September 30 – “The Library”

Mrs. Mac is great.  So patient and quiet.  She asked me how I thought the kids did at the library today.  My answer was that they behaved just about how you would expect a group of eight junior high students to behave.  A few were really paying attention.  A few were paying no attention at all.  The rest floated in and out as their attention capabilities allowed.  Problem was, they were a group of high school students.  My concern for them is that when they head for college they are going to have to grow up very quickly.    I really wanted to talk to Chris when I got home from school today.  Not about anything in particular.  I just haven't seen her very much lately.  We got started just fine.  She told me about the kinds of trees that grow best in Galveston.  It was nice to sit in the rocking chairs in the study and just talk.  After awhile, though, I couldn't keep my eyes open.  I was exhausted … again.  Chris went in to fix supper and I fell asleep in the chair.    I didn't feel much better when I woke up.  Supper was good, though.  Meat and cheese and tater tots and I assume some kind of cream of something soup to hold it all together.  Leftover key lime pie for dessert.   We went to youth group right after we ate.  The kids were wild and crazy.  They couldn't stay focused at all on the Bible study, and after the prayer time ended and the music segment began, the cell phones came out and the chattering began.  I know they needed to blow off steam.  I was glad that Mike was in a receptive mood.  He did his best to squeeze in some Bible truths.   I talked to Mike for a long time after we finished.  He has some big trials coming up (He's also a CSI).  He said I looked terrible.  Actually, he might have said "tired," but I felt terrible, so that's what I heard.  He wanted to know if I had been sleeping OK and was my back hurting.  Not the right things to ask tonight.  He did say that he would take action as "school board guy" and see about getting another ad in the paper for headmaster and teachers.   2 Corinthians 2:14 says, "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him."   Father, thank you for using us even when our "fragrance" feels more like "stinky."  Amen.

September 29 – “Wondering”

I'm writing this before Chris gets home from Bay City.  She should be here shortly.  The last text I got from her was that the news this time wasn't good about her Mom.  I have been wondering how "the news" has affected Chris.  It feels like I have been feeling her pain all afternoon.  I wish I could have been with her, at least for the drive home.    School was interesting today.  We had two teachers call in at the last minute.  Their classes are the last two of the day, so I decided to get out the Monopoly games.  We set up two boards.  One was the regular old-fashioned Monopoly game.  The other was one based on the national parks in America.  The boards were side by side, and the game pieces had to move across both board in a figure eight pattern.  It made the game more interesting for eight students to play all at once.  They stayed into it for the better part of an hour before some of them started getting bored.  I let them play an economics game on Facebook called Farmville.  Tomorrow is our first high school field trip.  It's to the library, but only one of them had turned in their permission slip as of today.  We'll see who really gets to go and how we can handle not taking some of them, since I have to drive one of the vehicles.   I worked in the back yard when I got home.  I finally emptied all the sockets out of the last bucket of diesel.  Now I can use it to try to get some rust off the bigger tools, like saws and pruners, and shovels.  I guess I could just throw away some of those kinds of tools.  They don't have the sentimental value of the socket sets and wrenches that were my Dad's.  I'll decide when I pull them out of the old trash cans they are sitting in now.  I also need to clean out the boxes that we stacked in the garage before the Hallelujah Party.  And somehow I need to get that loveseat out there over to First Baptist Church.  Then we need to finish emptying Terri's garage of the rest of our "stuff," whatever that is.   Song of Solomon 3:4 says, "Scarcely had I passed them when I found the one my heart loves.  I held him and would not let him go till I had brought him to my mother's house, to the room of the one who conceived me."   Father, sometimes I miss my wife like that.  I want to know you like that every day.  Amen.

