Flashback Friday: My first 'Friday' Blog written on May 11, 2007.

With Mother’s Day being celebrated this Sunday, May 13, it gives me an opportunity to reflect on the impact my Mom has had on my life. My mother lives in Louisiana and recently celebrated her 83rd birthday. During her time she has experienced about as much as life can throw at one person but with God’s help she has persevered. The black and white photo is of mom and dad taken in the summer of 1953. Near Christmas of that same year he came down with flu like symptoms, which eventually turned into pneumonia, which eventually led to congestive heart failure, which led to him dying suddenly at age 31 on January 2, 1954.

Talk about turning our world upside down! There she was with six children (I was 7 at the time) ages ranging from eleven down to 18 months and she had never even written a check because dad took care of what little finances we had. We were forced to leave Port Arthur, Texas and relocate to a small rural community in Louisiana where we took up residence with her parents. Somehow she picked up the pieces, went to work, and slowly but surely recovered from this devastating experience. The color photo is my mom and I taken last year when I was there to spend the day with her.

Life has been the worst and best of times for my mom but she has remained faithful to God and to all her children. Since dad left us in 54’she has buried a second husband (1967), her parents, two brothers, two sisters, a son-in-law, and our older brother, (19), and baby sister, (27). In the midst of these continuing traumatic events, I well remember the advice given by a fellow in the small town where we lived. One day he blurted out: “You folks had better straighten up soon or all of you are going to be dead”. So much for comforting words during our time of grief. In spite of all this, today she has a wonderful husband, our step-dad, and they have been married for over twenty-five years. There’s still four of us kids left and we have produced many offspring including three girls from our baby sister who died from Leukemia, and many of these grands have produced many great grands with one or two now providing great great grands as they have begun to build their families. (I have ten grandchildren myself!)

Wow! What a woman! She’s living proof that with God anything is possible. Her and dad have been retired now for twenty years and have a most wonderful life. They love bird watching from their back porch and can go and do just about any and all things they feel up to doing. Yes, they do have some wear and tear and they do spend a fair amount of their time to and from the medical facilities but all in all, God has been good! And, we are the most blessed of all children to have such a champion of faithfulness and love as our MOM! Happy Mother’s Day and may God continue to bless you each and every day! 

 

Footnote: Today is Friday, May 22, 2026, and, I will say this about all that. Mom made it another 10 years after that blog was written, to age 93. God saw us through then, He is seeing us through now, and He will see us through to the end. Y'all have yourselves a great Saturday and Lord's Day Sunday and I will see about seeing about being in my place on Monday. May God add His blessings. Amen.  

1st John 4:19 ~ Good News Translation ~ "We love because God first loved us."

My blog consultant: Lil Miss Biscuit.

Well hello there and welcome to another visit. This one comes to you via the www and it pretty much reaches the entire globe 24x7. Today we celebrate Thursday, May 21, 2026, and, we thank God for another opportunity to recognize, honor, and serve Him. The other day a lady in our Lifegroup class called me on a video facetime call. I typically don't get very many of those types of calls and usually I'm not always ready for primetime in terms of my appearance. However, it did give me an opportunity to prove my accounts concerning my blog partner, Lil Miss Biscuit. I fixed the camera where she could see Biscuit in the chair with me as I was working on the next day's blog. I told this lady how Miss Biscuit was a favorite of mine since she mostly is very patient until I finish and she never criticizes my work. Never. She is always overjoyed when I finish but until I get up, she stays in her place either behind me, beside me, or, in my lap. I told our 87 year old neighbor yesterday how folks that visit have trouble relating to Miss Biscuit because she loves everyone, and, she wants them to know that. She will not take no for an answer because she can't figure out why anyone would not love her back. Her way of showing her love is to take action, in her case, it usually means up and into the lap of even a stranger. I've said before and I will say it again, I could learn something from our little doggie. I thought of the song lyrics, "Makes me love everybody, makes me love everybody...." speaking of the religion we have. But does it? Does it really make us love everybody as a reflection of God's love? Yeah. A sense of conviction came over me and it was initiated by the demonstrated love of my pup. That conviction asks me this question: What am I demonstrating? 

