A First!

Because we purchased a laptop recently for the very first time I am writing from the actual backyard!

It is about 75 here in Bay Shore right now with a beautiful breeze blowing in from the ocean. The tiger lilies are nearly at their peak, the day lilies have begun to showoff their beauty and the black eyed susans are opening.

As I write Chickadees, purple finches and other birds are filling the premises with melodious music. Given my choice this above all places on earth is where I would want to be with the possible exception of Israel.

The water garden is continuing to display its beauty as the blue pickering is once again faithful to open by July 4th. We have baby fish once again this year.

Last night as Lucy worked outside on her dark sauce (I'll save that story for another post) I sat and wound down from a busy day. Moe,our dog, chased Shrews but never caught one. I had spotted my second toad this week earlier. I love it when uninvited guests show up and make themselves right at home.

We have also had a large number of butterflies tis year, sometimes up to 7 at one time.

If you will excuse me now I am going to get my hands in the dirt of the actual garden and take my fingers of the keyboard of the virtual one.

Thanks for stopping by!

Outback This Morning

I was reading this morning out of Genesis how the LORD placed Adam in the Garden of Eden to take care of the Garden. What a great deal Adam had!

Be sure to click on the pictures for an enlarged version.

Some Wonderful Moments

A belated Father's Day celebration
due to us being stretched out from New Hampshire to Virginia last weekend.

James receiving Winthrop University Hospital Resident of the Year Award Yesterday

James, Dr, Mark Corapi and I at the reception
Mark and I went to Mepham High School together.
He is now director of the residency program at Winthrop.

Emma capturing it all on film!

Two Bobs

As a young man growing up here on Long Island several pastors made an impression on me. One was Pastor Bob Utter and the other was Pastor Bob Rapaljie. They were men of God. They both pastored the church I am pastor of. They were builders of God's kingdom, people and buildings. Pastor Utter oversaw the building of the parsonage, while Pastor Rapaljie built the church. I live in and work in buildings these men sacrificed to give to the kingdom. I don't take this gift lightly.

Jesus said to the disciples that they were about to reap where someone else had sown. I feel he was talking to me there. I am so thankful for the heritage I have and the legacy I have been given. Recently the daughter of the man who built the first building in Brightwaters visited our church. You can read a little about on another blog I have called The Sunday Morning Message. It is archived under April 28th at http://thesundaymorningmessage.blogspot.com or you can copy and paste this address and go directly to it: http://thesundaymorningmessage.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html

Thanks Lord for the gifts you have given through others!

Back in the Backyard

Over the past three days I traveled over 1,000 miles. My travels took me to New Hampshire, one of my favorite places on earth. My nephew, Stephen, graduated from High School and we had a family celebration. It was great.

Me, Theresa, Steve (the graduate), Tina, and Mike

Some completely crazy cousins!
(Don't you just love it!)

My dear friends, John and Becky Foster
I stayed with them for two nights.

What a great weekend it was. Being with family and friends who are like family is wonderful. I got to spend a day in the White Mountains. It was so enjoyable. I have wonderful memories of that place and made more this weekend. The LORD was with us. We saw His Hand over and over again. Our day in the White Mountains finished with God hanging a rainbow in the sky. My trip ended with going out to eat with my nephews and niece. I am so rich in the good things of life.

Thanks LORD for all you have given me!

Ruth Graham- Home with the LORD

I never had the privilege of meeting Ruth, but I did meet Billy Graham a few times and know Franklin personally.

Dr. Nelson Bell was Ruth's dad. He was a surgeon and missionary to China. It is interesting how the ministry of God's Word and medicine have been tied together. We see in in the Book of Acts as Paul, the Apostle and Luke, the Physician travel and work together. Hudson Taylor, China's missionary, was a medical doctor.

Some years ago it was my great privilege to be a courier to bring some medical supplies and surgical tools from Long Island to Boone, North Carolina, the HQ of Samaritan's Purse, Franklin's medical ministry. This was really before Franklin had much notoriety. We had pleasant and relaxed conversation with him. His parents came through him. We were both in our 30's then.