September 28 – “Reboot to Opening Day”

We started the school day off with a staff meeting.  All the issues had already been dealt with as they arose, so I basically told them that I appreciated their handling things.    The science teacher was sick again, but the history teacher kind of filled in for him, making sure the students got started.  The secretary even sat in on some classes.  Sometime this morning the PE teacher called in as well.  She was hung up at work and couldn't make it in.  She suggested I make them write an essay on the benefits of stretching or something like that.  I told her I would come up with something for them.  When that class started we had a "Reboot to opening day" discussion.  I reminded them of some of the things we talked about back them.  They wanted to talk about one of the teachers.   I sure hope they get those relationships straightened out.  It's going to be a long year otherwise.  After our little meeting I had them run three laps around the perimeter of the church property.    Just as school was letting out the bottom dropped out of the sky.  It rained hard for at least an hour.  After everyone left I went by the home of the English teacher.  She left her cell phone at school.  I thought about calling her to see what she wanted to do, but the only number we had was … her cell phone.  No one was home, so I'll just give it to her tomorrow.   I stopped by Randall's to get my neurontin prescription refilled.  They didn't have enough for all of it, so they gave me some to last a few days, and I have to go back for the rest.    Chris is in Bay City again.  She will stay one more night and take her Mom to the cancer doctor tomorrow.  Her Mom thinks the might do chemo, but Chris has told her over and over that they won't do chemo until her cardiologist releases her.   John 4:21 says, "Jesus declared, '"Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.'"   Father, I'm ready to worship you.  Any time.  Amen.

September 27 – “Status Report”

Church today.  The service was good.  Not many people there, but they all stayed awake, and that's a good thing.  After church we set up for school and then had a discernment meeting.  That's where we get together as the organization that is Seaside Church and try to discern what God is doing around us.  That way we can better know where to put our resources.  We're not doing too badly.  We are definitely running behind where we need to be, but compared with many of the other churches on the island, we are doing great.  We need more students to keep the school self-sustaining, but to get more students we need more room and more teachers (and a headmaster!!!!!).    We got a report on the status of the school building.  We have contracted with someone to put in the fire protection system.  The final price we got was ten thousand dollars less than the first one, so God was definitely at work there.  We still need a boatload of skilled volunteer labor.  We need a master plumber who will work with volunteers and allow the work to be done under his license.  We need to install the electrical outlets and switches.  We need to finish taping and bedding.  We need to paint.  We need to hang doors and do trim work.  We need to install the floor covering.  We need bathroom fixtures.  We need to install the grid ceiling and lights.  We need to put in outside floor insulation and soffit.  We need to cut and prepare for hanging the storm coverings for the windows.  We need to do the paving and concrete work, but that can wait.  To finish the whole thing out, we are short by around $35,000 (assuming we can get all the volunteer labor).  But we are still looking for some grants.  And we are working on finishing out half of the building.  If we can work it out with the city inspector to let us start out using just half, then we actually have just about enough money already.  In the true spirit of Seaside we are being flexible and creative.  And through it all we are really learning over and over again to trust God.  He has been amazing so far, and we never know what He's going to do next.   We grabbed a bite to eat at Golden Corral so Chris could get packed up and head on to Bay City for the next round of doctor appointments.  This week her mom has two, one Monday and one Tuesday.  So she won't be home until sometime Tuesday evening.    School starts again tomorrow.  I really do feel inadequate doing this headmaster thing.    And my joint aches and pains are about the same.  I'm ready for that rheumatologist guy to tell me something … anything.   Mark 4:35-41 says, "That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, 'Let us go over to the other side.'  36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, 'Teacher, don't you care if we drown?' 39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, 'Quiet! Be still!' Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 40 He said to his disciples, 'Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?' 41 They were terrified and asked each other, 'Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!'"   Father, continue your miracle work.  Amen.