 

We have progressed here in our household. We typically use mostly paper plates these days. We do. We really do. I often allow Miss Biscuit the opportunity to clean the residue off the plate. The wife of my youth does not agree that even though Miss Biscuit has that plate pristine and clean, that we should use it again. The wife's mother, a most wonderful Godly woman, used to rinse off a paper plate and reuse it. My mom did the same thing. They both were well aware of how life was during the Great Depression, and, they both were very frugal. As many as 15% of all households use paper plates for their meals. Another 75% have them on hand and use them occasionally. As many as 15 billion paper plates are manufactured each year for use in the United States. Getting rid of them becomes a whole lot of trash, to the tune of roughly 1 million tons of discarded waste. My point? If the wife would let Miss Biscuit clean them up, we could then rinse them off, use them a few times more, and, maybe even get a letter of commendation from Al Gore to recognize our environmental sensitivity. That was a joke. But you knew that. Right? It's all about convenience. I still think they could be reused. I do. I really do. Y'all hang in there. Maybe there will be something better coming down the blog assembly line. One could hope. I do highly recommend to those of us who know the Lord and His love to be caught showing that same love towards others. Me too. Amen.

" Without doubt the emphasis in Christian teaching today should be on worship. There is little danger that we shall become merely worshipers and neglect the practical implications of the gospel. No one can long worship God in spirit and in truth before the obligation to holy service becomes too strong to resist. Fellowship with God leads straight to obedience and good works. That is the divine order and it can never be reversed." ~ Aiden Wilson Tozer

Hello again and I do bid each one a hearty hello and a warm welcome here, today, on this Wednesday, May 20, 2026. We are in a rainy forecast for the next few days. That makes things like travel a wee bit more dangerous, but, to tell the truth we need the rain. I'm not altogether clear on the reason why but it seems here in our area the rain does not stay very long in the ground. Within a couple of days it is dry again. This doesn't mean we are not ever so grateful for God's provision in terms of watering the earth. I know there are all types of scientific explanations for the weather we experience. I don't doubt the observations of those scientific phenomenon but at the same time I ask this simple question: Where did the elements being studied originate? And, who was The Originator? Creator God. He is in control. If he knows when the bird falls out of its nest, well, He knows everything there is to know about each and every person on the planet, those created in His own image. I love the ending of the ancient Book of Job. Job was a wonderful example of what it means to exude faith and integrity, however, Job learned some things as a result of all the challenges he faced. Here was his final words spoken to His Almighty God:

 

Job Chapter 42 

 

2 “I know that you can do anything,

and no one can stop you.

3 You asked, ‘Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?’

It is I—and I was talking about things I knew nothing about,

things far too wonderful for me.

4 You said, ‘Listen and I will speak!

I have some questions for you,

and you must answer them.’

5 I had only heard about you before,

but now I have seen you with my own eyes.

6 I take back everything I said,

and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.”

 

These words from Job have always been meaningful to me and they resonate because it helps me to see God for Who He is. What say you? 

 

I didn't intend to start today with a monumental deep theological thought on the weather, however, we exist in His world and He is the creator. I do know of many folks who are dealing with a variety of challenges in their own personal lives as well as in their families. Some have to do with illness, some have to do with financial sustainability, and, others relate to interpersonal challenges within their family. Just so you know, we all deal with the fabric of life including what it means to face difficulties and heartache. I know. There are some that promise if you give your life to the Lord you will not have to deal with any challenges in life. Can someone get Brother Job on the line and see what he thinks about that kind of nonsense. We all, you, me, everyone, as believers, and non-believers as well, live in a sin cursed world and everyone has to make their way through the maze of difficulties that define life. At the same time, knowing Christ as your Lord and Savior, under girds your day by day living with the assurance of His provision of hope and help. My advice to the unbelieving masses, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ because He is the Friend that will stick closer to you than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24 ESV:

"A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.") The spiritual application for many see Jesus via the Holy Spirit as the true Friend. One thing is clear: Regardless of what you are facing or going through as His own child, we can know this as a ever present reality: He will never leave you and He will never forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5) That's how we make it folks, one second of every minute of every hour of every day and of every year of our sojourn here in the life. Pray one for another that each of us will remain steadfast in our faithfulness to Him. Amen.