Since we made the trip and delivered the supplies, I was told to go to the book area and pick up any books I would like as a gift. There was one book that stood out. It was a book about Franklin's grandfather, Dr. Nelson Bell and his work in China. The Lord had been drawing my heart to that land and I wanted to read all I could about missions there.

This morning I picked up the book. Lucy, who is soon to become a nurse, read some of it then pointed a picture out to me of lady Dr. Bell had operated on. Below I began to read the text.

Ruth Graham's dad had written to his mom in May of 1929, "I found out here my big trouble is worrying about things the Lord is already working out for me."

Ruth has left Billy temporarily. She is with Jesus. I am sure her dad and her have had some wonderful times of fellowship there already!

She has joined that company of Abel, though being dead still speaks! My prayer for you and I this morning is that we would live in such a way that after we are gone we still speak through the legacy of lives Jesus has touched through us. He is using us today more than we could dream of.

May all the glory be His now and forever!

The Sundial

A boyhood memory in my backyard now!

Just the other night I mentioned to Lucy that the one thing I would love to add to the yard this year would be a sundial.

I remember as a little boy my dad taking the family back to New Jersey where he spent some of his childhood. There in Zarapheth is a park with a sundial. My dad showed it to me and showed how to tell time by it. I have filled my yard with things memories and desires from my youth. There is a fish pond, an azalea bush, Honeysuckle in bloom as I write this, and a host of of other things. I even found one of those old metal chairs that we used to have back in the 60's. I painted it and it is back there.

Jackie and Peter (James' sister and brother-in-law) gave me a gift certificate for Father's Day to the coolest nursery in the world (http://www.hicksnurseries.com/)

Emma and I stopped there to see if they had sundials and sure enough there was the on pictured here on this post. I bought and you can see how nice it looks in my backyard. My backyard has become a place full of gifts from wonderful people that I am so blessed to have in my life.

You guys are always welcome to come and visit.

God bless each of you!

A Cup of Coffee (Author Unkown)

God's Coffee

A group of alumni, all highly established in their respective careers, got together for a visit with their old university professor.
The conversation soon turned to complaints about the endless stress of work and life.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen and soon returned with a large pot of coffee and an eclectic assortment of cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal - some plain, some expensive, some quite exquisite. Quietly he told them to help themselves to some fresh coffee...

When each of his former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the old professor quietly cleared his throat and began to patiently address the small gathering...

''You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking cups were taken up first, leaving behind the plainer and cheaper ones. While it is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves that is actually the source of much of your stress-related problems... ''Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee

In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink. What each of you really wanted was coffee, not a
cup, but you instinctively went for the best cups... Then you began eyeing each other's cups....''

''Now consider this: Life is coffee. Jobs, money, and position in society are merely cups. They are just tools to shape and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not truly define nor change the quality of the Life we live...'' ''Often, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee that God has provided us... God brews the coffee, but he does not supply the cups. Enjoy your coffee!''
The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything... So please remember: Live simply. Love generously. Care Deeply. Speak Kindly. Leave the Rest to God

(Sent to me by a former neighbor but forever friend- Karl)

Laughter is Good Like Medicine

This happened to me back in 1976...

I was in Bible College, in Colorado and working in a 7-11. There were two doors as most 7-11's have. For some reason Southland Corp decided that it would be a good idea to label with stickers "In" and "Out" Why they did this made no sense but we complied and put the stickers on. One day the "Out" door broke. I was coming back from filling the dairy cooler when I noticed my manager was laughing so hard he had tears coming out of his eyes. He then related the following incident: A lady had made her purchases and proceeded to leave. When she got to the door she saw the sign on the "Out" door that said, "Broken, please do not use." All this time people were coming and going through the "In " door. She paused, read the sign and said to my manager, "What do we do now?!" I joined him in his laughter.

A cheerful heart is good medicine- Proverbs 17.22

Let it Rain!!!

Just think of all those songs about rain that have been written in the past 70 years...

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

I'm Singing In the Rain!

Rainy Days and Mondays

Who'll Stop the Rain?

Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again

And one from our childhood- Its Raining, Its Pouring

Can you think of any others? Post them in the Comments.

As for the rain on the Island today- we have needed it. It provides a way to weed the backyard and even transplant some new seedlings that popped up.

Let It Rain! Let It Rain! Let It Rain!