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September 26 – “Marriage”

Today we hustled out of the house around 8:00 to get to League City by 9:00 for a marriage conference led by Gray Chapman.  He's the guy who wrote The Five Love Languages.  Great book.  The conference was really good.  Dr. Chapman was very entertaining, even downright funny.  Chris and I got a kick out of watching the people around us laugh.  It was also interesting to see what things they laughed at and when they stayed silent.  Ah, I love watching people.   Kel and Christina were there with some friends of theirs who helped them back when they first moved to Galveston to start a church.  They now live in Houston.  Our friends from Kingwood were there.  Nathan and April came, too.  We had one whole row pretty much all to ourselves.  Kel and I bought some of the books.  I am replenishing my supply of resources.  He had books not only on marriage, but also family, anger, and separation as well.   After the conference we stopped by a teacher's supply store in League City.  Our kindergarten teacher asked for a huge writing table with lines on it and a real felt board.  She made one, but I think it had already begun to fall apart on her.  She also wanted an easel, but they didn't have any of those.    I'm looking forward to just sitting around and maybe watching some TV with Chris and Mom tonight.  We don't have to be anywhere at this point.  I know that could change at any minute, so I'm going to enjoy the time I have.   3 John 2 says, "Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well."   Father, thank you for some time this evening.  I appreciate it.  Amen.

September 25 – “TeeHeeHee”

I went back to school today.  I did feel a lot better.  But the reason I went was to talk to the girl who left campus on Thursday.  She was there at 7:30, but only to tell me she had to go to court to plead a ticket she got.  Then I noticed that four others were out as well.  It was going to be a quiet day, if nothing else.  Two were the ones who have been sick.  One was at a doctor's appointment and would be back later.  One other was also sick, but with a stomach bug.   The day was indeed quiet.  I did get to talk to the girl when she returned, and I told her she could not leave campus without permission from school authorities as well as her parents.  The students jumped in to help with cleanup.  They knew that we were supposed to leave right away to go to a friend's house in Kingwood, so it was "We have to help Pastor Kelley" day.  Chris got there around 2:30, and they had already swept and mopped the main room, and emptied most of the trash cans.  They had also unstacked all the pews and placed them for Sunday.  I knew they would get moved, though, because they didn't match the drawing we had.  Chris has this setup thing down to a science, taking into consideration the placement of the Praise Team, walkways around and through aisles, and leg room between pews.  She is amazing.  Anyway, the kids' help really did cut a huge amount of time from our usual setup.  We left by 3:45 and rushed home to shower and change and take off for Kingwood.   I called Kel when we got home to see if he had our tickets to the marriage conference on Saturday.  He said he would bring them right over.  Sure enough, when we got out of the shower, Kel and Christina and Jachin and Micah were all over here.  Jachin was hiding behind the fireplace, so he jumped out and scared me when I walked in.  Then he walked over to me and said, "DadDad, I have a secret."  I asked what it was.  He got right next to my ear to whisper it to me.  I was worried, because I have a hard time hearing when I can't see lips moving at the same time, and whispering is tough in the best of circumstances.  But I heard him loud and clear, "Mommy has a baby in her tummy."  I glanced at Christina, and she was grinning.  So I asked Jachin, "Is it a boy or a girl?"  Of course that answer was a resounding "Boy!  And it's coming out in May."  Kel showed us the ultrasound.  I told Jachin it looked like three of them in there.  I said, "I think their names are Tee, Hee, and Hee."  He really liked that one.  Then the implications of "three of them" hit him. He squealed, "Three more means there will be five of us and we will be in charge."  Christina told him if there were three, some of them would have to live somewhere else.  He assured her that was not the case, and began planning for bunkbeds and cribs.   We were late for our supper in Kingwood, but had a great time with some good friends.  Great excuse, though, grandkid number six.  Bring him … her (?) on.   John 16:21-24 says, "A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. 22 So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. 23 In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete."   Father, there is nothing quite this grandchildren thing.  Thanks.  Six times over.  Amen.

