Car vs. Van . . .

I had a reminder today about how fragile life is in this world. A car pulling out of MMC failed to see the oncoming traffic and thus they collided. Somebodies Aunt/Uncle,sister/brother, son/daughter, dad/mom, left this world for the next realm.(Two fatalities) I do not know their next destination, I pray that they knew God and His son Jesus. One moment your day can be planned with all the details of life, the next moment your gone. Remember today what is important, Love the Lord your God with all your Heart, mind and soul and second like it, Love your neighbor as yourself.
Hug your wife, tell your kids you love them. Stop right now and pray, let God know how great it is to be His child. There are no guaranties of endless time, only the moment that you are currently living in use the moment to the fullest.

go make a difference for Him

Buddy

Del Puerte Canyon Fire . . .

Tonite Wayne Smith and I responded to the ICP(Incident Command) of the Del Puerte Canyon Fire. Their coffee maker went offline and the firefighters were in need of coffee. We scrounged up as many pots as we could and took them out to the command post. The ICP is a portable city of 2000 people. Shower trailers, kitchens and air conditioned tents. It was an amazing operation to see. Tommorrow morning the firefighters will have coffee with breakfast. . . .

Fire! Del Puerto Canyon

The Del Puerto Canyon fire is getting closer to subdivisions near Patterson, CA. We have been placed on standby for feeding and sheltering. The fire is a 3000 acre fire 20% controlled. I will keep everyone updated as I hear more info.

Buddy

DAT TEAM Meeting / Kitchen Training

The American Red Cross Disaster Assitance Team will meet at Davis Park Church of Christ tonight at 6:30 p.m. I have another engagement this evening and cannot make it. A couple of people will make sure the building is open and cool.

I will be scheduling a Disaster Kitchen Training Class in the near future if you are interested in being on the Kitchen Team let me know so I remember to include you in this activity.

No more news to report at this time.

Buddy

Scotland Mission Wrapping Up

Krista sends her greetings to everyone from across the pond. She and teammates have finnished the Holiday Bible School. The were having approx. 20 kids in the HBS. The campaign that work along side it with the adults has been met with good success also. All in all Krista's says that the trip has been a good experience. I can not wait for her to get home to me and Matthew.

Red Cross Appeal. . .

The American Red Cross is looking to deploy individuals to NY or PA for two to three week tours of duty. They will pay expenses to and from and cover your meals and lodging while you are on assignment. Think about. pray about it. This is a good oportunity to take Christ to the Crisis!.

Buddy

Davis Park Missions. . .

Krista Gray, my wife, arrived in East Kilbride, Scotland today and everything seems to be going well. They took a couple hour nap after arriving and went to the church building for food and fellowship. When I talked to her there was a lot of laughter in the background. Tommorrow(in just a few hours) they will go door to door to invite people to the Holiday Bible School and to the gospel meeting Dale Foster will be preaching. Let us hold them up in prayer as they bring Christ's message.

John Greff and Walter Leonard have headed for Guyamas, Mexico today. They will be there for a week working with a medical missions team from Nashville. Walter will preaching a meeting for the local church while he is there. John will help dispense glasses while there. Pray for them as they take the good news to foreign soil.

Matthew and I are doing well. He misses his mommy. He woke up crying in the middle of the night wanting Krista. He went back to sleep after a half hour or so. I remind him that we are doing our part this time by staying at home. Not everyone gets to go everytime.

The Red Cross is looking for some volunteers to deploy to the east coast immediately! They will pay airfare and expenses. They are accepting two week commitments or longer. This is a great opportunity to take Christ to a disaster zone.

Pray for our people on missions abroad, pray for ys to do our work here.

make a difference for Him,

Buddy

Responding to Family. . .

Krista left for Scotland today for a 13 day mission trip. What a switch for us? She is usually taking me to the airport for some type of mission adventure. The point of departure was filled with emotion. Matthew was crying, I started to cry, but Krista told me to stop. . . Matthew had tear stained cheeks when I let him off at Pre-school. I wonder what he thinks of us leaving home to take the message of Christ to someone new. I am excited that Krista ventured out to the mission field for a while. I pray that it is a time of renewal and a time that will build her zeal for serving God. Pray for her as she travels 8000+ miles over the next few days. Pray that those that are waiting to hear Gods word from her have hearts that are ready for change. Its time to change because the Kingdom of God is at hand

Buddy

Weekend on the Delta . . .

