Higher Up and Further In

If it’s true that the dead will rise first on Resurrection Day, then my blog site will likely beat me into heaven.  Jiminy Cricket!  Has it really been 4 months since I dumped a random musing at this forsaken location?  Forsaken not because I started blogging elsewhere, just forsaken in a general not blogging anywhere sense.  To paraphrase a Mark Twain quote “The reports of my (blog’s) death are (not so) greatly exaggerated.” 

Well, well, let’s blow a little on the feeble remaining embers to keep a little life going.  By far the easiest thing for me to write about is the major news from the Castle and realm; however, you reading about the happenings in our lives likely ranks fairly high on the boredom scale.  It could be worse.  I could be plaguing you with theology according to serf ‘rett.  Let us utter a collective groan here and be thankful for just the boring local news!

Knight in Training Everett, 22 year old son, has been working the past few months as a chef in high class restaurant in Springfield, MO.  We feel the job was an answer to prayer as it appears to have helped him make some important decisions lately; one of which was to disconnect himself from the drug dealers he was living with and significantly upgrade his choice of companions.  Life isn’t dull when one wonders if the next phone call will be from the police.  I’m looking into how to repair the frequently climbed walls in our home.    

Our two daughters decided they didn’t like Springfield.  Last Spring they decided it was too cold in the winter and there was no compelling reason for them to live there, which generated the question of “Where would we like to live?”  THE BEACH!  They relocated in October to Gulf Shores, Alabama, which is now on my soon to be frequently visited list.

Largest thing on my wife’s radar screen is we finished cleaning the house two nights ago.  I can operate a mean mop when properly enticed. 

Tonight, we start the Battle of Kitchen Possession.  For the Mega Thanksgiving Feast we split the cooking duties.  Queen Kay’s assignments include congealed salad, a yet to be determined sweet potatoes dish, assorted veggies and deviled eggs that have bacon mixed into the stuffed.  Those eggs will be the cause of Machiavellian machinations leading to the fall of nations.  When it comes to the deviled eggs, my thoughts are “It’s better to ask forgiveness, than to ask permission!”  This theory totally falls apart if it’s not combined with another deviled egg principle; the principle of “First hog to the trough.”  I’ve known individuals to get up in the middle of the night to sneak a few eggs.  “Trust no one!”

My primary duties include the cornbread dressing, roasting of Big Tom (the feature presentation) and a chocolate cheesecake.  The fight starts because we will both be trying to get our food prepared first, so the victor can relax while the other slaves away in a panic as the last few minutes before the Feast tick off the clock.

Hey, I’ve got to go!  My daughter just called and reported Queen Kay is taking a nap!  THE KITCHEN IS MINE!

I’ve wondered at times if one of my particular life callings is praying for the Lost.  I can think of no other area where I see such consistently fast answers to prayer as when I pray for the Lost.  Sometimes Queen Kay thinks it is her prayers being answered and being the smart husband that I think I am, I don’t tell her any different; however, I’m the one with the anointing in this area of prayer even though I don’t need this prayer much for myself.  Just yesterday, Knight in Training Everett called with a request for prayer for the Lost.

“Dad, I really need prayer that my Lost billfold will be found.”  He had gotten nauseated at work and went out of the restaurant back door.  When he was heading back inside, someone suddenly swung the door open, bashing his head, knocking him out, and resulting in a second head whack when he fell on the concrete.  His sisters responded to the call from the restaurant and picked him up, but somewhere in the confusion, his billfold went AWOL.  Without his ID, he couldn’t cash his pay check to get much needed chicken soup for what he thinks is the flu.  I told him to relax and we would pray.

Kay and I were visiting with my brother and his wife so we all took a brief moment to pray that the Lost billfold would be found.  About two hours later, Everett called to report someone had turned in his billfold to the restaurant.  He also said that during his own searching, he had found his sister’s US Post Box key, which, two days earlier she had asked me to pray would be found.

About a month ago, Princess Rebecca went to a wedding while she was on vacation in New Jersey.  She lost her phone at some point that Saturday night.  Sunday morning she contacted me with a request for prayer for the Lost.  Within three hours, the Lost phone was found by the folks cleaning the reception area, saving her $200 plus dollars.       

In my Type A, Engineer life, I rarely lose anything.  Everything has its place and it jolly well better be in its place when I look for it!  Lord have mercy on my poor family when I do lose something because I tend to GO APE until I find what I’m looking for.  They cower in the corners while I’m Bonkers!  It is a good thing I don’t lose things, but poor Queen Kay will lose her nose while its attached to her face.  If I had a dollar for every time she lost her keys and glasses, I’d be ten years closer to retirement.  So I get lots of practice praying for the Lost; along with learning to walk in the grace of God and with understanding that everyone is not a Type A Engineer Type.  How about you?  Are you one who prays for the Lost?  Are you the pray’er or the prayee?

What is your favorite animal?  For Kay it’s the Giraffe.  She loves to watch them at the Zoo (until they stick out their ultra long dark tongues).  While we were shopping in Little Rock this past weekend, we wandered into a toy store.  As we were about to leave, Kay spotted the Giraffe.  I tried to get a picture with my cell phone, but it wasn’t clear.  I think you can still make out how she feels about Giraffes.

The stuffed animal had price tag of $100.00 and I would have bought the thing in a heart beat if she would have wanted it!  She gave it one final hug before we left.

Do you have a favorite animal?

Does this have any appearance of Hypocrisy to anyone other than me?  Some of the loudest voices being heard from The Hill are shown highest on the above list.  The top two shouldn’t be harping about putting the AIG execs in the hot seat; nope, they should be getting the hot seat treatment themselves!

On March 22, 2007, Kay recorded in her prayer journal that we had prayed against the drug culture in our small city.  We specifically prayed that “hidden things”, dealings done in the darkness of deception, would be brought into light.  We prayed that if any law enforcement personnel were involved with the drug dealers, their dealings would be discovered and brought to light.

This past week a local policeman was arrested for his involvement with drug dealers.  The guy was the drug dog handler and gave speeches to the kids in the local schools .  As one of the primary officers involved in busting drug dealers, this man was in a prime position to warn dealers of impending action against them.  And warn them he did!  “Did” is past tense, cause I figure he’s “Done” with police work.

This leads to the Prayer Questions.

Did our specific prayers, from two years ago, have any connection with the recent arrest?

Once a prayer is spoken, does it have time frame in which God will answer?  I’ve heard many times people say that God answers, as soon as we pray, with either a “yes”, a “no” or a “wait”.  Do you think this is true? 

I encountered a new thought a few months ago while listening to Leonard Ravenhill.  The concept was prayers can have an eternal nature about them; that is, once a prayer is uttered, it enters into the realm of God and stays there until it is answered.  Which made me wonder if perhaps a prayer can be answered more than once?  If prayers have an eternal nature, can I pray that the Lord would activate, in our area, the many prayers that Leonard Ravenhill prayed for revival; as in, “Lord, send us the revival that Ravenhill prayed would come”?

What do you think gentle reader? 

(Do you think I fell out of the turnip truck onto my head?)