September 24 – “Sick Day”

It's now two days later.  I was pretty sick this day.  Sick enough to stay home from school and even cancel home group.  I got an email from the school that there was another mishap while I was gone.  It turned out to be minor, but I am really tired of negative stuff happening every time I leave campus.  I emailed the parents and talked at length with the teachers.  We'll have a staff meeting Monday to pull in the reins a bit on discipline.    Matthew 10:1 says, "He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil  spirits and to heal every disease and sickness."   Father, please be my healer.  Amen.

September 23 – “Fall”

I had a rough day today.  The ragweed count was off the charts, and my Claritin-D just couldn't keep up.  My back had a catch in it when I woke up.  And with the weather change, my elbows are killing me.  But hey, it was a great day.   The weather was great.  It was in the 60's with a nice northerly breeze.  Fall weather that is unrelated to hurricanes is what makes it great to be in Galveston.  That and fishing.  But I still haven't been wade fishing since the storm.   The kids at school were mellow from the time they arrived.  They stayed focused pretty well on the classes they were in.  And they didn't go berserk at lunch.  I got two of them started on their self study Bible classes.  And I found a website that looks like has the self study elective options I have been looking for. I'll for sure have to adapt them, but at least I'll have the core curriculum to start from.  Nobody called in a panic about the swine flu.  And that kid's mom is coming by tomorrow to pick up some schoolwork for him to be working on.   Chris is still in Bay City, but her Dad was allowed to come home.  He is still having some problems, though.  He gets really dizzy whenever he stands up.  She is staying another night to help watch him.  She said her Mom can't pick him up if he falls.  I asked her if she thought "My Super Wife" could pick him up.  Her answer was classic.  "Hey, I know how to call 911."   Mom took me out to supper.  Well, I drove.  We went to Sonic and brought our burgers to the house.  By the time we finished eating I was dead tired.  We decided not to go to youth group tonight.  We'll just stay here and watch a movie or something.   Hebrews 3:13 says, "But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness."   Father, thank you for the encouragers in my life.  Send it back on them, OK?  Amen.

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September 22 – “Swine Flu … again”

Chris got her Dad to Houston by 7:00 this morning for his surgery.  He had to have a new pacemaker put in.  The one he had only had one lead on it, and he desperately needed two leads.  His heart can't do much of anything on its own any more.  Problem was, they didn't start the surgery until after 11.  He didn't get back to a room until sometime around 4:30.  That had to be a really long day for her Mom.  I hope she was able to nap somewhere.  I finally got a text from Chris at 6:30.  They found some kind of complication – a leak of some kind in the heart.  They are going to keep him overnight.  Chris had already decided to stay in Bay City tonight.  I guess she'll take her Mom home and go back in the morning.   School today had a few weird moments.  The science teacher didn't show up and didn't call anybody.  We didn't know what to do with his classes, so that became a little corner of chaos.   Come to find out, he emailed me at 7:20 this morning.  My bad.  I should have known.  He has his computer with him all the time.  He is sick today.  And he's not alone.  The sixth grader was home today with fever and muscle aches.  But the prize goes to our ninth grader.  His mom called to tell us that he had been to the doctor and had swine flu.  Now that opened a can of worms.  I had taken Mom to Luby's, so I wasn't there when the call came in.  But my secretary called me right away, asking if we were going to close down the school.  I told her to compose a letter to the parents and call the county health department to see what they recommended.  Tomorrow may be a long day of parent phone calls.   It started raining today.  I guess the change in weather affected this arthritis – or whatever it is – that I have.  My left elbow has been aching all day.  My wrists and knuckles hurt, too.  I hope somebody cancels an appointment with the rheumatologist so I can get in earlier.  I just want to know what's going on.   Hebrews 3:1 says. "Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess."   Father, I want to stay focused on you.  Amen.

