Giving Thanks . Remembering Advent

Our Home Fall 2014

While being on a quasi techno fast the last couple months, posturing myself for hearing better spiritually, I’ve been absent from Facebook and even overlooked some important email. One such email came from a great friend who gave a fantastic and spirituallly concise history of Thanksgiving with a look toward Advent! Perfect!! I’ll share his writ here.

Then Sunday a young man, friend of the family, stopped by and gave us a book for Advent, daily readings preparing hearts for the coming of Christmas anew. It’s been very rich and special, so I’ll pass that recommendation to you. Get it quickly if you can and read one selection morning and night until you catch up with the date, then slow to the proper pace of listening and reason, savoring the season.

Here’s some worshipful Christmas music just published by my pastor and friend Craig Smith supporting mission causes around the world. I hardily recommend it as it’s very worshipful and not been out of my truck’s CD player for weeks.

Here’s an advent video I watch every Christmas with wonder. And a link to last years Christmas musing, that’s still alive with the message and meaning of Christmas! I pray you’ll enjoy it anew.

May you and yours be blessed of the Lord as you give thanks with a thankful heart, and meditate on Jesus’ advent, His first appearing, and His next. Doing so will warm your hearts and make you alive to the spirit and meaning of Christmas, in our time and in all times.

Joyfully in the humble and mighty name of Immanuel,

Dwayne

“Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” (Matthew 1:23)

Carpe diem

This is the day the LORD has made…

Years ago I tried to read The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, but just couldn’t get into it. I found it a hard read by a brilliant man, philosopher, and theologian. But recently a young friend of mine, a junior high school math teacher, started a Friday morning men’s group at our church and this is the book he’s chosen for discussing and journaling about at the moment.

Colorado Aspens 2014

It’s been said, “Timing is everything.” And that may be the case here, because now I’m devouring this writ paragraph by paragraph and getting so much out of it! Maybe it’s where I am spiritually, or where the Lord is leading me? Maybe it’s because Bonhoeffer’s times (pre-WWII Germany) are so much like ours? I just know I’m grateful to the Lord, to Bonhoeffer, to Ryan and to the the men who meet on Friday mornings, because I’m getting so much truth for living and spiritual food out of this book.

This one knows how to seize the day!

The book is largely about Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” and about discipleship. In essence it is about Jesus and about us – disciples. Of course, Bonhoeffer wrote and knew there was a cost to discipleship, something we don’t hear much about in our churches today. And as John Eldredge says in Beautiful Outlaw, “An honest book about Jesus that does not address suffering is not an honest book.”

But we’ll leave the ideas of cost and suffering in following Jesus till another day. Today I want to share a concept and a couple verses that have been ringing in my ears and spirit since I read them in The Cost of Discipleship. The concept is “live today,” and only “in the present,” as opposed to “the past” or “the future.”

The same one… 🙂

In His model prayer, Jesus said, “Give us this day, our daily bread.” Do you see His focus on today? And on looking to God, our Father, daily, each individual day, as we live one day at a time, for all our sustenance, physical and spiritual? This philosophy and practice fosters and strengthens your most important relationship in the world, that between you and your Creator, your Father in Heaven. It also gives you the focus you need, to make the most of your time, and bring the maximum meaning to your life and experience on earth in relating to God and others. Live today, in the moment.

I attended my father’s church Sunday and heard the preacher say about Judah in Jeremiah’s day, a day also like ours, just before the Babylonian captivity and destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C., that their religion or relationship with God had “become a part of their life instead of the center of their life.” Don’t let this happen to you! Pray as Jesus taught, and live in the day.

The second Scripture Bonhoeffer used in making this point about living each day was Matthew 6:34, “each day has enough evil of it’s own.” So don’t drag yesterday’s regrets, judgments, etc. into today! Nor are we to drag tomorrow’s worries into today! Each day has “enough trouble of it’s own.” It seems to be the natural order and design of things, so listen to Jesus and do what He says. Make it your practice to live today, in the present. And recommit to it everyday, or whenever the thought crosses your mind. Start today! Live today!

In doing so you will carpe diem “seize the day!”

“‘Give us this day our daily bread.” Jesus (Matthew 6:11)

“So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Jesus (Matthew 6:34)

Finishing Well – Kings of Judah

There has been a lot said recently by Christian baby boomers about finishing well. It’s also a recognizable theme in the Bible among historical figures, some of whom finish well and some do not?

“Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.” (1 Corinthians 10:11–12)

Recently, while reading through the Bible in a year, my plan covered the time of the kings of Judah and Israel. After the first three kings of Israel, the kingdom divided in 931 B.C. Two of those three Kings did not end well including Solomon! And there are some good lessons to be learned therein. But I was thinking of the kings of Judah.

