Always remember: The road to getting somewhere in life is always under construction.

Greetings on this auspicious occasion. No. It's not something you would have known about. Today is special because it marks the 1200th episode of my daily visits with you, my wonderful audience. It is special to me because I have enjoyed sharing so much about my life and my views. Special because I know from some specific responses that God has used some of the verses and applications I've shared to minister to folks in their time of need. I gave up some time ago in trying to avoid repetitive stories. Why? Because my stories are on a mental Lazy Susan and they whirl around and stop without giving a lot of forewarning or notice. If on any particular day, a story shows up and it seems to fit the subject at hand, then I try to wear it. But it is Tuesday, January 24, 2012, and I am glad to be with you again. I will be the first to confess there's no way to estimate just how many mangled sentences, dangled participles, and other word atrocities I've committed since that first blog was written and published on May 9, 2007. For any of the words that did make sense I can thank my teachers including my high school English teacher, Mrs. Reba Jones. She was a huge encouragement to me in my writing. Also another teacher, Miss Mollie Self was instrumental in my life long love of reading. These folks have gone on to their reward but their influence is still a part of my life and the lives of many others who have gone on to put into practice their instruction. I've used this one many times but it does seem to be a reasonable assessment of my work thus far. It's what my grandfather used to say about me talking so much: "When is that boy going to stop long enough to come up for some air?" I'm still at it Paw Paw, and I know in many ways, you would be proud.

People are paid to come up with memorable slogans or tag lines. If they are really good they become a part of the culture. The hamburger chain Wendy's brought back one recently that took the nation by storm. "Where's the beef?" That ad campaign from the mid 1980's became so ingrained into the dialogue of our nation, the slogan began to be used in conversations from politics to visiting the neighbor at the mailbox. That would be the greatest dream for those who conjure up such ideas. Writing memorable promotional tags is big business. One I see often mentioned is the "Don't Mess with Texas!" logo. I also saw a list of state slogans the other day and they had been ranked and saluted based on their memorable message. I couldn't get into some of them but here's how they ranked the top ten. Number 1 was Montana with this slogan: "The Last Best Place".  2. Idaho —"Great Potatoes. Tasty Destinations." 3. Michigan—"Say Yes to Michigan" 4. District of Columbia—"Taxation Without Representation" 5. North Dakota—"Legendary" 6. Indiana—"Restart Your Engines" 7. Wyoming—"Like No Place on Earth" 8. Ohio—"So Much to Discover" 9. New Mexico—"Land of Enchantment" 10. Nebraska—"The Good Life" Those more near and dear to most of us were scored like this: Number 28. Texas—"It's like a whole other country." Number 30. Louisiana—"Pick Your Passion". This ranking was like most rankings, in the eyes of those doing the ranking. But, it is good to know there are actually people gainfully employed and engaged in spending their days working on stuff like this in hopes of coming up with another, "Lego my eggo!" winner.

We had a visiting speaker Sunday evening in our Bible study class. Brother Gus Moore is originally from Liberia and he fled that war ravaged country many years ago. He and his family have become American citizens but now that his homeland is somewhat stable he hopes to return soon to carry the Gospel to his fellow countrymen. Brother Gus has a passion for truth. On Sunday evening he gave tremendous insights from The Scriptures into why a candidate's recognition of the True God is essential to secure a believer's vote. Not what might be personally good in terms of policy or lower taxes. Not just because of the sentiment of anybody but the present incumbent. Those may be benefits but that, according to Brother Gus, should not drive the believer's decision. We must choose someone who recognizes the One and Only True God as given to us in the Word of God. He went on to deal directly with some of the known views regarding this issue on the part of those currently seeking the presidency. I was impressed and also convicted once again to seek God's direction in this matter. It reminded me that I cannot disconnect my faith from my duties as a citizen. My belief in God defines who I am, therefore, I need to operate my life, including the conduct of my civil affairs, in accordance with His Word. That was a sobering challenge and one that I will be praying about as we move towards this momentous time in our nation's history. May God bless each of us as we seek to please Him, yes, even in how we approach an election! Amen.     .....More later.