Aching knees

Well here it is Sunday evening. It was a good weekend. The wedding rehearsal on Friday night was good and it was fun being with the Schlemer and McLaughlin families. Saturday we had the Men's Breakfast with a good turn out. It is such a good time to sit and visit with the men of the congregation. It helps to talk with those men. Makes one feel like he is normal. What a great bunch of guys. If you haven't had a chance to attend - it is the 2nd Saturday of the month at 6:30 am. Then the wedding in the afternoon, and it went well. It came off with a hitch - the couple was brought together by the power of the Lord, showing them what true love is all about. The service Saturday evening was inspiring. We installed the new officers for the year. Sunday morning was good. The bible class went well. We discussed the Lord's Supper and the practice of closed communion. As always, it caused a little controversy among the people. Then we had a really good worship service. We had a baptism of Jonathon York, which is always a moving experience.

Think about it, that little baby is now a child of God, one who is going to heaven. How is that possible? It was only a little bit of water and a few words spoken. That makes no sense to the human mind. But it isn't about what we think. It is about what God does. In the waters of baptism, the Holy Spirit works faith in the heart of the child. Peter writes, "Baptism now saves you." Can that little baby believe? Yes! Because the Lord has promised it. The Spirit has done it. And now, Jonathan William York is a child of God, believing in Jesus as his Savior, forgiven of his sins. Does that mean all that needs to be done for him is done? No, his parents now have the task of raising him in that faith. They need to show him Jesus as the Savior, help him to hold firm to that faith, bringing him to worship, Sunday school, and teaching him to pray.

Then we got ready for the water balloon fight. We started filling the balloons around 1:00. By 2:00 we had 500 of them filled. Thanks Penny, Matthew and Hannah Meyer. But then, the storm came up. It started to rain, the winds blew, and the lightning crashed. What will we do? Head into the gym of course. Volleyball ensued. (All right, so it wasn't immediate. We had to set up the net. The youth knew how to set the poles and then the hunt was on - we had to find the net. Where could it be? I know it was here a few weeks ago. Looking, looking, hunting, where is it? Then we found it in the back closet. What was it doing there?) And off we went. boys against girls - we rock! We won 2 in a row. Break time and then new teams. We played two more games (my team rocked! 2 wins again!). Break time and a final round. 2 more games - and guess what, the team i was on was only able to win 1 of those. What a great night. Thanks to all the youth who were there!

But my knees are aching tonight. I hadn't played volleyball for quite some time. Following that knee surgery last October and I can't move like I used to. And so I take my Aleve, sit here and wonder, will I be able to get up the stairs? Yes I will. And tomorrow will be another day.

Looking back

It's Thursday morning and I am reminiscing. I am thinking back over the 5000+ mile trip that Penny and I took as we traveled to the west coast. It doesn't seem possible that we traveled that far. I should have been exhausted but I wasn't. I should have been terribly grumpy, but I wasn't. It is amazing. What can I attribute that to? It must have been the train travel - how relaxing it was to just sit back and let the world go by while watching the scenery, reading a book and taking a nap. Crossing state lines meant nothing, for we never really knew when we crossed any lines. It was the easiest way to travel.

Or maybe it was the company I was in - Penny's. I really enjoyed being able to give myself completely to Penny, giving her my time and myself. There was no one asking for a few minutes that turns into a 1/2 hour or more. There were no meetings to go to and no deadlines to meet. The biggest question we had was whether we wanted to eat early or late, whether we wanted to go to the lounge car or sit in our own room. That was really fun. I enjoyed having the time with my wife, the love of my life. I wish it could be that way all the time but it can't. We do have to pay for the trip somehow! There is no government stimulus package coming to pay things off, though if President Obama finds a few extra dollars lying around, I would be glad to take them off his hands. I don't need the billions others have received.

In the end I think it was that the Lord gave Penny and me the time together to refresh and renew our relationship. The relaxation came from Him. We can figure out all sorts of reasons but the bottom line is that the Lord blessed us on our trip. He gave us the peace we had, the joy we shared, the fun we encountered and the food we ate (and boy did we we eat!). Thank you Lord for the wonderful trip you gave us.