September 21 – “presumed partial sacrilization”

I got a text from Chris just as I was leaving school today.  She was in Houston at a doctor's appointment for her Dad.  He was changing his cardiologist from Temple to Houston.  All that apparently went well.  Maybe too well.  They discovered that he needs a new pacemaker right away.  His heart doesn't beat at all on its own anymore, so this is a big deal.   They want to do surgery tomorrow, so Chris will be spending the night somewhere.  She might stay at the hospital, but she also might take her Mom back to Bay City and stay there.  She is supposed to let me know when she wants me to come.   I got a copy of the test results from the neurologist's office.  Of course I can't understand all the medical gobbledygook, especially on the blood test.  I did see words like "central disc bulge with a tear of the annulus" (what's an annulus??), "presumed partial sacrilization," "broad disc bulge," "mild to moderate canal stenosis," and my all-time favorite: "disc herniation indenting the thecal sac with superior fragment migration."  I think I know what it means: "My back hurts."   I'm heading out to Target to see if they have the movie "The 13th Warrior."  Our English teacher wants to show parts of it in a study of Beowulf.   I also need Claritin-D.  Hope they'll sell it to me this time.  I have to wait fifteen days every time I buy some before I'm eligible to buy them again.    Hebrews 2:11 says, "Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers."   Father, please with Dub tonight.  And Vern. And Chris.  Amen.

September 20 – “Almost fishing”

I had a little fun in church this morning.  The teaching was about David wanting to build God a temple.  The passage sounded like he was sitting around on his deck daydreaming, so I set up a "deck" with lawn chairs and a Pepsi and some Nestle Crunch bars.  Then I came into the room in my bathing suit, sandals, a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses.  That's how I did the teaching.  It was fun watching reactions.  Always is when I do something off the wall.  We even had one of the families of a Seaside Christian Academy student there.  They stayed for lunch and helped set up for school, too.    We had dinner on the grounds, so we didn't leave for quite a while.  When we did, I got a strong hankering to go fishing.  I haven't been wade fishing since before the storm.  And the beach has been flat all week.  After lunch I told Chris I needed to go to WalMart.  I did need to look for some movies our English teacher asked about – The Thirteenth Warrior and Beowulf.  They didn't have either one.  But my real purpose was to get my fishing license.  That they did have.  So now I'm all legal, and there was nothing to stop me for heading to the beach.  Except when we drove by to check it out on the way home, it was starting to get really choppy again.  Just in time.  Almost fishing.  That I'm getting good at.   Since fishing was out, Chris and I spent the afternoon picking up tree branches in the back yard from our beginnings of chopping down the magnolia.  I got to use the chain saw, so that was a definite plus.  There was a lot of wood out there.  We were lamenting the loss of our chiminea.  It would have been a lot easier to just burn all of it instead of hauling it out to the front yard and waiting for the trash guys to pick it up.    We decided at the last minute to go over to First Baptist to the contemporary service they asked Kel to start.  There were about fourteen or fifteen of us there.  The pianist has an amazing voice.  She was the worship leader.  Kel and two other guys had "speaking roles" in the service, and another guy was in charge of the tech stuff.  It went pretty well.  I think over time the core that knows him and accepts him will grow, and his confidence will follow.   Mark 1:17-18 says, "'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men.'  18 At once they left their nets and followed him."   Father, thank you for using Kel in ministry, even in the most surprising of places.  Amen.

September 19 – “Trees and weddings and granddaughters”