I remembered that in the ten northern tribes of Israel there were no good kings. There were nineteen kings and all were evil! They with their tribes were judged by the LORD and carried away into captivity by Assyria in 722 B.C.

In Judah (the name given the southern kingdom, the tribes Judah and Benjamin), there were twenty kings and eight did “what is right before God.” I remembered that, and a lot about their lives. But what I didn’t remember was that they didn’t finish well!

What a shame! To have lived your life mostly right before God, experiencing his protection and provision, and yet in your later years finish poorly, away from God and His purposes.

Don’t let this happen to you! Don’t let it happen to me! Let’s purpose together not to let it happen to each other, to the best of our ability. I propose we look at these kings of Judah and learn from their mistakes. We can look at their successes too! That’s really what gives light to their mistakes. Their lives are given to us for an example as the above Scripture tells us. Their lives are an open book. And so are ours, before God. Let’s consider their ways, and ours.

Live Above the Fray

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Consider your ways!” (Haggai 1:7)

Names like Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash, Amaziah, Uzziah, Jotham, Hezekiah, and Josiah? Are you as shocked as I was? Look them up. Read and learn, asking the Spirit to be your guide to insight, wisdom, and obedience. You’ll be blessed by wisdom from the LORD. Wisdom to help you in your journey, and to finish well.

I’ll give you a little insight into Asa’s history here, but the rest are just as fascinating and instructive.

With Friends In Community

“He [Asa] gathered all Judah and Benjamin and those from Ephraim, Manasseh and Simeon who resided with them, for many defected to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord his God was with him.” (2 Chronicles 15:9) “And there was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign.” (2 Chronicles 15:19)

“At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you have relied on the king of Aram and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram has escaped out of your hand. “Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim an immense army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet because you relied on the Lord, He delivered them into your hand. “For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. You have acted foolishly in this. Indeed, from now on you will surely have wars.” Then Asa was angry with the seer and put him in prison, for he was enraged at him for this. And Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time. Now, the acts of Asa from first to last, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa became diseased in his feet. His disease was severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but the physicians. So Asa slept with his fathers, having died in the forty-first year of his reign.” (2 Chronicles 16:7–13)

A forty-one year reign! Mostly good! But it ended like this. Don’t let this happen to you.

The second king of Israel, David, did finish well! Even though he wasn’t perfect and went through a lot of trials; mostly self inflicted or sin inflicted. The Scripture eventually says of him that he accomplished the purposes of God in his generation. May we give ear to the Scriptures, and our hearts to God, so this may be said about us.

“For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep, …” (Acts 13:36)

Godspeed on your journey! May the King of Heaven grace you to serve Him all your days. [a prayer]

Humility and Pride

Pride is public enemy #1. It’s a killer. It’s also private enemy #1. It goes before destruction.

Fortunately there is an antidote for this deadly menace. It’s called humility.

I love humility. I admire it whenever I see it in people, and I aspire to it. But I struggle with and seem plagued by pride. I confess it immediately when someone accuses me of pride. It’s the original sin, and it’s in every human. But it’s a cop out to justify it or make peace with it because of those facts.

The Scripture says, God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. The Bible also says, “Humble yourself under the hand of God, and He will exalt you in due season. From this we can see there is power (“grace”) available from God if we are humble. And we can humble ourselves. I remember recently thinking about humility in connection with my recent plane crash; that I should not miss or waste an opportunity to humble myself.

I mentioned in an earlier blog that I would give the details of the accident in a subsequent blog for those who wanted to know what happened. I haven’t done so because of a crowded schedule, not because I was skirting the issue. I don’t want to miss the opportunity to make my error known and humble myself, so here goes.

After flying as a pilot more than fourteen thousand hours over thirty-five years, and never scratching an airplane, on March 28th of this year I crashed and totaled one. I walked away from it, and there is an old saying in aviation, “Any landing you walk away from is a good one.” 🙂 This is in fact true, for reasons that should be self evident, but it’s still very embarrassing to have an accident like this as a pilot. I think most people take pride in their abilities and records demonstrating those abilities, but it may be heightened in the flying profession. Anyway, I suggest we call pride “pride,” and humility “humility,” and get on with this story. Here’s what happened as I told it to the NTSB representative assigned to my case, and later to the FAA.