This was going to actually be a look back on the actual trip, but the Spirit took it another direction. Maybe next time I will actually look back on the trip. I have been doing a lot of reflecting and remembering, especially as the pictures I took begin to come back. (Yes, I still use film. I am not in the digital era yet.) If I was looking back, 2 weeks ago today, we climbed aboard the Coast Starlight for the 24 hour run down the coast from Seattle to Sacramento. Wow, has it been 2 weeks already? Where does the time go? Oh well, I have a deadline to meet so I better get going...

An Ode to Michael Jackson?

Tuesday is going to be the media event of the day (unless you talk with the media and some of the crazy people who will be there). It is the day when they will have the memorial for Michael Jackson. Why am I writing about the event? What does it matter to me? In reality, it doesn't. I could care less about the memorial for Michael Jackson. I really didn't enjoy his music, though "Thriller" and "Beat It" were pretty good. The videos made the songs. He could really dance - I could only wish that I could moon walk like he did. My kids get a little frustrated with me when I pretend that I can. Nor did I think he was the best entertainer of the century. In fact, in these last years, I have been appalled by his actions and the media circus that surrounded him.

I look at the adoration that will be given to Michael tomorrow 9and these last days) and I wonder to myself, would those same people give that adoration to Christ? Do they give it to Him? Ask those same people to stand in line to hear the message of the Gospel proclaimed, and what do you think they would say? Would they do it? If you offered tickets to thousands of people to come to a national event of the Lutheran Church, do you think that they would come? The only answer I can give is - I doubt it seriously. A memorial service vs. a service of praise to God - which will come out on top? Take a wild guess.

But that isn't the only thing I think about when I think of the memorial for Michael Jackson. I also think about his soul. Now some of you will say, "You can't comment on his soul." And in some ways you would be right. I didn't know Michael personally nor did I ever ask him if he knew Jesus as his Savior. But I do know that the Jackson family was raised Jehovah's Witnesses. I don't know if Michael held onto that belief until he died. If he did, I am saddened. The reason - those who follow the teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe in Jesus as a Christian does. They do not believe in the Scriptural teaching of the Trinity (they believe the Trinity is a teaching of the devil). Those who follow the teachings of the JW's are not saved. They do not go to heaven when they die. And for Michael Jackson, either as a JW or as a non-believer, would not be in heaven.

That, my friends, is the greatest tragedy of all. Another soul has been lost. Satan has taken another one to hell. And that, through it all, breaks my heart. Rest in peace Michael Jackson? No, he won't rest in peace. Satan will make sure of that. Thousands and millions will mourn his death - but will they mourn the loss of his soul to damnation? That is where the tears should be shed.

The Spirit helps us

The OT reading for today was from Ezekiel 2:1-5. That is the call of Ezekiel to be a prophet of God to the people of Israel. Was amazing how that fit so well with the 4th of July weekend. Ezekiel was to go and preach to the people of Israel, a nation that was rebellious and stubborn. Sounds a lot like the people of America. We are people who know right from wrong and often chose wrong. We know how God would have us live and often, in our sinful stubbornness, we refuse to do what God tells us. We do that as individuals and we do that as a nation. Perhaps at another time, we can talk about it. Such things as same sex marriage, abortion, misuse of power, hatred, anger and a whole host of other sins we stubbornly hold onto in the face of what God says to us. Ezekiel is the prophet is Israel. God's Word and His men (called pastors) are the prophets to the US today. We must say, "Thus says the Lord" and focus on what the Lord has said in His Word.

But my thoughts are not about that aspect of what the reading from Ezekiel. Instead I was looking at Ezekiel 2:2 which talks about what happens for the son of man who is to be the mouthpiece of God to the people. The Lord tells him to stand upon his feet for He has something to say to him. The problem - Ezekiel was unable to do it. We are told that the Spirit lifted him to his feet and set him before the Lord.

I thought about it and it reminded me of something that Luther wrote. "I cannot by my own reason or strength, believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to Him. But the Holy Spirit has called me by the gospel..." Ezekiel is placed upon his feet by the Spirit. We, too, people who need to hear the Word of God, who need the power of the Lord in our lives, are unable to bring ourselves into that relationship with the Lord. We cannot stand upon our own feet. We cannot bring ourselves to listen to the Word of God or understand it. We cannot...you name it and we cannot do it.

