Leap Year

My last post was in December. Where did the time go? It has been a very busy few months. This note is to remind you all that the WOW goes on! The WOW Initiative is a three year Initiative! This year is Win One Woman - now Win Our World

Or even

Won One Woman - now Winning Our World.

The WOW goes on.

Stay tuned for exciting news!

Can you believe that Christmas is upon us?

Already it is December! Soon it will be Christmas day. For many children and children at heart the anticipation of the day we celebrate the birth of Christ, the ultimate Gift, cannot come soon enough. For the busy corps officers, soldiers and employees of The Salvation Army a successful Christmas Season cannot be completed soon enough. Yet, this is the time of year when more people are open to the Message and Ministry of Christ, and that should be something all Christians would want to last for a long time.

I have noticed the word "Believe" a lot this Christmas. Sometimes it is "Believe in the Magic" of Christmas. So I have come up with some M&Ms of Christmas.

Believe in the Message of Christmas - that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Believe in the Ministry of Christmas - The kettles, the bells, the food boxes, the gifts, the rest home visits, the mail appeals, the Christmas Eve services, the focus on the Advent Wreath, the speaking at Service Clubs, and the list goes on and on - all of these activities are points of ministry when we share the Love of God and help move people closer to a right relationship. This happens when we do all we do as though we were "doing it for the Lord."


Believe in the Magic of Christmas - There are a lot of great stories and traditions that come to us at this time of year. The world seems to stop and wait for something to happen. Build on that magic and that expectation to point to the real message. Jesus was God's peace offering to establish a relationship with humans. The angels sang "Peace on earth good will toward mankind." It was not a sentimental wish it was an announcement of God's plan.

Believe in the Miracle of Christmas - Watch for that moment or moments when your heart is blessed and you feel the Presence of God. It may be in the eyes of a child or an elderly person. It may be that it happens in a Sunday Service or while you are shopping. It may happen at your Christmas Center or at a Kettle. Believe and you will receive!

May God bless you and remind you how much He loves you!

Thanksgiving

The day draws near, my palms are getting sweaty, soon it will be time to make the Thanksgiving meal! Praise God, Thanksgiving is more than preparing the feast and then feasting.

For what are you thankful?

God's Grace is a good place to begin.

Our Amazing time in Tulare, CA

Captains Bob and Rhonda Lloyd, and Major Linda Manhardt joined Don and I as we visited the Tulare Corps recently. Here is a picture of the junior and senior soldiers enrolled that day. It was after the meeting and before we ate an amazing great lunch so some of the soldiers had escaped to go and work.

Praise God for the work that Captains David and Ruth Scott have accomplished for God. Praise God for the people of Tulare, California.

Yosemite Photo

Here is a shot I took while we were in Yosemite. It is October and starting to see the change in the leaves.

In the Autumn of the year when the chlorophyll departs from the leaves, you see their true colors. The chlorophyll makes the leaves appear to be green when it is active.

When you are "challenged" by life, you reveal your true colors. Are you real?

It has been a while!

I have not posted for most of the summer and fall. We have been traveling a lot. We were in Alaska,Washington, Africa, Washington DC, Yosemite, and so many other places. So when I was home, I was very busy catching up.

Let me tell you about the WOW Initiative. It is going great. We will soon get the year end reports, but from what we see in the August reports, the year end should show a 5% increase in attendance. This is the first increase in about 10 years!

Through those years certain divisions would have the increases, but others had challenges! This year we were concerned that the blizzards in the Intermountain Division would have a very negative affect, but they worked hard to turn it around.

October has started off with a bad effect on Southern California and Sierra Del Mar with its horrible fires. The corps are working hard to provide relief to those who were evacuated from their homes and those who lost their homes in these fires. God bless those officers, soldiers and volunteers!

More to come!

Grand Canyon memories

"Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Thy Name in all the earth..." Psalm 8:1

The rocks, trees, mountains and skies display His splendor.

"What is man that Thou dost take thought of him? And the son of man, that Thou dost care for him?" Psalm 8:4

Wow, just to think that God, the God of all creation, loves me.

Grand Canyon, North Rim Vacation

Hello from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Well actually it is hello from me and here are some pictures I was able to take while on vacation at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We were also at Zion national park on this trip. It was hot, but beautiful! It is so amazing to see God's handiwork. To know that He set things in order so that the views of this beauty is ever changing yet remains the same.

Psalm 19 tells us that nature declares the wonders of God. WOW! He is the Wonder of Wonders!

This beautiful deer and it's companion reminded me of the verse, "as the deer pants for the water...that is the way my soul longs for you." It also reminded me of the book Hind's Feet on High Places. If you could have seen the path up the side of the canyon, you would have been amazed that the deer find their way!

As you go through the summer months, may God bless and keep you all safe. May His grace cause you to grow and increase in your spiritual life. Take time to thank God for His blessings.