AN EXTRA 24

FINALLY! A comment on my blog! It is from my oldest daughter- Danielle. At this moment she is my favorite daughter. She is effervescent with her smile and dry wit. She commented: "You crack me up with how all your blogs are like mini sermons or teachings....Where's the good stuff like about how cute your daughter is, and all the funny, cute things (and I'm not talking about sermon cartoons)??? Come on Rick!!!! Maybe you need to spend more time with me so you are entertained or have entertaining things to talk about. "

Well - Danielle - This posting is for you.

Today is Leap Day. Ever wondered what you would do with an extra 24 hours? I know – today is a work day and work is required. Responsibilities of life continue. However, this is a an extra day in our normal calendar. The plans Sharron and I have for today is to travel to Charlotte this afternoon to see our beautiful and funny and admiring daughter Danielle.

So, what is all this stuff about leap year? The year 2008 is a leap year. If you look at a 2008 calendar, you will see that February has five Fridays–the month begins and ends on a Friday. Between the years 1904 and 2096, leap years that share the same day of week for each date repeat only every 28 years. The most recent year in which February comprised five Fridays was in 1980, and the next occurrence will be in 2036.


Leap years are needed to keep our calendar in alignment with the earth's revolutions around the sun. The vernal equinox is the time when the sun is directly above the Earth's equator, moving from the southern to the northern hemisphere.
The mean time between two successive vernal equinoxes is called a tropical year–also known as a solar year–and is about 365.2422 days long. For more information visit http://www.timeanddate.com/date/leapyear.html

A Leap Year Ditty to Remember It By

Thirty days hath September,

April, June and November;

All the rest have thirty-one

Save February, she alone

Hath eight days and a score

Til leap year gives her one day more

Sharron and I are also looking forward to seeing Stephanie ( at this moment - my favorite daughter). It is hard to believe that one year ago today Stephanie was laying in a hospital bed awaiting the birth of Alyse. Tomorrow the celebration takes place as Alyse has her first birthday! Sharron and I were pleased that Josh, Steph and Alyse had a short visit with us in Raliegh last weekend. As Steph and I sat on the couch in our family room she reminded me that I "crack myself up". This means I laugh everyday. I try to see humor in the daily activities of life.

It is recorded that "David encouraged himself in the Lord" (1 Samuel 30:6).

It is also true that "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength." (Proverbs 17:22)

I think it is a good thing to crack yourself up. Enjoy life!

A pictorial journey of the last year:

February 28,2007 - preparing to leave for the hospital.

Grammy holds Alyse within hours of her birth

Alyse is now 5 months old and her personality is showing through.

Sharron and I have made the decision to depart Kansas and relocate to North Carolina. We are seeking God's favor to discover what God's plan is for our life and ministry. Within a few months, and after a roller coaster of emotions as doors of opportunity open and then close, God leads us to Raleigh, NC.

Alyse visits us in Raleigh over the Christmas holiday. Sharron and I realize how blessed we are to be near family and in pastoral ministry.

When I think of how God has taken us on this journey of the past year, I am amazed at His fiathfulness and goodness to us. I remember holding my daughters Danielle and Stephanie in my arms when they were less than a year old and it seems like yesterday. Now I hold my granddaughter in my arms; I see her big smile, I listen to her laughter when I bring out "the claw" as I tickle her. I would have never imaganied such a great life. I am blessed by Sharron as we celebrate 30 years marriage this year. I am a blessed man and praise God for every day!

Tomorrow we party as Alyse celebrates her one year birthday.

I choose for this leap day - to be a day of reflection - giving thanks to God- loving family - and having fun. Today, I will crack myself up!

In the office today I am so encouraged about the many comments I have heard about my sermon last Sunday. You can hear the sermon on our podcast by clicking HERE and check out the overview of this series by clicking HERE

This coming Sunday I share about one of my favorite passages from 1 Kings 18 where the great prophet Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal with the great declaration "How long will you waver between two oopinions? If the Lord God is God then follow Him; but if Baal is god, follow him." Then the SHOWDOWN AT SUNDOWN began. I have been priviledge to stand upon Mt. Carmel in Israel several times. For those who have not had the priviledge to stand upon Mt. Carmel - here is a short clip which gives you a view of the top of Mt. Carmel.

It is with great anticipation that I prepare to speak on Sunday. If you live in the Triangle Area - invite your friends to church to see a powerful display of God's presence. My prayer echoes the prayer of Elijah; "Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so these people will KNOW that You, O Lord are God, and that You are turning our hearts back to You." This is my earnest prayer and I beieve a trustworthy statement.