We need the Holy Spirit to bring us to the Lord. We need Him to set us on our feet. He does that through the Means of Grace (your remember them, don't you? Word and Sacraments). He opens our ears as we hear the Word read. Opens our eyes as we read it for ourselves. Opens our hearts that are hardened by sin. Like Ezekiel He prepares us to serve Him and guides us as He opens our lives to live for Him.

Hard to figure out

We went to St. Louis today. I love to go to that city, and now that we live so close, it is a lot of fun. Today, we went to visit Agnes Kelly, a member who has made a miraculous recovery. A month and a half ago, she was on death's door, on a respirator and we wondered if she woudl ever recover. Tuesday she is to come home from the hospital, not to a nursing home, but to her own place. God has done a miracle! He has given her healing that none of us could have ever imagined. It is true. "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21 NIV) Who could have imagined that Agnes will be coming home? We prayed for it. We longed for it. We hoped for it. And now, God has accomplished it! Alleluia! Amen!

But the strangest thing happened to us today. We were in the parking garage, waiting for the elevator to go down. The door opened. And as Rachael moved to go into the door, it closed. The person in the elevator closed the door in her face. It was strange. We decided to do the stairs rather than waiting for the elevator. We talked about how strange it was. But then shook it off and went into the hospital.

We got the room for Agnes and went to the elevator. We got on, pushed the 6th floor. A woman got on with us and pushed floor 4. Nothing strange about that. We stopped on floor 4 and the woman moved in front of the buttons and then got off. As she did that, she pushed the 3 and 5 buttons and got off. We said how rude that was, to each other. Then Penny and Rachael dropped the bomb on me. That was the same woman from the other elevator! What was this? What happened? Why would she do that?

I couldn't figure it out. What was this about? We had never seen this woman before. We hadn't even spoken a single word with her. Was it racism? She was a woman of color and we were white. Was it that she disliked us because we were of a different race? Who knows? We sure don't know.

It made me think about the whole thing of sin - how it affects the actions of people on a daily basis. Sin shows itself as one person treats another person poorly for absolutely no reason. How many times does that take place each day? Thousands, perhaps even millions of times a day, people treat one another poorly, for no other reason than they don't like the other person. Sin shows itself.

And it made me wonder, how do you treat someone else, people that you have never met or seen before? How do I treat others? People that I have never met? My daily life should, the way that I treat someone, should reflect the love of Christ. How would Christ treat that person? And that is how I should treat them. I pray that the love of Christ shines through all my actions, my words, the way I treat that stranger on the street. I pray that I won't treat someone the way we were treated today by someone that we have never met.

Give that some thought as you go about your day today.

The California Zephyr or a late train only gets later

When we road the Capital Limited years ago (that was a fun trip too!) the car attendant told us the old adage "A late train only gets later." That has stuck in my mind. And the California Zephyr proved how true that adage was.

It was only about 10 minutes late arriving in Sacramento. I got a good video of it arriving and sent it to the kids so they could see that we really had a train and were coming home. We missed our kids but we were having a blast traveling across the country. Penny and I were really enjoying the "our" time. It was good for us. We hadn't grown apart nor were we struggling in our relationship. But it was still good to be able to spend time just the two of us. Every marriage relationship needs that time to reconnect and rejuvenate in order to stay fresh and exciting. This trip really helped ours.

At the outset, we realized the Zephyr was going to be different from the Empire Builder and the Coast Starlight. The car attendant wasn't at the door greeting us as we got ready to board. We stood there for a few minutes waiting for him but he never showed. The man in front of us finally said, "I guess we should go ahead and get on board." At that moment we should have known - but we didn't.

The car was a little older than the others we had been in which would show itself as we went through the mountains. The toilets wouldn't flush regularly at the altitudes that we were at. The attendant had to reset them before they would work. That is just an inconvenience that we would put up with. We didn't have that problem on the others but that is just the way it was.

