT the end of the year you learn fast, it pays to live in a Mobile Home.  Mobile home taxes are much less than half of wood/brick house.  Also taxes go down on the trailer, BUT on a home there will be an increase every couple years.

All we need is a clean solid place to live with heat and A/C.  A Mobile home has many years satisfied our needs. So Of course when we buy again here in Florida, we will be looking for a Mobile home with it’s own land.

Here I learn many folks choose a home due to hurricane season. That doesn’t bother me too much.   Once in the path of a hurricane, we decided to leave our trailer home to outrun a hurricane in the motor home and mostly did, but when we returned, we found very little damage to our mobile home and lot.

 Yep, in Florida it is hurricanes and alligators.

 

Nite Shipslog

PS:   Thanks for coming our way…

 

Tuesday… Taxes , everyones fav subject..

 

For now:

Here in Florida we go to the tax office to renew your car tags. We can renew our tags online with a credit card. To show I AM OLD: I THOUGHT I HAD RENEWED MY TAGS. I kept looking for them in the mail. Since they did not show up in 3 weeks I started checking back. The money never came out of my CC account.

Come to find out, I never hit ‘SEND’, or Go or what ever, so my tags were NEVER ordered. So, to the tag office. I renewed two tags, car and a utility trailer.  When I went out to the Utility trailer to put the little sticker on the old tag, IT WAS NOT THERE, NO TAG!!  It had been lost or stolen, most likely it was just lost. So back to the tax office. The replacement tag cost twice what I had already paid. OUCH!!!

BUT with all my fussing, I have dealt with at least 4 state DMVs, NC is one of the worst and Florida is the best I have ever encountered. They seem to bend over backwards to get you in and out. NC seems to try to find something wrong to send you back and the procedure is longer making  service much more involved and slow.

All that said, referring to taxes. I just saw a complaint article about property taxes in Florida.  The highest taxes are in the Miami area, an average of $253 a month. I looked again, realizing we are paying more than that in NC in Gaston county. About $3000 a year. WE pay $3800 a year in Gaston County, NC  OUCH, our taxes are higher than Miami, FL!!!

Our governor says we will never own our homes; we will always RENT from the state, I guess that is about correct.

It is tax time. ARE YOU READY?  At least one thing going for us in Florida,  we have no state income tax, that counts.

Nite Shipslog

PS:  Taxes are a pain but they are necessary to pay for roads, police, etc.

Monday.. Been to the Grocery store lately?

Pic of the day:

 

(I just cannot help it, this is one of my favorite views thru our picture windows! Clear road ahead. This might be Maine)

For now:

Over the years we have gotten sorta lazy. Now we buy our popcorn in bags. Stick it in the Microwave and ‘voila’, in a couple minutes you have your snack.  No pot, no oil etc.

I like nuts, now you can buy any nut in at least 3-5 different ways.  I am hooked on honey roasted almonds. I like honey roasted p-nuts too.  The other day I grabbed some coconut coated almonds; I wasn’t crazy about them.

WE definitely pay for the tasty treats and quick snacks. It has been a while since I have bought a t-bone, or higher cut of Beef. I just read that Beef (At Publix here) has climbed to actually about $50 a pound for the TOP of the line, that was about $18 per when I did buy it. I used to cook stew beef weekly, now it has been awhile, the last I bought was about $9.50 per, it is soaring up towards $15 a pound.

We can afford the prices, but I feel sorta ‘cheated’. I may be living in my mind, 10 yrs ago, possibly.

WE have now found our nitch, mostly ideas from our Batchelor sons. WE love chicken sandwiches. WE pick up a Rotisserie chicken. I slice it and clean the bones. It actually gives us 3 days of great sandwiches and 2 days of super chicken soup. LOL That is up to 5 days for less than $12, total.

WE do not do that every week, I could, but Sherry gives us some variety.  Still our weekly or bi-weekly trip to the Grocery store is $150 a trip for 2 and it was around $100.

That includes normal cleaning stuff, some vitamins, supplements, and red wine. Dr. suggested more oatmeal & small glass red wine nightly for cholesterol. I got very upset when I lost a muscle to deterioration in my right arm while on statins! (Junk is my opinion, not his)

Enough..  I just laughed big.  A car or truck near by just started the engine, it is LOUD. I told Sherry, I loved that when I was 16-17 years old, it was COOL.  NOW?  It is just noise.  LOL

Another view I like:

Stopping for a while, this was our diesel pusher, we drive a gasser now, I sorta miss that diesel, LOL

Nite Shipslog

PS.   Burger King up the road, We decided to splurge and stop by the drive thru and get a whopper. WE do love that big hamburger, BUT it is now right at $8 each.

Sunday .. I hope you are more observant than I

 Today’s picture:

 

This is Kennedy our winking great grand (She belongs to Stephen and Jennifer)

BUT for today:

Thank goodness my CC has an expiration date.  I have mentioned that I am being told to renew my MS265 or something to do with Word which I have used for years and I like it.  But originally it cost about 20$ on a disc.

Now with this new laptop they are billing me $99.99 for a year. I don’t need it that much.  If my card had not expired it would have automatically renewed.  So I am glad the card expired. Victor suggested a substitute I am going to use, I think.

I do not remember allowing them to continue to take it out, but being as dumb as I am on the stuff here on the NET, I very well may have.

WE are starting to have a paperless and cashless society.  I couldn’t believe it a year or so back when I went to buy a lawn mower the seller would not accept a check, it was in an upscale neighborhood.  He asked if I used Zelle or something like that, of course I do not.

I wanted the mower, so I had to get cash and come back, at least he did accept cash. LOL

I am getting more confused by the day with things that do not fit my mindset.

Enough, take care and have a great Sunday.

 

Nite Shipslog

PS:   Thanks for coming our way…