Happy Monday and may God bless us all! Amen.

Good morning and welcome to Monday, May 6, 2019. I was pretty tired last evening when we got home from all the goings on of the day. I think I was watching "Beat Bobby Flay" and minding my own business. I may have dozed off a time or two. However, when I got up to get ready for bed I saw this photo had been posted on Facebook. I think her caption read something about Bentley keeping watch over his master. I typically know what she is up to, but, not that time. I started to say it was an unauthorized release, but, now that I have shared it on my blog, I guess I will let it go for now. I didn't actually see an official record of how much rain we got last week, but, I will tell you we had a lot of standing water around. There is some vacant acreage next to the volunteer fire station. It was cleared a couple of years ago. It filled up like a small lake. So much so, the ducks thought it was a landing place. Next, the mosquitos will come. I did hear this year is the wettest in the 48 state configuration in nearly 20 years. This should be good news for farmers and those out in the west where wildfires have become so prevalent. I do know that Mr. Bentley doesn't like to go out in the rain. He resists it as long as he can. I'm not too fond of going out in it with him. But, it does come with the territory.

I am running a wee bit late with my blog this morning. We have been very busy over the past several days, and, we had additional company as well. That meant our Alexander Benjamin, 13, camped out in my office on the blowup mattress. The combination made it more difficult for me to have access to my office. But, it's empty this morning and I am back in my chair, pecking on the keys again. The other day when we were having all the alerts because of the potential for tornadic activity, I did think the local Houston TV channels did a good job giving folks up-to-date information. I have no idea how we were able to even watch it because typically, our satellite dish takes a nap if he even hears there are raindrops in the area. And, it was, at times, raining so hard, the sound itself was somewhat ominous. A couple at Church told me they caught 4.5 inches in a 30 minute period. They live near our eldest in Kingwood and he sent me the photo of well over a foot of water in the street in front of their house. My wife and some other ladies were actually out in the bad weather. I kept calling to keep her informed of the potential danger. I told her the last notice said that people in our area should take cover. She had this response, "Thanks for letting me know. We have one more stop to make at Sam's and then we will be home." Hello?

I always try to make sure I recognize and say a prayer for those who did suffer as a result of these weather events. Sure, I did feel like we had perhaps dodged a bullet, but, at the same time, I saw the damaged houses, the car accidents, and other related issues on the news. Yes. I did thank God for His provision. And, I will tell you this. I don't for one minute think I'm somehow better than those who had problems. We all make it through the storms of life, only by the grace of God. Some folks think that having placed their faith in God means they will be problem free. Think again, Bucko! When Jesus told that story about the man who built his house on the rock, He said 'when' the storms came. It is not if they will come, it is when they come. Not just weather but all kinds of challenges confront folks every single day. However, the truth is, we can make it if we have Jesus as our foundation. That's the key to living a life that has purpose and meaning. For time. And, eternity. Have a great rest of the day and be assured Mr. Bentley has my back. See you next time and may God bless. Amen. .... More later.