A family time on the Delta, more specifically, Brannan Island State Recreation Area. The summer campout for the Davis Park Church of Christ was a time of great fun in a time of adversity. Temps were above 100 degrees and the wind seemed like gale force winds. The water at the swimmin hole was 72 degrees. Most of the time I stood in the water up to my neck and just enojoyed the natural coolnes of the water. Matthew had a blast with the other kids, throwing mud, boatriding and ridge-running. Most of the my time was spent talking to my brothers and sisters in Christ that I usually do not have time to visit with.

Have a great day

Buddy

The Real Response

This past week was a reminder for me concerning what response is all about. Two souls were added to the kingdom. Cary Higginbothom and Art Walsh were both baptised into the Kingdom of God. Art is the husband of Debi Smith Walsh and the son-in-law of Wayne and Sheila Smith. It was my first baptism in a working hot tub. Choice was the 66 degree water of the swimming pool or a hot tub next to the pool. I choose the hot tub. After the immersion we kicked on the bubbles for a little while to experience some heaven on earth. Cary is a seeker from Modesto. Her and her husband Leonard started attending Davis Park a few weeks ago. We have had a few sessions of welcome covenant studies, after responding to the invitation on Sunday morning she asked Mike to baptize her. The angels rejoice for these two new souls saved from the world. Pray for them in the coming weeks . . .

Praise God for letting us make a difference for Him,

Buddy

Family Promise. . .

Family Promise tour # 5 ended for us on Sunday morning Many Thanks to Jennifer and Sheila Smith for all the work they put into this program. Sheila coordinated the 21 meals the families ate while we were sheltering them. Jennifer made sure someone was their to host the families during the night.
I know the two families that moved on to St Paul's Episcopal will do well. Both are on the verge of finding places to live.

7 different families stayed overnight this time and 5 different families cooked supper for the families, I wish to thank each of you for helping in the capacity that you helped. I also want to thank the ladies who helped wash laundry after the program concluded. Each time the families leave their is a mountain of of sheets, blankets and pillow cases to be laundered.

Thanks for making a difference!

Buddy

Family Promise . . . Last night

This is the last night of this rotation of Family Promise. It is always amazing to see how we respond to taking care of the needs of the families in FP. Tonight we have a family of four and a single mom who finishes her shift at 2:00 a.m. Our volunteers will get up when she arrives to let her in. I appreciate their dedication to this great work. I am always worn out by the last day and this is no different. Managing the familes and making sure our volunteers all have a good experience takes a little work. Sheila and Jennifer Smith are great volunteer managers for this program. They are dedicated to making Jesus available to the people in this program, I applaud the work they do God in this program. We wll have had over 30 volounteers involved by the end of tomorrow when we take the beds to the next Church.

I will blog more tomorrow about this great program. Pray for the families in the program.

Buddy

Family Promise Day Three . . .

Thanks to all who have voluntered to make life better for the two families we are caring for this week. I can see that they appreciate all that is being done for them. Pray for the Flores family, on Wed. they find if their application for housing will be accepted. The other family is closing in on housing also. Pray that God will work us out of a job.

Pray for the children in the program that lives are not disrupted while they are displaced from homes and moving from church to church.

make a difference for God,


Buddy

Family Promise . . . Night # 1

Right now its 11:15 p.m. and all seems quiet here at the church building. The two families from family promise are here, one is a family of four and the other is a single parrent family of two. I cooked supper tonight for the group and no one seems sick at this point. I ate the pot roast, green beans, mac and cheese also. It was actually pretty good. This time we are having an unusually hard time finding volunteers. Our core group is busy doing a lots of other things. School years are ending, graduations, first real weekend of summer break, etc. If you can help with either a meal or by staying a night at the church building call me at 380-3851 and I will get you plugged in.

The families make it all worth while. Trying to make them special in time of distress, and hoping we can help them bump into Jesus while they stay a week with us at the Church building.

I will update you more tomorrow.


