HEAVEN AND EARTH

HIS WORD, HIS INSTRUCTIONS, HIS ENCOURAGEMENT

TO BE MEMBERS OF HIS GREAT FAMILY.

F O R E V E R.

OUR FATHER...

IT WAS A BLESSED DAY, 

FILLED WITH

LOVING AND TRUSTING AND WORSHIPING

MY HEAVENLY FATHER.

AND I DESIRE TO LOVE, TRUST, AND WORSHIP MY FATHER  EVERY DAY, 

DURING EVERY MOMENT OF MY LIFE ON EARTH. .

HELL'S HALF ACRE

What a surprise.  Had no expectation of something like this to drop into my trip to the Northwest.

 The day before, on June 30th, my grandson Dyllon and I left Omaha.  We went 600 miles to Casper, Wyoming.  The goal of the next day was to reach Yellowstone NP, about 300 miles, while stopping right outside of Cody to go to the Buffalo Bill Dam, which is really amazing.  I wanted Dyllon to see things and enjoy his day, especially when reaching the Yellowstone.

Leaving Casper, I went on a side highway that I'd never been on any other time while in Wyoming.  The area was high, was dry, somewhat rocky, few towns.  I was going as reasonably quickly as possible; had my hours to get to the National Park in my brain.  Then I suddenly saw a sign that said, "Devil's Kitchen"...and I thought, "WHAT?? A terrible restaurant!"   THEN, suddenly, and quickly, I saw a sign that said "Hell's Half Acre" and, when I glanced, I saw a side section with cars, a bus, and lots of people and a big fence.  No one was behind me, so I hit the brake, turned left and found a place to park.

I jumped out of the car with my cameras, of course.  Dyllon, for some reason, just shook his head and stayed in the car.  I walked around and about, saw the caves, the ravines, rock formations.  Now, I'd been at a number of places similar to this in Utah and Arizona.  The difference was that there was no way to walk out very far.  There was a large fence, the kind you see at jail or prison or lack-of-exit/entry places.  I gradually began to understand that the reason was because people had fallen off, or the stairs and openings had been broken down.  I wouldn't have wanted to walk too close to the edge, any time. I'm an anti-fall person.

About 20 minutes later I went to the car and told Dyllon that he really needed to see this.  So, he came out, and walked around and really liked it, and then he surprised me.

I had noticed, while walking around, that there was one place where a entry hole had been dug under the fence.  Well, I sure wouldn't have crawled under.  And, I didn't notice a lady was out there, but HE did.  So, when she came back, he said he wanted to go.  I just shrugged; figured he'd only go out there if he felt safe.  When he slid under the fence, I forced him to take my camera.  He walked quite a way to the "seeing" portion of the rocky area.  And took many photos from my camera and his phone.  Another guy, much larger, seeing him, crawled under the fence.  They both had a good time.

When he was coming back, I told him to give me my camera FIRST, and I would be taking a picture of him sliding under the fence.

So, he did and I did.

We left very shortly after that.  And stopped a number of other times to see areas... huge lakes by dams, for instance.  He went down long stretches of hills, and rocks.  I took photos, but I couldn't risk falling.

Our day was filled with activity.  We got to Cody, went to the dam, went to Yellowstone, reached our motel HOURS later than I had anticipated.  But we did have a goooood day.

And, Hell's Half Acre was one of the most amazing.

 

MESSAGE OF SALVATION

I'VE USED THIS PHOTO MORE THAN ONCE.

[HOW CAN I NOT, WHEN THIS SALVATION-ORIENTED

 GENTLEMAN WAS DROPPED INTO OUR LIVES?]

 

THE PHOTO WAS TAKEN NEARLY 7-1/2 YEARS AGO.

IT WAS HOT AND HE WAS WALKING

HUNDREDS OF MILES DURING THIS

SUMMERY STRETCH OF TIME.  

[WE GAVE HIM WATER, AND A BIT MORE.  WOULD LOVE TO MEET HIM AGAIN, ANYWHERE, AROUND AND ABOUT.]