We started the day cleaning the church again.  Must be Saturday.  It really didn't seem to take all that long this time, though.    When we got home Nathan was hard at work in our back yard.  He had fired up the chain saw and cut up the fig tree that fell over in the last rainy spell.  He had also moved on to the big magnolia tree in the back yard.  Chris acknowledged its demise and approved its extraction.  He climbed up and started sawing away at branches.  On a few of the ones closest to the power lines, he tied a rope to it first and as he sawed, I pulled in the opposite direction.  What a team.  When it came to topping it off, though, we were all a bit skittish.  He finally decided (to the delight of his wife and mother) to wait until he could get his harness and start again tomorrow afternoon.   He had to leave anyway.  He and April were going to the Houston Dynamo soccer game, and they had to get ready.  And they had to get Cailyn ready to spend the night with Nana and DadDad.    I had to get ready as well.  I had a wedding this afternoon on the beach at Pirates Beach.  They got my name from the San Luis, so I didn't know them before we met last month for counseling.  The service went well, and at the reception I saw some interesting people.  There was a guy there who looked just like Al Pacino.  Another guy was a professional wrestler.  He was telling about when he tore a biceps muscle during a match.  He said he was supposed to tie the other guy up in the top rope, punch him in the gut, and throw him out of the ring.  Then there was a whole set of choreography he described that was supposed to follow.  But he couldn't move his right arm.  So he whispered to the other guy to chase him to the dressing room and beat on him on the way and he would explain when they got there.  Ah, professional wrestling is indeed real.   I also saw a girl I went to high school with.  She was a close friend of the family.  A Seaside girl who grew up and moved to Santa Fe was the photographer.  It was great to see her again.  The groom's uncle asked me how I got into this preacher gig, anyway.  He was a lot of fun to talk to.  He wants the couple to get into church.  Never mentioned himself getting into church, though.  A lady came up to me and told me about her granddaughter who died in a car wreck a month ago leaving a five year old son.  She was pretty shook up, but wanted me to know she "got the message" of the ceremony.  Weddings aren't usually that eventful.   Cailyn was here to spend the night when I got home.  She likes to play with old DadDad, but the only way she'll let me hold her is if she's facing out.  Can't say I blame her.   We also found out this afternoon that Christi's granddad had bleeding in his brain.  They don't know yet what all is going on other than he is going to have surgery tonight.   Romans 8:26-27 says, "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will."   Father, be with Christi's granddad.  And grant her family your peace.  Amen.

September 18 – “The Other One”

Today I sent home the letter with the students explaining the new daily schedule for high schoolers and how it differs from the younger guys.  I don't expect there to be any problems.  In fact this new schedule solves one thing right away.  We just have too many periods and not enough teaching segments to fill them.   I had a wedding rehearsal at four o'clock today, right after school.  The wedding is tomorrow afternoon at four on the beach at Pirate's Beach.  The couple has been together for awhile.  They already have two kids.  They found out in June they were pregnant again.  Then they found out in August that they are going to have triplets.  Boys.  They changed wedding plans drastically.  Instead of a huge San Luis Hotel affair, they are walking down to the beach from her mom's house.  While we were waiting for some of the wedding party to show up, she asked if I wanted to see the ultrasound of the babies.  I said sure, so she brought out a book.  There is one picture that is unbelievably clear.  Two of the babies are obviously in the same sac, so they are identical twins.  She pointed to that picture and proudly exclaimed, "See.  There's the twins, and there's the other one."  Poor "The Other One."  I hope he gets a real name before too much longer.   I heard from the neurologist again today.  They said the MRI showed not a whole lot of change from the one they did last year.  I asked why they thought I was still having pain and was there anything that could be done about it.  Of course all she did was take notes and say someone would get back with me.  Strangely enough someone called the house and talked to Chris.  They told he the doctor wanted me to see a rheumatologist.  He gave us two names to check out.  So we did the only sane thing to do in those circumstances.  We called Dr. Sue and asked her.  She recommended one of the names right away, so I called.  My appointment in on November 2.   But I'm on the waiting list in case someone cancels.   Jude 21 says, "Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life."   Father, I'm waiting.  Help me keep myself close to you.  Amen.

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September 17 – “WooHoo?”