The Revival We Need

As I prepare for my sermon for Sunday entitiled Encountering the Almighty I came across a website of a friend that challenged me. As I shared with the members of the Church Board at NRN at our last meeting that I believe we are on the verge of a divine moment from God, I asked the board members to join me in that belief. I am trusitng God for a supernatural movement of the Holy Spirit in my life and the life of my church. This is why I have been challenged by the words below:

“The Revival We Need” by Oswald J. Smith (1925) says…

“Work among believers of itself will not suffice. It matters not how spiritual a church may profess to be, if souls are not saved something is radically wrong, and the professed spirituality is simply a false experience, a delusion of the devil. People who are satisfied to meet together simply to have a good time among themselves, are far away from God.

Then he goes on to say…

“Real spirituality always has an Outcome. There will be a yearning and a love for souls. We have gone to places that have a name of being very deep and spiritual, and have often found that it was all in the head, the heart was unmoved; and there was, not infrequently, hidden sin somewhere. ‘Having a form of Godliness but denying the power thereof.’

“Oh, the pathos of it all! Let us then challenge our spirituality and ask what it produces; for nothing less than a genuine Revival in the Body of Christ resulting in a true Awakening among the unsaved will ever satisfy the heart of God.“

This is a trustworthy saying that I long to become reality in my life and ministry.

Remembering Racar

Today my mind was flooded with memories of the trips to Ecuador during this past six years. I rejoice that the Wesleyan Church of Ecuador is on the move! Below is a picture of the Kansas District Partnership Workteams near the church plant in Racar, near Cuenca, Ecuador. They served in Ecuador from January 25th through February 8th.



I miss my good friends and partners in ministry. I prayed for the team during this year's time of service.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Today has been a GREAT DAY as I celebrate another birthday. To end any rumors - today I celebrated my 53rd birthday! I enjoyed the ecards from Danielle and Stephanie and the post on Stephanie's blog. Sharron surprised me this morning with a card which brought tears to my eyes ( I am not worthy). The emails from friends in NC, Kansas and even Germany encouraged my heart. Thanks to the pastoral and minstry staff at NRN for the gift card and the kind words. How did I celebrate? I was able to work at home and wear sweats and my favorite sweatshirt for most of the day. Sharron is ALWAYS so good to me.







This past weekend I enjoyed the annual "Polar Bear" couples retreat in Myrtle Beach with our friends from North Raleigh Naz. The weather was fantastic as we left the glass door to our room opened during the evening to breathe in the salt air and listen to the waves crashing upon the shore. My short fight with the flu has seem to ended and I feel much better than I did a week ago. I think the great fellowship, good fun and the trips to Freindly's for ice cream really helped me!



I look forward to preaching this Sunday. Our Super Sunday on February 3rd was incredible as God blessed us with an offering just shy of $26,000. Realizing that our average weekly offering had been about $7,000 a week - this is a praiseworthy event. I am excited about how God is showing Himself faithful to those who have placed their trust in Him. This Sunday I begin a series on Mountain Top Faith. My prayer is that God will deepen our faith in Him over this Lenten Season.

A Parent's Promise

I am back from a short time away from my blog.

On Friday Janaury 25 Sharron and were priviledge to be at the dedication for our granddaughter Alyse.

Here are words of the PARENT'S PROMISE:

As a parent, I accept my child as a unique gift from God. I understand that my parental responsibility involves encouraging my child to pursue a relationship with Jesus Christ and helping my child understand God's specific purpose for her life. therefore, I promise today that I will strive to do the following:

To recognize that my relationship with this child is a sacred trust which requires an investment of quality time and unconditional love.

To accept the primary responsibility to teach my child the spiritual truths and values of Scripture.

To pray consistently or the physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing of my child.

To demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit of Christ.

We celebrate the dedication of Alyse to the Lord. Since I was not raised in a Christian home I was never dedicated to the Lord by my parents. I am so glad that through my faith and trust in Jesus Christ as my personal Savior - I have been taken in, adopted, into the family of God. When God granted us the precious gifts of Danielle and Stephanie on November 1, 1980 we dedicated them to the Lord in a public service. Now, our granddaughter has been dedicated to the Lord. Our prayer is that she will one day embrace Jesus as her Lord and Savior and then walk with Him for a lifetime.

"I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of Him. So now I give him to the Lord." 1 Samuel 27-28a This is a trustworthy saying!