Graham, NC...........

From the moment we landed in Raleigh- Durham to the time we left, Pat and I enjoyed the time we spent with our family. This was probably the best vacation we have been able to enjoy as much as we did due to the fact that we did not feel rushed to come home.

Being picked up at the airport by our granddaughter Rachel and her boyfriend Chris in his sweet Charger, was a treat as we were able to enjoy being chauffeured as we zipped through the freeways to the Grand Loft on Main Street in Graham, North Carolina.

At the loft we were greeted by our son-in-law Kevin and daughter Denise who were in the middle of a church staff meeting/fellowship. It was so nice to meet the staff of Kevin's new pastorate. They greeted us with such a warm North Carolina welcome and we were able to enjoy dinner and great company.

On the following day we were treated to a tour of Kevin's new church and to realize how God has blessed him with such an awesome charge. This church being, The First United Methodist Church in Graham. (check it out).

"The conduct in church should be marked with reverence, order, dignity plus decency. Nothing should be done that distracts undue attention to itself or to oneself." David Jeremiah

First UMC in Graham certainly falls into this category. From Sunday School, taught by a sweet saint named Dorothy (Dot) to the worship and praise hour through to the sermon and dismissal, all was done in such reverence and dignity. It had been years since I had been blessed as I was on this Sunday. I felt the ministering of Holy Spirit and the most amazing of all was that this mood was never quenched.

The following day I was able to visit with a Ken the Barber who just happens to be 100 years old and still continues to put in a full day six days a week, (his hands are as steady as a rock), still drives to work  and looks as if were in his late sixties.

During all this time, I was able to visit with a lot of people in Graham as well as surrounding areas. Sweet people and so receptive and warm.

Of course no trip would be complete without Mama Florentina making her world famous carne guisada, chili con queso, beans, rice and fresh homemade tortillas.

All in all it was a trip in which were able to get much needed rest, visit our children and make new friends along the way. We are richer because of it!

Looking Ahead and Pressing Forward

Many people will make New Year's resolutions but few will keep them this year just as in times past. This is one reason I no longer make them, since I am one of the many who could never keep them.

However, I love Paul's admonition in Philippians as he encourages Christians to press on:    "........ ¹³  Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴ I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us."  (Phil 3:13b-14) NLT

Maybe this is one resolution we should not only make but should strive to keep this year. Forget what has happened in 2011 and look forward to the wonderful and heavenly gift of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

May all of  us reflect on this as we begin 2012.

War

And ye shall hear of wars & rumors of wars...For nation shall rise against nation, & kingdom against kingdom:" (Matthew 24:7)

No period has witnessed the escalation of wars as has the 20th century and has spilled over to this century. The Red Cross has estimated that over 100 million people have been killed in wars since the 20th Century began. Up until 1914, war had never been universal, but in both World War 1 & 2, total war was waged.

Since World War II, the war that was supposed to make the world safe for democracy, there have been numerous major wars & hundreds of rebellions & revolutions. The death toll in conflicts since the end of World War II has now topped 23 million.

November '89!--The opening of the Berlin Wall symbolizes the end of the Cold War between the Superpowers...But instead of the expected peace, more "wars & rumors of wars" raged around our planet. In 1993 a record 29 major wars were fought.

"Nation rising against nation, & kingdom against kingdom" could more accurately be translated as "ethnic group rising against ethnic group"--a prophecy dreadfully fulfilled in former Yugoslavia, Rwanda & other trouble spots around the World. Not only are "wars & rumors of wars" on the increase, but also the horrors that wars unleash.

According to answers.com,

If you count all current conflicts where hostilities are still present, and conflicts that have ceased hostilities but are still unresolved there are approx 41. This includes the obvious conflicts in Afganistan and Iraq, as well as conflicts like the Korean war that have cease fires in place but are still unresolved and the 2 sides still stare at each other over a gun barrel. For a fairly accurate list please refer to:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/index.html

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_wars_are_currently_being_fought#ixzz1XDzseL00

We have become numb to news of atrocities & tortures, mass rape & murder, which show what horrible savagery modern man is still capable of when he is unrestrained by God.