I got a partial report on my day at the lab.  The blood tests all came back negative.  Everything was within normal ranges.  The one they were most concerned about had to do with the rheumatoid arthritis factor.  The lady who called said mine was a 5 and they didn't start worrying until it hit around 14.  I'm not sure whether to say, "WooHoo!" or "Oh, no."  Chris's comment was, "I wonder if it would have been different if you hadn't just had a round of steroids.  My thought matched Nathan's, "If it's not that, then what is it?"  They're supposed to call back again when the results of the MRI get in.  But the thing is, I recognize and understand that kind of pain.  It's the other kind that has me worried, and sleeping little, and hurting lots.  If it's all related to the back, then I can deal with that and understand what's happening.   But if it's something else, I'd kinda like to know.   I do still get pretty tired in the afternoons.  I'm sleepy right now.  But tonight is the first night back for home group.  So we are on with the gathering no matter what.  Chris is still in Bay City, though.  She's trying to get back before we start, but she doesn't need to hurry too much.  I plan to restart back where we looked at the Zechariah passage.   School went fine again.  With the college prep system, and the students choosing required and elective courses, we actually are going to school one period too long.  Scheduling is set up based on nine periods.  Graduation requirements can be met with just seven courses a semester (plus one period for lunch).  I wrote a letter today that I sent to the board for approval.  I'm recommending we let the high school kids leave after eighth period.  The younger guys will still go until 3:10, though, so we'll keep a study hall open so the older ones can stick around and do homework or get on the computers.   Zechariah 3:8-10 says, "'Listen, O high priest Joshua and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. 9 See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,' says the Lord Almighty, 'and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day. 10 "'In that day each of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and fig tree,' declares the Lord Almighty."   Father, we're opening our vine and fig tree again tonight.  Please come.  Amen.

September 16 – “Here we are”

The water of the Gulf of Mexico was calm as a lake this morning.  All day, in fact.  What a great day to go fishing.    After school I got home in time to tell Chris goodbye.  She was on her way to Bay City.  Tomorrow is a doctor day for her Mom and Dad.  He is switching from a cardiologist in Temple to one in Houston.  That'll make things a little easier on Chris.  She drove off and Mom quickly went inside and disappeared into her room.  Mere seconds later she returned with her purse in hand.  I asked where she was going.  She said I was taking her to pick up her prescriptions at Randall's.  Now.  OK.  I did need gas in the truck, and that would be in the same parking lot, so at least we would kill two birds with one stone.  We headed out on an errands run.  Before we got out of our subdivision she asked, "Can we go to the bank on the way?"  We added a trip to the bank before going to Randall's.  As we pulled away from the pump, Mom said, "So we are eating at Luby's aren't we?  It's been awhile since we have been there."  So we went straight across the street to Luby's.  Then as we pulled onto the street after supper, she said, "We do pass by WalMart, don't we?  I have it in my purse."  I figured she knew already, but I didn't, so I asked what she had in her purse, and what did it have to do with WalMart?  Yarn.  And hearing aid batteries.  And when we passed it, Ensure.  WalMart.  We pulled into our driveway with just enough time to go inside, make a quick bathroom stop, and get back in the car for youth group.  That covered up until we got home around 8:30 or so.  At that point I figured I should get the blog done before starting anything else.  And so here we are.   I noticed today that by early afternoon I was sinking into mush brain again.  The pain is not as bad as it has been, but I found myself staring at the computer screen instead of creating the transcript I was working on.  The neurologist is supposed to call tomorrow or Friday.  I guess I should ask him if that is related to the Celebrex or to the problem.   Tomorrow is our first home group since the storm.  I really wanted to get something great prepared, but since school started, I haven't had time to slow down.  I have to lead a Bible Study and figure out a way to do some music.  And clean house for Chris, since she won't get back until tomorrow afternoon.  I also have a wedding this weekend.  Rehearsal is Friday at 4, and the wedding is Saturday at 4 in Pirates Beach.  I talked to the bride today, and she wants to add something to the ceremony.   That means I also have to rewrite that tomorrow.  At least my jury duty summons that came today is not until October 14.  Since when did they start on Wednesday?        Mark 1:22 says, "The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law."   Father, please come on down and teach us.  Amen.

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