Getting Old?

The Spirit is timeless but the container God knits together in our mother's womb changes over time (Psalm 139:13). The Spirit lives on after the container has returned to the ground. An eternity together in paradise or alone in torment (Matthew 25:31-46). We follow Jesus or we go the way of the world Love must give us the choice or there can be no love.

All of this become clearer as I watch dear people around me move through life. When we grow up we begin to see new life appear. As we are witness to the growing up of these new lives we gain amazing insight into how this life God has given works. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. (Romans 10:17)

This Friday I had the privilege and pleasure of seeing many little people whom I have a profound love for. It was through a church fellowship that I came to see these families as they grew together or in some cases apart. I would probably not have been there but my profession gives me the opportunity and for that I am thankful.

 For many of the children I have known over the years it is that time when they take on more responsibility for their own futures. Some have already made decisions which have thrown their lives into chaos. Some with the support of their families and a reverence for God and His Word have been preserved. For them it is a sacred time and they can look forward to the future with excitement and none of the regret of having disobeyed. Father for those who are conflicted at this very moment may they respond to your pursuit and return to the peace that is found in You! May they awaken to Truth that the Love they seek is You!

This gathering was for three lovely graduates born into three blessed families and the celebration was full of light. It was thrilling to see how far they have come and the graceful young women they now are. The true tests are still ahead as they leave their loving homes and live on campuses where they will be told unequivocally that their origins are accidental and their is no truth except the truth they make up for themselves. They will tested and tried by those who will want to profit from them in a world that see everyone as a resource to be plundered. They have been trained up and know the Truth it will be up to them to walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16)

And the story continues as generation after generation rises.

11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. 12 We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. 13 For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. 16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
2 Corinthians 5:11-21

Anclote with Old Friends

Capt. Scott facilitated a spectacular adventure for all of us childhood friends today! Our destination was Anclote Key!

It was a beautiful day to be on the water!

“All about us, in earth and air, wherever the eye or ear can reach, there is a power ever-breathing itself forth in signs, now in a daisy, now in a wind-waft, a cloud, a sunset; a power that holds constant and sweetest relation with the dark and silent world within us. The same God who is within us and upon whose trees we are the buds, if not yet the flowers, also is all about us, inside, the Spirit; outside, the Word. And the two are ever trying to meet in us; and when they meet, then the sign without, and the longing within become one light, and the man no more walketh in darkness, but knoweth wither he is goeth” (Thomas Wingfold, Curate, Ch.82) George Macdonald

The eldest of the Miller brothers was in town and it was his visit that precipitated the adventure. On the boat were Capt. Scott, the Miller brothers, the younger of the miller brothers was accompanied by his two sons and then there was my brother and I!

You and I are the offspring of God. The one and only Creator of all that there is. In Him alone is love and only through a return to Him in complete surrender do we have fellowship with each other! This fellowship is good and true and is a shadow of the fellowship ahead of us in the kingdom to come.

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.  Ephesians 4:1-7 ESV

18hp Merc 13'5" canoe test.

A friend of mine and I attached his 18hp Mercury 2 stroke on the Hullabaloo last evening for a little test. As usual things rarely go the way you may expect. I am thinking we will crank up the throttle, pop up on plane and be skipping across the surface of the bay a high speed. Not so unfortunately.



The motor boat performance may have been a disappointment but God's closing for the day was awe inspiring!

 

If you do not know your Maker seek Him and be delighted!

11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile. Jeremiah 29:11-15English Standard Version (ESV)

Tim Paskert guest speaker at Manhattan Baptist Church

A friend of mine Tim Paskert Spoke at a church Sunday (Manhattan Baptist). He has been a kind of circuit rider of late and invited a bunch of men from a morning Bible study I attend to come.



Tim is an interesting fellow to say the least. Wherever he goes you are going to know he is there. He claims there was a time in his younger years when he actually believed that there is no God. If you did not know him then you would be hard pressed to picture Tim without God. I did not know him them but I am told He was only a little less fervent about sharing his faith for atheism than he now is about the Gospel of my Lord and rescuer Jesus!



Tim continues to humble himself before the Lord and the Lord faithfully gives him Grace to share his passion for the Truth of God's Word. I was blessed and encouraged by the hearing!

Here is a bit more about Tim and his family.

Thank you Lord for my Christian brothers.

Mashugana Joe

My Friend Joe and I went to one of his favorite eateries ABC Pizza. I know he is my friend because he will remind me of this repeatedly whenever we talk. It takes me back to life on the playground when you meet someone new and if you think you like them you ask them the question, " Will you be my friend?" I need to re-learn this honest approach to relationships. 

