We rented a Mazda V-6 (Hertz upgraded us to a Toyota Prius since they were out of Mazdas) to drive to a speaking engagement at the Florissant Valley Christian Church near St. Louis on April 19th. From there we had to drive to Littleton, Colorado to pick up our RV, Glory-al. We had a rebuilt engine installed by new found friend and former Marine, Richie Leavitt of Patriot Repairs. It took him a whole lot of Tylenol and a weeks worth of hours to get the old out and the new in. He was gracious enough to donate his labor!!! We are so blessed! Thank you, Richie!
Despite his hard work, we did not have the funds to get everything done that needed to be done and so on the drive back to Kansas City, we had a few mishaps. We stopped in Burlington, CO and our oil pressure sender unit failed. We were delayed a day waiting for the part. Got that in and got ready to go when the generator light went on. Our alternator as well as our air conditioning unit had both lost their belts. Thankfully, Dave at Joe's garage got us up and running in a couple hours.
We took our time driving and by the time we reached a rest area 20 miles west of Topeka, we felt we were home free, when Lucy noticed fluids coming out of Glory-al's engine. I tried to check the radiator level but couldn't get the cap off. Meanwhile, Lucy had locked her purse in the car and when she tried her electronic key, the battery in the key was dead! The Prius has a regular key to be used in emergencies like this and so we took the key and inserted it in the door but it wouldn't turn! We started to laugh. What else could we do? One little dippy thing after another was happening!
We got a hold of Hertz who got a hold of AAA who rescued us after about an hour or so. Interestingly enough, the electronic key could start the car but couldn't open the door! Technology! Ain't it great!
The tow truck driver was nice enough to remove my radiator cap...he was a big guy and he had to struggle with it a bit before it came loose so my manhood didn't get too damaged. The levels were fine and so we started the RV & the Prius and cautiously made our way back to KC.
Glory-al is now resting in Kingsville, MO at the home of Bob & Virginia Leavitt. What a blessing the Leavitt family has been to us!!! We still have some repairs to do before she is deemed road-worthy. Leaving May 25th as we planned is not going to happen. We know that God's delays are not God's denials. In 2 Chron 20:12 Jehoshaphat speaks to God and says "We don't know what to do but our eyes are upon You." In 2 Chron 20:17 the Lord answers him by saying "Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance of the Lord."
We can't set a new date for departure until we can gather up some funds. We spent the money for the journey on repairs. All we can do for the moment is hold our positions, stand firm, take a deep breath and have a confident expectation that God is doing something good for us today! God never lets us down...NEVER!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
One Step At a Time
Lucy and I went to see the movie The Cross yesterday... it's about Arthur Blessit. He walked throughout the world during these last forty years carrying a twelve foot cross. I'd encourage you to see it. After watching all he has done, our walking 3300 miles across America for Christ is child's play!
Now I don't want to fall into the trap of comparison. We each have been called by God to do what we can but I was inspired by Arthur's philosophy of life and his responses to some very threatening situations.
It got me to thinking, just about everything we do begins with a single step and is followed by another and another. Whether we're learning our ABC's, practicing the piano, building a house or studying for our doctoral dissertation, we are climbing a staircase of knowledge and doing it one step at a time.
Often there is hesitation with that first step, a little less with the second, and by the hundredth step, we are in our stride! We made it to high school. Got a career. Now we're a husband or wife, then a parent and a homeowner. We never arrive though. There is always another step to be taken. Just when we think we've made it, there's that feeling of hesitation again and we know that it's time for a new step forward. The good news is that as long as you're going forward, you're alive. But wait...there's more good news. Anything can be accomplished...one step at a time!
There is a law of physics that states a body in motion tends to stay in motion and a body at rest tends to stay at rest. Keep moving. Keep going forward. Take that next step and if fear starts to grip you, just remember that fear and excitement are the same emotion just labeled differently.
I am so excited! How about you?
Now I don't want to fall into the trap of comparison. We each have been called by God to do what we can but I was inspired by Arthur's philosophy of life and his responses to some very threatening situations.
It got me to thinking, just about everything we do begins with a single step and is followed by another and another. Whether we're learning our ABC's, practicing the piano, building a house or studying for our doctoral dissertation, we are climbing a staircase of knowledge and doing it one step at a time.
Often there is hesitation with that first step, a little less with the second, and by the hundredth step, we are in our stride! We made it to high school. Got a career. Now we're a husband or wife, then a parent and a homeowner. We never arrive though. There is always another step to be taken. Just when we think we've made it, there's that feeling of hesitation again and we know that it's time for a new step forward. The good news is that as long as you're going forward, you're alive. But wait...there's more good news. Anything can be accomplished...one step at a time!