Romans 1:16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek."

As I recall, the opening of the old Star Trek series always included the stardate, therefore, I continue my practice of doing the same, today being Tuesday, May 19, 2025. I figured that might appeal to some out there, somewhere, not over the rainbow but rather, somewhere connecting to and landing on this particular blog where one will find the writer engaged in all kinds of stuff being slung onto the electronic page. That would be yours truly, the blogmeister himself. Since the first of these blogs back in 2007, some 3,912 have been published. That, my friend, constitutes a lot of keystrokes and images as well. Some may have not amounted to a hill of beans, as they used to say where I was raised up, but, I submit to each and everyone how that any and all references to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, well those references do have eternal significance and their application should be seriously thought about and responded to. Myself and another fellow were out on Church visitation last Sunday afternoon and we were able to make contact with a few folks. Those we didn't talk to, we left a bag of goodies along with some track information about our local fellowship and more importantly, Bible verses that explain the plan of salvation. That's right, the Plan of Salvation. It was Creator God who provided that plan. Our pastor put it this way, first comes the bad news, Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." The even worse news, Romans 6:23 "The wages of sin is death." Woe! But, hold on, there is better news, Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." There is even the best news of all. I'm getting excited about it even as I anticipate what it is, Romans 10:13 "All who call on the name of the Lord will be saved." That all means exactly that, all. This is the message of hope for a lost and dying world. And, it applies to any and all who repent of their sins and call on the Lord to save them. No matter where you live, no matter what you have done, and, no matter who you are, these verses apply to us all. I encourage anyone to take seriously and personally this provision from our Creator. Amen.

 

Billy Graham crusade in South Korea.

One of the people we talked to this past Sunday told us he had at one time been involved in an evangelical congregation but he had concluded that a good God would never have allowed the messed up world we live in today. I mentioned how this good God had created everything perfect and it was Adam our forefather who disobeyed God and plunged us into sin. He said he had heard that. I told him he was in a dangerous position in rejecting God's loving provision of salvation. He said he had heard all that. My point? I can't save anyone. You knew that already. And, that is true. However, we can share the love of God with others, even those who have heard it all and they have concluded how a good God would not have allowed things to become like they are today. The good news is how God still loves the world including the self-appointed skeptic. This fellow said he just might visit our services. I pray that he will and I do know there have been many who have showed up for all kinds of reasons and those reasons did not include a one on one meeting with The Holy Spirit who pricks the hearts of men, women, boys, and girls as the Word of God is shared. I can understand this fellow's conclusion. I can. However, what he concludes on his own and what I conclude on my own does not change the truth God has revealed to us. There were more than 400 Billy Graham crusades and the song, 'Just as I am' was sung at most of them as a way of inviting lost people to come to Jesus. The first verse has these lyrics:

 

Just as I am, without one plea,
but that thy blood was shed for me,
and that thou bidd'st me come to thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

 

By some counts, over 3 million people responded to the Gospel message proclaimed by Billy Graham during is 58 year ministry. I think God also used the message of that song in bringing home the truth all had heard. People still need to hear the truth. My family. Your family. Everyone, everywhere. Amen.

‌‌"I j‌‌ust d‌‌iscovered t‌‌hat t‌‌he w‌‌ord “‌‌nothing” i‌‌s a‌‌ p‌‌alindrome... Backwards i‌‌t s‌‌pells “‌‌gnihton”, w‌‌hich a‌‌lso m‌‌eans n‌‌othing." ~ copied

What hat should I wear today?

