Its Tuesday....and I Have A Headache

I NEVER get headaches, but wow....do I have one today!!  Maybe the fact I didn't drink my usual mug of coffee this morning?? :)

Yesterday was a long, long day, so I didn't get to post.  But here are some random thoughts from the weekend to now.....

• Steve Robertson is definitely crowned "Blog King".  He cheated by asking for comments, but that is OK, as FORTY (4-0) comments is completely ridiculous....unless he paid some of you guys....:)...!!
• Now....let's see him do that every week...!  :)  (Thanks Eddie)
• We had a great weekend at Harvest, again!  I am amazed at the new faces I see each week.  I never get tired of preaching to hungry hearts!
• Highlight for me of the Rave was meeting a precious young lady from Morrocco.  My dad is from there, so we were able to connect.  She just moved here, no Christian background at all, only Muslim (family).  I hope she had a good experience.  I so felt God's immense love for her.
• Baptisms were cool Sunday night.  I did not know about half of them.  God spoke to me several years ago that when the time for the 'final, end-time harvest' would come, that would be the case many times over:  The people would be coming to God quickly and we had to prepare the nets ahead of time, as the time of the pastor personally knowing each one would be over.  The structure would have to be in place for them to grow and connect beyond me.
• That has well happened!  Deb and I went to the final Alpha class last night.  WOW!!  What amazing life was present!  I got to meet some of these newly committed ones for the first time and hear their stories.  It was precious.  I left thinking, "I can DEFINITELY give my entire life to seeing this happen!!"  
• Pastoring is hard work, period.  Anyone who says different just wants to preach and has no idea how much energy goes into the other 98% of the job.  There are times of great joy, but likewise times of great sadness.  Your heart is elated, your heart gets ripped out of you and handed on a plate. Some 'seasons' are less stressful (thankfully), but the stressful ones more than make up for the 'lulls'.  But as Dennis said Sunday night, "You can never allow your heart to get hard against God's sheep."  Well said.  I love what I do and am priveledged to be an 'undershepherd' to the Great Shepherd, Jesus Himself.
• Speaking of Sunday night, Dennis Nelson, one of our Overseers, brought it on HARD!!! I loved the fact that he felt free to speak from his heart.  Sobering in a very, very good way.
• Went to Mike's Gunshop Friday with Pastor Roger to look at guns.  Why,.. I don't know, ..but we did.  There were no parking places left.  It was crazy!  I asked one of the clerks what was going on and he said it has been like this since the day after the elections.  Did I say CRAZY?!?!?!
• On that, it seems our Nation (and world) has gone nuts.  Seriously, I am convinced that sin really does make you stupid.  You just lose all "common" sense.  Over the next few days I will post some stuff that has come my way that really is beyond belief!  I may post a few some days.  I just have to get it out of my system and figure best to just get it out in one week! :)

To Sanity in the Midst of INsanity!! :)

PB

PS....I have to give a 'rec' on my new favorite meal:  Sonny's Barbeque, the 'Big Deal'.  Pulled pork sandwich on Texas garlic toast, side of baked beans and slaw, large sweet tea, all for $6.49!  We have been cutting back on eating out but someone treated us Sunday after church.  Man O Man....GOOD STUFF!!!!!!!!!!  

Comments

[Lonnie Ferguson]

"Ask and you shall recieve is a tennant of the faith".... (I hope that was good phrasing from my hillbilly vernacular...)and I also hope to get some pay from Steve on Sunday morning ( lol, like he has time to do my job) but you both do a good job at what you do......

[Becca]

There was an article in the PNJ on gun sales being on the rise. I thought that was interesting...

[rustypants]

i feel you on the hard work of pastoring. one thing that never failed to amaze me was the number times i had my heart handed to me on a platter - how many times (sometimes years later) the folks who did the handing turned things around and ended up being incredible blessings.

in the end, all you can do is pray and hope and keep putting your heart out there (sometimes it's the degree to which we put it out there that has to be tended to...)

[Jim Mather]

Glad to hear about the visitor from Morrocco! That is great.
Jim