There are two things about the Zephyr that come to mind. First, the staff was not nearly as good as on the other trains. The dining car staff was inefficient. Meals took much longer than they should have. The food was good but Melissa was sooooo slow. Getting drinks was a challenge. Taking our orders was slow. And she was even slower getting them back to us. Our car attendant wasn't that available. There were times we had no idea where he was. It was good that we didn't need him much but still, after Gary on the Empire Builder, this really showed a lack of attention.

The second thing I can say about the Zephyr is "WOW!" The scenery was spectacular. The Builder and the Starlight had some great scenery. But most of the trip was just a trip. On the Zephyr, from the time we left the valley and started into the Sierra Nevadas, it was great. All the way from there to Denver was breathtaking. Maybe that is why the staff didn't try so hard. They knew that people would be watching the scenery. There were canyons that were beyond description they were so amazing. We followed the Colorado River for 125 wonderful miles. I tried to capture it on film and on video (my phone, so I didn't have a video camera). The video was good. I will wait and see how the pictures come out. Boy, oh boy, was it amazing. All I can say is that God did an amazing job when He created that part of the world. OK, the rest of the world is amazing too but the views, wow, what can I say. It is something you need to experience to believe.

Yet a late train only gets later. We had slow orders through the mountains (which gave us more time to enjoy the views) and every time the train tried to gain back some of the time that it lost, Union Pacific would slow it down for track work. We were doing all right, only an hour late until we came out of the Moffat Tunnel on the east side of the Rockies. We stopped on the side of the mountain because UP had pulled a rail and was replacing it. A train can't go without rails so we sat there. 30 minutes passed and the conductor told us that it would be another 30 minutes. The sun was setting. The time was ticking and the train was getting later. Finally we began to roll again. Passing that point of rail replacement at a crawl slowed us further. And then we were passed it. We arrived at Denver in the dark and 2 hours late.

Going to bed after we left Denver, we hoped the run across Nebraska would gain time but when we woke in Lincoln, we realized that wasn't the case. We were still running late. No time had been gained. Still, Iowa could give us time. But as slow order after slow order came in, we got later and later. Calling the kids, we talked with them and made a decision. Rather than have them drive into Chicago to pick us up late (with the Taste of Chicago going on as well), we decided they should change direction and head to Galesburg. It would be easier driving, less traffic and we would get off the train sooner.

So we pulled into Galesburg, IL at 4:00 p.m. (our arrival at Chicago was to be 3:50 p.m.) and there we saw Rach, Matthew and Brandon watching for us. It was good to see the kids (plus one). Getting our stuff, and we had more than when we left, we disembarked the California Zephyr, a late train that was going to be later getting into Chicago.

With the two whistles to say that it was leaving, we said good-bye to the Zephyr and to our train trip. It was great. When the kids asked if it was worth it, Penny and I said at the same time, "YES!" It truly was worth the trip.

Thanks Penny for making it a wonderful trip. I greatly enjoyed the train travel, the time spend with you, and the sights and sounds of rail travel. I hope we can do some sort of trip again. Happy anniversary Penny Anne. Thanks for 25 great years. And thanks for the last couple weeks.

If you want to travel by rail, I recommend it. It is a a relaxing way to travel. We read, dozed, ate, watched out the windows, took pictures, and then did it all over again. It was a very relaxing trip. I came back refreshed, ready for getting back into things. And I came back more in love with my wife than I thought was possible. Has it really been 25 years? No way. It has been great but will only get better. Is that possible? The Lord alone knows what is in store for us but I am sure that we are just getting started on our relationship. The best is yet to come!

Old Sacramento & getting ready for the Zephyr

After a great supper at the Dixie something or other riverboat (which was amazing!), we turned in. All right, so I ate wild boar. Never thought I would eat something like that but it was really good. What was funny is that Penny and I saw a place called the Wild Boar or something like that and we joked all day about boar breath and boar meat and then, for supper, I ate wild boar. Talk about ironic. Penny had bay scallops, which were not as large as she thought as she expected. But they were yummy.