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I departed KFSM [Fort Smith, AR] Friday morning about 0715L, March 28th, 2014, en route to visit my father in Harrison AR. It was a clear, calm day for flying. I flew a stop and go to Rwy 7, before turning out of traffic to the NW VFR. I had walked a friend’s field the day before near Dora, AR, and determined it to be a suitable runway for the Maule, so I decided to make a landing or two before continuing on my way to KHRO. The first landing was uneventful and went as planned, landing to the north. I rolled to the end of the field, turned around and shut the airplane down to take some early morning photos. Then I climbed back in and took off to the south, deciding to make one more landing before continuing to my destination. This landing was much like the first, but with a considerable bounce. I added power and straightened the airplane’s flight path bringing it to the ground just short of midfield. I looked at the distance remaining to the end, and decided to go around. With the addition of TO power I was committed to the take off, and seeing there wasn’t obstacable clearance ahead attempted to clear a fence at the NE end of the field where there was lower terrain. I impacted the fence coming to an immediate and forceful stop with the tail of the airplane straight up in the air, the airplane slowly falling on over on it’s back. I found myself hanging upside down in the harness, with the smell of gasoline in the cabin. I quickly turned off the master switch, then tried a few times to open the door unsuccessfully. So I unbuckled from the seat belt/shoulder harness and kicked the door glass out, crawling out on the wing, and moving quickly away from the airplane. The ELT was beeping loudly. I was unharmed and unscratched amazingly. After a few minutes I climbed back into the cabin briefly and turned off the ELT.

In retrospect I should have practiced several more hours in the airplane before landing in fields where go around options are limited. This landing would have been a non-event on a normal runway with sufficent clear zone for a go around. Even though I made dozens of landings durning Maule training and felt competent, more time could have helped in avoiding the bounce, correcting for such, and go around practice. A firm decision to land or go around must be made early at such fields to ensure safe landings or obstacle clearance for go arounds.

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The mistakes leading to the crash seemed impossible and not real about a second before impact and all during the day after the crash, which I spent alone in retrospection because my family was in another city. Even though I was unscratched and not even sore from the impact, I knew my airplane lay mangled on its back in a friends field not far away. It was my fault. I needed to own it and take responsibility for it, which I do.

There is a real freedom in feeling small, and knowing that God is big. I know I’m fortunate not to have ended up in a burn unit somewhere. I know I’m fortunate to be alive. I thank God for His protection, and for the opportunity at another chapter of life.

“The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, honor and life.” (Proverbs 22:4)

“The fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom, and before honor comes humility.” (Proverbs 15:33)

“However, Hezekiah humbled the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the Lord did not come on them in the days of Hezekiah.” (2 Chronicles 32:26)

“When pride comes, then comes dishonor, but with the humble is wisdom.” (Proverbs 11:2)

“Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling.” (Proverbs 16:18)

“My soul will make its boast in the Lord; the humble will hear it and rejoice.” (Psalm 34:2)

“You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Peter 5:5)

“Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.” (James 4:10)

Happy 90th Dad!

August 19th, Fred Bell, Dad, the patriarch of our family celebrated his 90th birthday with family and friends at a reception held a few days earlier at his church, First Baptist Church, Harrison, AR. It was a lovely event with much fellowship and relationship experienced and expressed.

Interspersed with all the hugs and best wishes were a couple presentations. One of those was a citation presented by a Commissioner of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission honoring Dad for the significant and lifetime role he played in restoring Arkansas wildlife from their post-depression danger levels to the numbers we enjoy today. Many success stories were mentioned including black bear and elk, which Dad had a major role in reintroducing and protecting.

There was also a citation presented by State Senator Randy Laverty, retired, authored by the Arkansas House of Representatives honoring Dad for service to the State of Arkansas. Randy who was in Dad’s Boy Scout troop growing up said, “ Fred Bell was probably the most respected man in Newton County.”

Your family certainly thinks so Dad! Your three children were there, your six grand kids from all around the country. And five great grandchildren, some very recent! 🙂 We’re proud of you, the life you’ve lived in front of us and your peers, and we’re glad to call you Dad! We love you!!

HAPPY 90TH BIRTHDAY!!!

For photos click here.

“How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.” (Psalm 1:1–3)

““Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord.” (Jeremiah 17:7)

“The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.” (Psalm 16:6)

In the Rockies with Friends

August 7th, about noon, a good friend called and asked if I wanted to go ride motorcycles in Colorado for a week. I said, “Sounds fun and I’ve always wanted to do that! When would we leave?” “Tomorrow” he replied. 🙂

After a little nervous laughter, I tell him, “My 39th anniversary is in a couple days and I have a mountain lodge booked with dinner reservations, how do you think that would work out for me?”

After just a moment of silence, but not really missing a beat, he replies, “OK, we’ll leave Monday.”