Good Monday morning on this another day where we have been granted the breath that is in our body, so, rise up and give God glory on this May 18, 2026. Amen. I never thought I would achieve this particular status: At Large Designated Driver. It has been a hoot driving here and there the wife of my youth or as someone called her, 'Miss Daisy'. While being on temporary suspension following her blackout spell while driving, I will say this about it: She is a very busy person, period, and, I have discovered her most spoken word regarding her situation, "This is ridiculous!" We see the neurologist in August. Hopefully, we can petition her release from this sanction, however, the 6 months will not be up until September. Meanwhile, I'm thinking up some nicknames for myself, TDD as in The Designated Driver; Chauff as in Chauffeur; Cabbie as in Cab Driver; Lim as in Limo Driver; and, finally, Ube as in Uber Driver. This incident has caused us to have to pay really close attention to our schedules. Of course medical appointments occupy a lot of space on our calendar. We were talking the other day how in our growing up days our families typically saw one doctor. Not anymore! I have more doctors whose specialties end in 'ologist' than you can shake a stick at. Don't test me on that one. But, here's the bottom line: God, yes, God, He has allowed us to live at a time whenever these advancements have been made. Here's a little ditty I copied that gives us something to think about: "In Matthew 9, the Pharisees asked Jesus why he spent time with sinners. He replied, 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick' (Matthew 9:12). Jesus recognized that sick people need doctors. He did not condemn using doctors and 'earthly remedies'." Therefore, if you need to contact me, remember I might respond to the name Ube these days. Ha! And, yes, I am thankful for all the medical services we use. I am. I really am.  

People ask me at times what I think about all the stuff going on in our world today, especially in our own country. You can tune in on any given day and find the overriding theme appears to be just how much President Trump is hated. Call it Trump Derangement Syndrome, TDS, if you like, but, there is no escaping how pervasive this pandemic of venomous and out of control mind altering mental derangement dominates in today's political climate, and, the fact that it does is a limiting factor in our being able to make progress as a nation. The President had another attempt on his life recently. In a recent poll, rank and file democrats reported their belief that the attempt was all theater and a staged event. A few crazies? Not hardly. Some 42% reported that sentiment. I am not a personal supporter of Donald Trump, however, I am a committed voter for Donald Trump and given the opposition and their platform(s), I would vote for him again and again. Policies do matter, they do. And, looking at where this nation would be under another Biden-like term, well, all I can say is, "Thank you Lord for sparing us again!" Sadly, the follow-on generations will likely yield to the more liberal type of leadership and my heart breaks for what it will mean to our grands and great grands. The bottom line: God is in control. Trump, Biden, Obama, Clinton, and on and on, God is in control. Check out the testimony of how God used pagan leaders in the Old Testament accounts. He even called them His servants. I am trusting Him, period, and, in case you were wondering, yes, I am unanimous in that persuasion. In my heart's mind I can hear that song, "Come Jesus Come...." Amen.

"Elder financial exploitation involves the theft or misuse of an older adult's money, assets, or personal information." ~ Statement from the US Office of the Comptroller for Currency

Well, here it is, another day, and this one gets a lot of attention because it is May 15th, and it happens to fall in the year of our Lord 2026. Why is it an attention getter? Here are a few reasons, it's national ride your bike to work day; national chocolate chip day; national NASCAR day; national pizza party day; national endangered species day; national work from home day; national straw hat day; national wear sun shades day; national peace officers memorial day; and, there's several more, but, this last one should resonate with many of my readers, it's also national senior (old people) fraud prevention day. I can tell you the artificial intelligence programmed searches are working overtime to find new ways, every day, to try and take dollars away from unsuspecting elderly folks. I just wrote that but what you didn't see was me seething when I typed in the words. The latest reports indicate seniors lose $7 billion per year in scamming activities. A real world example:The wife, as most of you know, was involved in an accident back in March. There was a police report. That information is out there somewhere. Over the past several weeks she has been getting all kinds of texts regarding her need to pay up or pay the consequences due to monies owed regarding unpaid violations. The texts always look official. She owes no outstanding tickets of any kind, but, to some, those threats of prosecution are enough for them to send in the demanded funds. Those fraudsters program their computer software robots and they work 24x7 and just like the evil one they serve, they are seeking whom they might devour. (1st Peter 5:8) Just say no. Just say no. That's my advice. Thank you very much.

 

I recently worked on an old photo and produced this one of our Kayla with her eldest of three daughters, Stacy. Kayla would be so proud of her girls and maybe, just maybe, she knows about their productive lives.

