"As I look around on Sunday morning at the people populating the pews, I see the risk that God has assumed. For whatever reason, God now reveals himself in the world not through a pillar of smoke and fire, not even through the physical body of his Son in Galilee, but through the mongrel collection that comprises my local church and every other such gathering in God’s name." ~ Philip Yancey, Christian Author

Good morning and welcome to Friday, March 9, 2018, a day that many people will be celebrating around these parts because, for most of our surrounding school districts, it's Spring Break next week, and they have a week of vacation planned. Being with family. That's a great idea because family is God's idea. He originated the family. Dad, mom, brother, sister, it is all God's design. It's no wonder that when He established His local New Testament body of believers, He often referred to the members as family. Here's an excerpt from my blog, dated March 10, 2008, ten years ago, "The family part is the most crucial because that's exactly who we are as a local Church. We are the family of God and brothers and sisters united by our common birth experience through Christ. That is a remarkable benefit that comes with our salvation as we connect ourselves into God's people and identify with His chosen approach to carrying out His plans, that being the local New Testament Church. What a privilege to be a child of God! And, what a privilege to be a member of one of God's local Churches! Some like to think that being a child of God is enough and that is certainly the most important because it does provide for our eternity in heaven. However, God has a plan for every one of His own in this age and that plan includes them becoming a part of a local faith community." I am aware that participating in a local body of believers has been a consistent theme of mine throughout my blogging career. I am not always where I should be at any given time in my walk with the Lord, but, I am certain that doing life His way includes being a part of a local congregation. Amen.

Maybe I'll call that opening a sermonette and be done with it. The cooldown this week has been very nice, however, it can't fool me. It's not winter cold. It's different. It has a temporary feel to it like it's just playing with us. For us, this Saturday, (It's actually not Saturday, therefore, technically, the official change is made at 2 a.m. on Sunday.), is when we all get to do our robotic duty by messing with our clocks in order to adjust for daylight savings. Springtime means spring forward. This means we set our clocks up an hour. I hear people say this adjustment means we lose an hour of sleep. I suppose that could be the case but one can do something about it. We try to change our clocks early in the evening. This gives us the choice to go to bed at our regular time. I hear people say if they do this it means they might miss a favorite TV program. Really? That hardly seems possible with all the recording technology we have today, along with being able to watch almost any program on the internet at a time you choose, or the inevitable reruns that one will likely see, often, more than once. But, it is a choice. I typically try to do my best to keep my internal clock in sync if I can. However, there's no question that it will be complaining about the time change for several days. I could refuse to participate, but, that too has its own set of complications and consequences. Our pastor said it might be good for some of our folks to ignore the change. That way they would end up showing up early and being at the Church in time for Sunday School.

The write up I did about my train riding experiences struck a chord with several people. Or, maybe it was what I said about my dad who left mom and the six of us, at such an early age for him, just 31 years young. I saw a fellow's posting the other day where he was pleading for help in tracking down his ancestors. He had waited until late in his own life to get started on this project, therefore, many of his older relatives have passed on. I know that feeling. All too well. I almost made contact with my dad's twin brother, but, I missed him by two months. I was getting close to finding him, but, he checked out of his temporary dwelling here and made that move into his heavenly home before I got to talk to him. I had so many questions that he could have answered. It was not meant to be. Based on what I learned later from his children, he may not have been willing to answer the questions I had. According to them, he rarely talked about him and my dad, and when he did, he was very guarded in what he revealed. I even consulted with a genealogical professional. She reviewed all that I had done and thought to engage her services would likely be mostly a waste of my money. While I was thankful for her honesty, I certainly was a little letdown. I had several years of working on my mom, but, she was as tight-lipped as a lost home-canned jar of pear preserves where the lid has become welded into the jar itself. I can hear her refrain, "Son, why not leave well enough alone, and let sleeping dogs lie?" Maybe that's why the lonesome whistle of the train still speaks to me. Or, I suppose it could be indigestion. Enjoy your Saturday and Lord's Day Sunday. I will do my best to regroup and try to show up, punch in, and be ready, come next Monday morning. May God bless. Amen. ....More later.