I can’t believe I’m seriously considering this on such short notice, but I tell him to let me check my calendar for the week and I’ll call him back. My wife reminds me I have Dad’s 90th birthday party the day after we’d return, but other than that the calendar is remarkably clear!?

So? I call him back and say, “Let’s do it!” It’s a brother thing, a friendship thing, a celebrate the beauty of the earth thing. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for many years, but never slowed to free up the time. Because everyone else I know is too busy to consider such a thing, I moved it to the “maybe someday” list?

But not Steve! He realizes life is short and to be lived and enjoyed, a gift from a magnificent Creator and Father, Who likes to give His kids good gifts, and likes it when they take time to notice it and enjoy it.

I asked Steve, “Can I ask my brother Gene? It’s been on my bucket list to take a long motorcycle ride with him.” “Sure,” is his reply.

I’ll write a little more later. I’ve got to check the air in my tires, wash my bike, and pack!

Did I mention that I like adventure too? When is the last time you did something for the first time? We get so conformed by our culture. We’re not suppose to conform, but to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds.” That’s what the Scripture says. This, for me is another step in the right direction. To get outside, out doors, experience the beauty of creation, meditate and think random thoughts for awhile. To listen to the still, small, spiritual voice of a mighty Creator while enjoying his creation. Should be a Rocky Mountain high experience for sure!

I may need a motorcycle jacket, and yes Colby, even a helmet, for a 1200 mile ride where it can be cold in the mountains and warm in the valleys. Plan for rain. Pack light. Get to crackin’!

Gene said yes too! We leave Sunday after church!

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Well, we did it! 1280 miles in four days of motorcycle riding. Plus twelve hours of fellowship and sharing while driving out there and back in our pickups with trailers. Amazingly beautiful, restful, relational, and spiritual! Thank you Lord for such an experience, and for great brothers to share it with. Amen.

For photos click here! 🙂

“The generous man will be prosperous,And he who waters will himself be watered.” (Proverbs 11:25)

“The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains,The world, and those who dwell in it.” (Psalm 24:1)

“Who establishes the mountains by His strength,Being girded with might;” (Psalm 65:6)

Camp Hope 2014

Last week I volunteered for the second annual Camp Hope for Kids, July 23-26, 2014, at Shoal Creek Camp near Subiaco, AR. The camp for at risk kids is a ministry of City Christian Fellowship, Fort Smith, AR, with help from Jubilee Christian Center in Van Buren, AR and other area churches providing volunteer staff and assistance. This year 60 children, ages 5-13, attended, more than twice as many as last year, along with about 40 adult staff. Camp Hope provides kids a safe place to enjoy the outdoors, camp activities, fellowship with other kids their age, and an opportunity to hear the message of Christ through the teaching of Bible stories and worship.

Enjoy the photos by clicking here.

This on-going ministry meeting the first three Sundays of each month is welcoming volunteer help transporting Hope Kids in the afternoon and early evening to and from the church, or help in other ways. If you’d like to help or serve kids, the next generation, contact me from the contact page and let’s discuss it.

There were amazing activities and instruction provided for the kids by a giving, loving volunteer staff. May the seeds planted grow in these young lives, and may the Lord bless and keep them all, as they continue to grow in some pretty tough places

“And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me,Until I declare Your strength to this generation,Your power to all who are to come.” (Psalm 71:18)

Nicaragua… Who Knew?

Last week I was in Nicaragua with some friends, old and new, on a mission trip and an adventure!

I went with a group from Grace Community Church, Fort Smith, AR, on a mission to La Flor Village, Nicaragua, July 14-21, under the leadership of Ken Duncan, and in cooperation with El Porvenir, an NGO with a 20+ year history of helping the poor villages of Nicaragua with clean water and health related issues. Our task was finishing the job of installing efficient wood cooking stoves with chimneys in 17 village homes, as well as sharing love, hugs, our faith, and our lives with the children and people of the village. It was a great week, and a joy to get to know all who served the people of La Flor Village and the King.

Click here for some photos of our mission.

While there is no way to see the whole world or volunteer for every opportunity that comes along, I do pray you are asking the Lord to guide you in ways you can be involved in people’s lives, discipling and serving others. He will lead you if it’s your heart’s desire and you ask. You’ll find yourself enjoying the relationships that follow and storing up treasure in heaven, real treasure for a real eternity. The Bible teaches us, and Jesus taught us by rising from the dead that people are eternal, and not the stuff we spend much time and energy accumulating.

This was the group’s second time in the village. And there’s a chance we might be returning next year. A pastor of a thirty member congregation asked us to come back and help them build a church building on land they own. They are presently meeting in his home and others that are scarcely large enough to hold that many folks. Let me know if you’re interested in helping and going next year!