We turned in and got ready for the next day. We weren't going to get up early but since we were still on central time, we rose early. Had a great breakfast at the Embassy Suites there in Sacramento and then went for a drive. We needed to return the rental car to Enterprise (thanks to my nephew Dave Thomas who worked things out for us). So we drove around Sacramento. It was an interesting town. There was quite the contrasts, just like any major towns. We enjoyed it a lot. We returned the car and walked back to the hotel. It was only 16+ blocks, but it was nice. We walked through the area around the state capitol. It was really pretty. Lots of pretty trees and flowers. Arnold does a good job - all right, so he doesn't do the gardening but at least it felt like the govenator could have done it.

The walk wasn't bad because it wasn't too hot yet. It started in the upper 50's but was quickly getting hotter. It was only in the 70's when we walked back, and it was a dry heat. Old Sacramento was next on our list. We wandered through watching people come and go. Saw a lot of homeless people. Why weren't they being helped? We live in a society that says it wants to help people but here they were, homeless, wandering around, picking up cigarette butts to get the tobacco out of them, picking through the trash for cans or drinks. It really was sad.

We sat and waited to see the Zephyr cross the bridge heading into the station, but soon got bored. It was getting hotter (a dry heat of course) and so we wandered into a history museum. Quite interesting to wander through. Learned about gold hunting, the history of ww2 in Sacramento (with the camps for the Japanese, a sad part of our history) and agriculture in the area. Wandering back into the head, we headed for the Old Sacramento train depot for a ride. It was only 10:30 and the line was long! Others like me, just a little bit crazy for a train ride, waiting in the heat for a ticket for a train that goes for a mere 4 miles. Isn't America great? Homeless people looking for something while we wait in line to buy tickets on a train that goes nowhere. Did I feel bad? No I didn't. Perhaps that is my shame, but I am not embarassed by it.

We bought the tickets for first class, meaning we rode in the car El Dorado, air conditioned and also received a soda and a cookie. How could it get any better? But it did. At the end of the line, the engine, a oil burning steamer, ran around to the other end, the side we were one, coupled up to the El Dorado, and began to haul us back. I got to stand on the back platform right next to the engine. All right, so for some of you, that would not be very exciting, but for someone with the illness of railroaditus, it was great. Penny sat in the ac, watched the scenery and the smile on my face, and felt the depth of love that we have between us. Thanks Penny, you are the best!

Back at the station, we wandered off to find lunch, eating at one of the many eateries that Old Sacramento has for people like us. It was a good burger. Nothing out of the ordinary but we sat on the patio and watched the river traffic go by. We even saw one boat covered in reeds, looking like a nipa hut. That is what Penny called it. It was a good meal.

We then wandered to the Old Schoolhouse museum. It was kinda neat to see how things were done at the turn of the century. Bought a few things that I will share with the teachers of St. Paul's and some with the students. Fun stuff. Can't wait to share it.

Off we wandered, shopping for friends and family. For Matthew we found a Japanese sword in an antique store, also a few old train postcards for me. Found a shirt of Brandon and magnet for mom. We finally made it to the Sacramento Railroad Museum. They have quite the display and good history. Could have had better lighting for pictures. Didn't stop me from taking them but they might not come out.

We spent way too much money there but it was great. A new shirt to wear home on the train, something for Penny and me to read, and off we went. Shopped our way through Old Sacramento, found Penny a hat. Boy she looks cute in it! And back to the hotel. It was hot - only 109 for a high, but it was a dry heat. We went back to the hotel, had a beer out on the patio while they cleaned our room, read a little, saw the train come back again, right by the hotel and then up to the room to clean up.

We ate supper in the Tower Bridge Bistro, had a great supper at a decent price. Was very enjoyable. Then walked back into Old Sacramento, just because we wanted to. Listened to jazz on the patio, good music but the lead singer was hard to look at - hard to describe. Suffice it to say she wouldn't go far if the lights were on.

Got up the next morning, ate breakfast at the hotel again (food seemed to be the focus of this vacation) and then packed. Off to the train station to wait for the Zephyr. We were looking forward to this trip. Everyone said it is the most beautiful trip. We couldn't wait. But we had to wait as the train was about 10 minutes late. That wasn't bad but was a sign of things to come. That, my friends, is another story.

We enjoyed Sacramento. We would go back to it. Not to Seattle though. No offense people, but we weren't really excited in Seattle. Off to another trip. And another adventure. Tell you more later.