There is a law of physics that states a body in motion tends to stay in motion and a body at rest tends to stay at rest. Keep moving. Keep going forward. Take that next step and if fear starts to grip you, just remember that fear and excitement are the same emotion just labeled differently.
I am so excited! How about you?
Friday, April 3, 2009
Twitter, FaceBook, Flixwagon, 12second.tv...aaaargh!!!
There is so much to learn! I feel like I'm a second grader in a quantum physics class!
The challenge Lucy and seem to be having is that we can't understand the instructions. We're used to press here or click there. Push "On" to turn the program on, and "Off" to turn the program off.
I'm not complaining. It's my own fault I haven't kept my education up to date. I'm just venting.
When we recently bought and attempted to set up Session Music Producer...so easy a three year old could do it they told us!.... we ran into terms like input gain control, monitor mix levels, connectivity status display and default buffers to control latency.
We have allowed ourselves to become illiterate in techno lingo. It's not that the world has gotten too fast but rather we have gotten lazy! There, I said it! The "L" word. I don't want to be one of these guys that complains how fast things are changing, I want to keep up with the other kids.
One of the things we are learning is that...we can learn! You're never too old to change, to grow and to learn. If you run into a problem, just read, mutter, cuss if you must,and do the best you can. If you get stuck, swallow your pride and ask a ten year old for help!
The challenge Lucy and seem to be having is that we can't understand the instructions. We're used to press here or click there. Push "On" to turn the program on, and "Off" to turn the program off.
I'm not complaining. It's my own fault I haven't kept my education up to date. I'm just venting.
When we recently bought and attempted to set up Session Music Producer...so easy a three year old could do it they told us!.... we ran into terms like input gain control, monitor mix levels, connectivity status display and default buffers to control latency.
We have allowed ourselves to become illiterate in techno lingo. It's not that the world has gotten too fast but rather we have gotten lazy! There, I said it! The "L" word. I don't want to be one of these guys that complains how fast things are changing, I want to keep up with the other kids.
One of the things we are learning is that...we can learn! You're never too old to change, to grow and to learn. If you run into a problem, just read, mutter, cuss if you must,and do the best you can. If you get stuck, swallow your pride and ask a ten year old for help!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Was Gonna But Didn't Get To
My first " Was Gonna, Didn't Get To:"
Today is April 1st...we were suppose to start our third 3300 Walk Across America For CHRIST this morning but the ol' RV is still being worked on in Colorado. I'm not as disappointed as I thought I'd be because it was cold at 5:00am this morning! That's our normal starting time.
Plans are to pick it up "Glory-al" on Easter weekend and test drive the new engine across the plains of Kansas. Then we have to give 30 days notice on our apartment, get a sign on both sides of the RV, give away a ton of books, pack up the motor home and start walking north!
My second " Was Gonna, Didn't Get To:"
My son, Christopher, has been out of work for about 4 months. He's a very intelligent guy with a good sense of humor, great people skills and a positive attitude. I was planning my best "Don't discouraged, son. Everything will turn out alright" lecture but never got a chance to use it. He kept swinging the axe of action until the tree of unemployment came dowm with a deafening thud! He never whined, moaned or groaned, although I did hear he took an occasional shot of tequila from time to time :)
Life is an unpredictable adventure. Living is experiencing beyond what we can merely see.
Today is April 1st...we were suppose to start our third 3300 Walk Across America For CHRIST this morning but the ol' RV is still being worked on in Colorado. I'm not as disappointed as I thought I'd be because it was cold at 5:00am this morning! That's our normal starting time.
Plans are to pick it up "Glory-al" on Easter weekend and test drive the new engine across the plains of Kansas. Then we have to give 30 days notice on our apartment, get a sign on both sides of the RV, give away a ton of books, pack up the motor home and start walking north!
My second " Was Gonna, Didn't Get To:"
My son, Christopher, has been out of work for about 4 months. He's a very intelligent guy with a good sense of humor, great people skills and a positive attitude. I was planning my best "Don't discouraged, son. Everything will turn out alright" lecture but never got a chance to use it. He kept swinging the axe of action until the tree of unemployment came dowm with a deafening thud! He never whined, moaned or groaned, although I did hear he took an occasional shot of tequila from time to time :)
Life is an unpredictable adventure. Living is experiencing beyond what we can merely see.
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