I learned Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America, and also the poorest due to nearly two centuries of dictatorships, civil wars and natural calamities. The average income per person is $1,028 (2% of USA). They are about 6 million people with 60% living in urban communities making it the most sparsely populated country in Central America. 75% of the population is less than 30 years old, and 35% is less than 15 years old, making it a very youth filled nation. They have a Pacific and Atlantic coast with mountains in the middle, the highest being 7300′, and there are eight active volcanoes! It’s very U.S. friendly these days with businesses and tourists beginning to pour in. And if you haven’t heard, the Chinese are about to start building a canal across the country much larger than the current Panama Canal. That will be a game changer hopefully of benefit for them, and certainly the world economy. The most important thing I came away saying about the country is that the people are warm and friendly, engaging and precious.

Spiritually speaking, possibly due to the poverty and suffering, many have and are turning to Christ. Operation World reports, “Evangelical growth is high and sustained amid the upheaval. Evangelicals grew from 2.2% in 1960 to 29.8% in 2010. This is more than a 40-fold numeric increase in 50 years, with no sign of such growth abating.” Who knew? I don’t think I saw that on CNN, did you?

Indeed, while people talk politics, war, corruption, and how to humanly solve the world’s problems, it seemed to our little troop that the Lord is quietly, consistently sending people to help the poor and needy, the downcast and afflicted, to help lift people up. That’s always been His Way and His Heart. The experience was a joy for us!

While It Is Day

Sharing Thai Experiences on the Patio with Friends

“Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can.”― John Wesley

“We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work.” (John 9:4) Jesus

The quote and verse came to me as I was considering the work of two special friends and their young family who spent the last two years in Thailand, from where they have just returned for some needed rest, refreshment and recharging. They are soon headed back!

Alex, Brook, and their three children visited our church last Sunday to share with our community what they experienced in Thailand and what they sense the Lord is doing there. It was a great time as they shared openly from their hearts, something any listener appreciates.

They returned to our city and our patio three days later to share more of their experiences with 25 friends invited for that purpose. Challenging, courageous, inspiring, thought provoking, and beautiful is how I would summarize their story.

There isn’t time or space to recreate it here, and I couldn’t anyway, but it serves as a reminder to be about the King’s business, in your realm, wherever He’s planted you.

And it’s a chance for me to introduce you to friends Alex and Brook. If you’re looking for a place to sow into the kingdom of God some prayers, money, friendship, communication? Their lives are good soil. They’re heading back to Thailand for the next chapter of adventure to make disciples of Jesus, and to serve His people there soon. Here’s a link to their webpage if you wish can learn more or contribute.

“Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” (Colossians 3:1)

“… give to charity; make yourselves … an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys.” (Luke 12:33)

Celebrate Freedom Where You Find It!

Alma HS ROTC Presents the Colors at Oaks Manor Celebration of Freedom

“It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1)

There are forces at play in our world, our country, and our lives that seek our harm. They seek to enslave us and take away the God-given gift which is to live free; free from tyranny, free from fear, free from self. That freedom is found spiritually and historically in Christ, and the Cross.

Christ and the Cross is the well-docmented foundation of these United States of America, and Christ living in our fore fathers that made our nation great and the envy of the modern world, bringing God’s blessings which in turn have been extended to the world.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.” (Psalm 33:12)

But of these blessings, wealth and possessions are not the greatest. Consider “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness!” Especially today consider “liberty.”

Consider with me also personal liberty. Freedom from self and freedom from sin (an ancient archery term which means “missing the mark”). That’s the real issue since the beginning of time. That’s why Christ came, to make a way through forgiveness, and by giving us the power to live a life from above while journeying here.

LTC Tom Smith brings some challenging and heart stirring words.

So the major price for our liberty has been paid for us, and given as a costly gift from above and from our forefathers. But still, as in all times and all places we have our part to play. As Thomas Jefferson said, “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.”

Oaks Manor Conference and Retreat Center has been assisting Christ followers in that quest for 10 years now, and has a bright future for doing so for many years to come. Last Sunday evening they invited the public to a gathering to celebrate the freedom of and in our country.

Happy 4th of July!

They exist to provide a peaceful, beautiful place for Christians to come aside and rest for awhile, to get out of the rush of our culture to read, study, mediate, relax, rest — refresh themselves spiritually and physically. It’s a great service and greatly needed. I encourage you to give them a look and take advantages of their services as often as you can and “come aside.” We all need this kind of retreat. Even our Lord did. And His disciples.

Blessings in Christ! Celebrate!!

Photos of the Oaks Manor Celebration!