OVER THE TOP WITH TEARS [IN SOROTI]

 I wrote this as I left the Soroti, Uganda, area in January, 2004.  It isn't a truly poetic manner, but it truly is a "heart" manner.  Tears flowed, love grew immensely.  I truly want to be there again, see my dear ones.

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                       I’M OVER THE TOP WITH TEARS, LORD,
                             OVER THE TOP WITH TEARS.
                        AND I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO.

                      I CAN’T HANDLE THE PAIN ANY LONGER…
                               THE PAIN OF HEARING …

A TEARY YOUNG LADY:  MY HOUSE WAS BURNED BY REBELS AND I DO NOT HAVE MY PAPERS TO APPLY FOR WORK.  PLEASE GIVE ME TIME. I WILL BRING DOCUMENTS AS SOON AS I CAN.

ARROW OFFICER, CRYING:  PLEASE ENCOURAGE MY WIFE IN THE LORD.  SHE FEARS FOR MY SAFETY WHEN I AM FIGHTING REBELS IN THE BUSH.  COME TO MY HOUSE AND PRAY FOR US

AN ARROW MEDICAL OFFICER:  I HAVE A PRISON MINISTRY AND FIGHT FOR THE ARROW GROUP.  THE YOUTH ARE THE ONES IN PRISON AND ARE THE ONES DYING ON BOTH SIDES OF THE WAR.  I ASK GOD WHAT WE CAN DO FOR THE YOUTH.

A WORKER WITH CHRISTIAN CHILDREN’S FUND:  THE IDPs ARE BEING TOLD TO RETURN TO THEIR HOMES, AND AID WORKERS ARE BEING PULLED OUT OF THE CITY BECAUSE “THE WAR IS OVER”. BUT ANYONE WHO HAS BEEN HERE FOR 10 MINUTES CAN SEE THAT THIS IS JUST A LULL UNTIL THE DRY SEASON IS PAST AND FOOD IS AVAILABLE TO THE REBELS AGAIN.

PASTOR JOSEPH (BAPTIST) [WHILE SEEING ME CRY]: WHAT I
HATE IS GOING TO THE HOSPITALS AND WALKING THROUGH THE WARDS … THERE’S SO MUCH NEED, SO MUCH PAIN.

PastorJoseph Baptist and Nurse Pauline

NURSE PAULINE AND PASTOR JOSEPH ANGLICAN [LAUGHING WHILE WATCHING ME RANT AT THE OFFICE]:  WE ARE GOING TO MISS YOU SO MUCH WHEN YOU ARE GONE.  [THIS MAKES ME LAUGH AND CRY AT THE SAME TIME, BECAUSE I AM GOING TO MISS THEM TERRIBLY WHEN I AM GONE, TOO.]

HEAVEN AND EARTH

A HUGE BLESSING FOR US, 

HIS CHILDREN,

SMALLER THAN MOUNTAINS,

SMALLER THAN HILLS,

SMALLER THAN SEAS.

AND LOVED AND BLESSED, 

PERSON-TO-PERSON.

I LOVE MY HEAVENLY FATHER, 

MY PRECIOUS LORD,

AND AM FILLED WITH THANKFULNESS. 

 

ALMIGHTY REIGNS

MY HEART IS FULLER THAN USUAL, SEEING THE SORROW BEING SPREAD AROUND AND ABOUT OUR WHOLE WORLD.

SINFULNESS, DECEITFULNESS, HATEFULNESS.

AS IS SAID, I CAN HARDLY WAIT FOR HIM TO ARRIVE...

LOVE AND ACCEPTANCE AND ENCOURAGEMENT AND SERVING HIM, PERSON TO PERSON, WILL BE IN PLACE FOREVER.

I ALSO KNOW THAT HIS CHILDREN IN OUR WORLD ARE SERVING HIM AND PLANTING HIS SEED ANYWHERE AND

ANY TIME HE CALLS THEM TO DO SO.

KNOW I SOUND PRETTY INTENSE TODAY... 

BUT THAT'S JUST WHERE MY HEART IS.  

[MY DEAR ONES, PUT UP WITH ME AND 

MY VISIONARY ASPECT IF YOU CAN.]