This date is also very meaningful to my family. It's the birth date of our baby sister Kayla Jean (1952-1979). The pain of her passing from sudden onset leukemia is one that still lingers to this very day, even after so many years. She was a remarkable person. She was a radical Christ follower who wanted everyone to be with her in heaven. She did. She really did. She grieved leaving her family behind but her heart was delighted to know she would be in the presence of her Lord and Savior. Don't write me about the caption on the photo especially concerning whether Kayla knows in heaven about her girls and their lives in today's world. Some theologians have guessed that those there might know the good, but, I hasten to say, out loud, I don't know. However, it is a nice thought. The little Church over in Louisiana where her Stacy attends, they stream their services. When I watch and see Stacy going up into the choir loft and I already know what a wonderful voice talent she is, well, it goes all over me. There's so much more to the story, but, I will leave it there for today, and, yes, the tears, they still flow but, my friend, there is coming a day when He will wipe away all tears. (The Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, Chapter 21, Verse 4.) Now I don't know about you, but, that's something worth looking forward to. What say you? Have a great Saturday and Lord's Day Sunday, and, I will do my best to show up next time here at the ole blogger ranch. Amen.

Comedian Jamie Lissow on what it means to be a stand-up: "Once I was performing at a college in Georgia. It was a very warm night and when I got to the school they told me they had some bad news. The air conditioner in the building was broken. A lot of students left, but about 30 stayed. It was getting really hot so they opened all the windows to let in some air. So it’s nighttime, all the windows are open, it’s a small crowd, I’m up on stage and every time I tell a joke and it doesn’t get a huge laugh… I actually hear CRICKETS."

Welcome. Today is May, 14, 2006, Thursday, and, it's a good day to go ahead and stop groaning after having read those corny jokes I shared a couple of days ago. I want to be clear regarding those so-called jokes. I read a lot of them, mucho, in fact, and I chose what I thought were the best. I actually test drove them by the wife of my youth. She thought some of them might be worth sharing in our lifegroup, made up of mostly senior adults or old people if you prefer, and, when the wife read them she actually laughed. Out loud. At least one or two times. The rule for a headline stand-up comedian is to connect and have acceptance for at least 3 to 4 jokes per minute. That's why they are headliners and I am a backroom blogger hiding behind my computer screen. Ha! We watch a lot of the YouTube videos that feature clean comedians. Most of them were recorded during a performance before a live audience. We typically do not wait to see if they will get better later. We go to the next one fairly quickly, maybe after the first couple of minutes. That tells me that stand-up comedy is very very difficult. It is known to be emotionally demanding and it does carry a high risk of failure. Speaking of high risk, changing the subject because I thought of something. High Risk. What in the world are we going to do with these ever increasing home insurance prices? Please let me know if you have any good suggestions in how to deal with this expense. I thought last year it surely couldn't go higher, but, we just received our new projected price and guess what? It did go higher. And, that my friend is why comedic relief helps a wee bit in a momentary escape from these types of challenges. Yes. We can pay the increased amount. Or, at least we can from our savings and I am thankful for that, but, home insurance has become a car note. It has, it really has, and that's not a joke. 

 

I do enjoy the company of our Lil Miss Biscuit. But, there are some days when she can be hard to deal with, she can be stubborn, and, she has perfected the 'I can't hear you' approach. I know what some of you are thinking. Why in the world did I not send her to obedience school? To tell the truth I thought I could do it myself. Not so fast Bucko! I watch these videos of dogs doing amazing things and then I watch Biscuit as she keeps on sniffing and snooping around even after I've called her a dozen times. Okay. I will date myself here but I do remember that corporal punishment was the main way dogs were taught, at least, the ones I saw in my formative years as a kid. This is how I roll: When she refuses to do what I tell her after I've called several times, truth is, I would like to beat the living daylights out of her. But, I don't, and, at the end of the day, I won't. Not just because we have neighbors looking, but, it's just not in me. I care too much for the stubborn pup. I do. I really do. I've had good success in letting her run outside without her leash, but, it can be frustrating when cars come down the road and she continues her ignoring protocol while she goes here and there totally oblivious to the danger. I know inquiring minds are wondering: Who is training who? Oh well, it does help to fill in the day and I get a fair amount of practice hollering at her which might be helpful if I ever try to qualify for either a hog calling contest or a Ricola cough drop commercial. Now you know some of what I have to put up with. Ha! Y'all have a blessed day and remember to thank God for His provision. Amen.