 It was good to see Joe again. We have been acquainted for over a decade. Joe always has words of wisdom. I am not sure he means them to be so, or thinks of them as such, but truly they are. Joe is a sincere person for better or for worse and it is refreshing. This visits two word's of wisdom are..... 

1. "It is always good to feel wanted."

2. "It is good to know people."

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. (Romans 12:3 ESV)

Carolina Skiff 16

The ill-fated voyage of the Carolina Skiff with Capt. Scott.


Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Romans 12:2

A very Merry Fishmas 2015

 

Fishing Christmas day Dawn to Dusk and loving every minute of it Praise God!

My friend Scott and his nephew Nathan invited me to go fishing off of Anclote Key Yesterday. I said absolutely and we had one of those one in a thousand days! I caught this ……

and they caught this….

and this….

I am not bitter I was to busy playing with my new Sony a6000 which is an amazing performer.

Hope you all had a blessed holiday and that the New Year will bring you ever closer to the truth of who you are and why you are here.

Apple Wood Smoked Chicken

Yesterday I once again fired up the Char-Griller!

This time I was cooking the second half of the chicken that was larger than it looked behind the meat counter.

I used Apple wood for the first time. Publix had small bags of Apple, Cherry, Mesquite and Hickory wood.

We were blessed to have a guest. A self described Southern girl who made a delicious Pecan Pie. Oh boy was it good. Now back to the chicken

 

It did not disappoint!

Grilled carrots and mashed potatoes on the side. I baked the potatoes skin and mash them and they have a smoky flavor with a thicker consistency than boiled mashed potatoes! Smoke yourself some meat!

Great Grandma's Zip Line

I have been constructing a small zip line for a Great Grandma I know and it is almost finished. Below is a video recorded by an ace reporter who also happens to be a professional zip liner.

With all the forces exerted on the two support poles it takes a lot of adjusting to get the tension right.

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Breaking in the Outboard.

Yesterday afternoon Scott called and asked if I wanted to cruise around the bay  while the new lower unit on his outboard continued to break itself in. I was happy to oblige.



It was another lovely evening out there and the sky put on a real show of God's Glory!

Afternoon and Evening Afloat!

Decided on Thursday that Sunday afternoon would be spent bobbing the bay. A little fishing but mostly just surveying some old familiar haunts.

It was beautiful weather with spectacular skies overhead.

Scott suggested we get some sustenance on the way back to the dock. We motored up to the Hula Bay and threaded our way through all the fancy people looking like a couple of commercial fisherman me with no shoes on. It was a mad house. I ordered a Hula burger and Scott a Blue cheese burger. Pricey but tasty. If you want to know what the Hula Bay is like it can be summed up by telling you they have a bathroom attendant.

We decided to chug over to Rat Island just a few hundred yards to the South where we had some elbow room and the noise of the revelers was just audible enough to remind us of how nice it was to be on our own private island!’

The food was really delicious! Here is the description of the burger I ravenously consumed: Hula Bay Burger Garlic teriyaki burger with honey dijon sauce, bacon, swiss and grilled pineapple.

Clear Winter Waters

My friend Scott recently made mention of the clarity of the water in Tampa Bay and we did something about it. I met he and his wife at an agreed upon location for some chilly skin diving!



It was clear and it was chilly and we had an invigorating time flailing around above and below the surface.


 There is a lot to see under the surface!



We had a great time and we will go out again soon Lord willing!

Fishing for and catching Reds

After fixing my 5hp four stroke Nissan outboard I had the irresistible desire to got out on the water again! The solution was a trip with my friend Scott to fish the inland side of Picnic Island Park.



It went well and we had a great time



I caught this fish ......



and this bigger fish ..... using live herring we captured with a cast net. All in all a great morning enjoying God's Creation!

The Cottage.

The cottage in which we had the pleasure of staying for the next three days was just right. It was both quaint and comfortable.

I stayed in this room upstairs in the bed closest to the camera view.

There were all kinds of plants surrounding the cottage that added to the beauty of the property and many of the flowers had very pleasant scents!

The whole area was good for the body, mind and spirit!

Day 1 Took a Plane to Maine

 

Thanks to two generous friends I found myself flying to Portland Maine on May 30th. It was an early morning flight and the plane rose with sun as we left Tampa International.

We had a 3 hr. layover in New York and then it was on to Maine.

The air travel was smooth and uneventful and after landing in Portland I knew that most of the future movement would be by boat and golf cart.

Upon arrival in Portland we took a harrowing cab ride courtesy of an energetic Somali man and eventually made it to the ferry terminal. But not before feasting on an “Italian” featured in the image below!

If you find yourself fresh off a flight to Portland and want to refuel I highly recommend one. They can be procured from Amato’s.

Or destination for the weekend was a comfy little cottage on the South West coast of Great Diamond Island. More about that tomorrow!