Buddy

Family Promise. . . Next Week

Time flies by so fast. It just seems like a few short days ago that we were winding down from our week with the families from FP. Now it is our turn again. It is with some excited expectation that I approach this each time I know that our week is finally here. Since last time two of the families have found homes. How exciting to be a part of a program that helps people move from homelessness to a home, with the aid of God's people. If you have time to spend the night as a host, prepare a meal for the families or spend time in the evenings with the families let me know, I set it up for you.

make a difference,

Buddy

Debi Smith's wedding. . . local response

I just returned from two days in San Jose, CA. San Jose is abeautiful city next to Fremont and San Francisco. It was our honor to officiate at the wedding of Wayne and Sheila's daughter, Debi. It is a lot of work for parents to put on a wedding 90 miles from home. Alas, the Smith's pulled family and friends together to pull it off. This is one part of being a minister that is fun, watching a new family form in front of your eyes. Seeing two young people trembling before God and the crowd as they pledge their love for one another.

The week of chaplaincy was uneventful, which is a good thing. Peace in the city of Modesto is always a good thing.

Pray for us as we attempt to put together a trip to Pascogoula. We will begin a planning process this week. 4 people are interested at this time. We will see what develops.

Buddy

Pascogoula, MS

John Dobbs has made an appeal for ministers to come to Pascogoula to share the gospel of Jesus Christ to approximately 1000 families who have been touched by the physical work of many brethren who have worked there in the wake of Katrina. This is his second appeal for workers for the harvest. I am praying for an open door for me to be able to work there for a week. I am also praying for others to join me in this effort. Physical work has laid a foundation in this community to show them Christians care, now that the door has been cracked and their curiosity is peaked, its time to show them why we care. Jesus did the physical work for us by beaten, scourged , spat upon and crucified. He completed the work by His resurrection. Its time to tell the story in John's town. Who wants to go?

make a difference,


Buddy

Zoe Rosenberger : A local time of response

My friend and former Church Secretary Zoe passed away yesterday. She fought cancer with all energy for many years. Many prayers have been offered for over the past 4 or 5 years, God heard them all. Zoe left work a few years ago to make the most of the time she had left. I know her children will appreciate this in the future. In the coming days we have the opportunity to respond with in our congregation and make a difference for God. Some are writing letters and cards right now, others will send an encouragement card from the back of the pew. My guess is many will send beautiful flowers and plants. Food will be prepared with loving hands and placed before us while we fellowship remembering Zoe.
Today our hearts hurt with Jim and Anna Alvis, Brain, Lauren and Collin Rosenberger and the rest of Zoe's family. We pray for their comfort from God who heals all wounds.

Be God's Hands today.

Buddy

Fifteen Days. . .

Are we ready? Just fifteen days until the 2006 hurricane season. My prayers are for a light year, a year of rebuilding for the Gulf Coast. We can only wait and be as prepared as we can be. Many response organizations have not rested since Katrina and are still deployed after the many months following the storm. In the coming weeks the community response team will check our gear, replenish what we need to and be ready to deploy when needed.
Training is a never ending process, soon we will have some much needed cpr and first aid course. Some of our folks are way ahead in that they have taken First Responder courses and the CERT class.

I am rambling, so I will stop for now. If anyone has suggestions for classes please call me.

Buddy 380-3851

Ministry in Modesto. . . .

I am finally settling back into the routine. Monday night elders meeting. Tuesday evening visits at the hospitals. Wednesday evening at church. Thursday is bible study day. One in the morning and one in the evening. Friday is kind of a day off, although I find myself sitting in my office. Two of our Response Team members house got hit by a car last night. No major injuries to report right now, but they have a big hole in the front of their house covered by plywood. It had to be scary, one moment sleeping, the next a car coming throught the wall. I am about to go over and visit with the two of them. This weekend is Mother's Day -- husbands do not forget your wives, take care of them and get those kids to the store to buy something or set them down and make a crafty item with them. Matthew got MOM a doz. roses for Nurses Week and Mother's day this morning. I do not know who enjoyed it the most, her or him. He was so proud of the flowers he picked out. Tomorrow is T-Ball for the first time, pray for us. Next week we are on call at MPD, pray for peace in Modesto, or pray that God's message is brought to new places. Thanks for the comments, thanks for reading, I will write more as we respond to this community with the message of Christ.

go make a difference,

Buddy