WHEN BOB'S AWAY, THE CAT WILL PLAY

OK, if you made it here after reading my newsletter, here's the rest of the cat story. Before the story, here's a great photo of us on Thanksgiving day over at Nathan's apartment. The girl with the dark hair is Becka, his girl friend. The 2 older grandsons did Thanksgiving with their dad. We had a really good time with them and ate so much turkey, much like you in America I suspect.

OK, the cat. I've discovered that cats are inherently devious, perhaps even evil. Our cat is particularly weird. She loves to crawl into my lap (she knows I don't like her much) and sit, purr and rub on me and then bite me. I'll hit her in the head a few times and then she'll repeat the process. Jackie picks her up and she just bites her and runs away. Jackie said she'd get another cat but she's afraid it would like me more than her just like this stupid one does.

Doesn't she look cute sleeping next to Max, Leah's dog? Yea, well moments after this she attacked the dog. The dog chases things through the house, chewy toy and such, and she chases him. She jumps on his back and tries to hang on.

I have one of those flip cell phones and it's fairly small and easily fits into my pocket. Her mouth too. Anyway, I laid it on the dresser Sunday night and went to bed like normal. When I got up to go for yet another job interview/interrogation (church school story from the email I sent most of you) I couldn't find the phone. I looked on the dresser, under the dresser, in the drawers and all around the dresser. No phone. I went by Jackie's work to see if she maybe grabbed mine and hers (they look alike) but she didn't have it. Oh well, I had an interrogation to go to so I booked.

After being interviewed for the third time and assuring my future boss I really was able to teach grammar school (I know, it's more difficult than the university students--I'm not making light of the job), I had to go and get some papers processed before starting work December 2nd. I got home around 2:00 and worked on lesson plans and such until 9:00 and thought I should look one more time for the phone.

So I got Jackie, who can find anything, and we crawled around on the floor and looked under the dresser and this time even pulled it out away from the wall. Found some treasure back there but no phone. Then I had a revelation. The cat had been sleeping under another chair in our room for the last couple of days so I looked under it and there was my phone. She had knocked it off the dresser and somehow carried it 8 feet to the chair and hid it underneath.

I was glad I had found it and noticed a voice mail. And that's how I found out I had been un-hired from my new job. A friend of mine told me the church was a bit on the flaky side--I guess I should have figured out that the flakiness trickled down to the school too.

So what has all this taught me about loving God and being conformed to the likeness of Christ? I'm not sure. I do know that cats are sneaky--sneakier than I ever knew. I also know that when someone tells you "yes" it could mean most anything even if they tell you "yes" three times you are the one we want for the teaching position. More than that, I learned that to follow Christ through the sneakingess and plotting of cats is well worth the hassle it may cause. There were times when losing a phone would have made me angry. Now, I've learned most things are my fault anyway so I might as well be thankful that God didn't just melt me like an ice cube on a hot sidewalk. What about the school deal?

I got the voice mail around 9:30 or so and then went to bed. Jackie asked me if I was OK with it and I said "sure" and we went to sleep. Of course I woke up a 12:15 AM and my mind took off like the cat when I squirt it with the water bottle. I thought of everything I'd been told, the job I turned down because they "hired" me, the interview I declined for the same reason, the money they've cost me, the books I bought to supplement the curriculum with, the double-mindedness of the head of the school and then God reminded me, after about 2 hours of this circular, insane thinking, that I am, after all, an unpfortibable servant and I should be praying for the kids that are being taught that abortion is OK and the gay life-style is just a way of expressing yourself. I should be giving thanks that He has something bright for me over the horizon, brighter than the rising sun I so often go watch at the beach.


Like this morning when the sky was just on fire with reds and oranges, yet just after all that "glory" came the true Sun that lights the entire universe up and I was there to bask in its warmth and light. That's how these disappointments are that seem to be coming my way lately. This is the 2nd job I was hired for and I've yet to start working. I just figure we don't need the income and I need God to keep working in my life because more than anything else on earth, it is Him we desire, love and long for. Come, Lord Jesus, come....

Here's some really good and fun news. Look at Jackie riding her bike along. Doesn't she look strong and healthy? Well, she isn't. She's getting weaker and weaker for some reason. Our bike rides aren't going as far as they used to go and she's feeling tired much of the time. Maybe I'm around too much! She had a heart doctor appointment yesterday but the doctor wasn't in and no one let her know that she wasn't to come in since her appointment had been canceled. Please pray that whatever is taking her strenght, stamina and energy goes away. Meanwhile, how hot does she look on that bike?!? Very...I am one fortunate man to have a wife who loves God, loves me and looks so nice even when you are up close!

Guess that's about all for now. Christmas time is coming and we will hopefully get cards in the mail and presents bought and bills paid and retain our sanity. We pray the same for you. Many blessings dear friends...

Bob and Jackie

PARTY TIME

Our first U.S. vacation in about 100 years... a small river near Franklin, NC.

Greetings all... I trust this letter finds you all abounding in God's grace and mercy. This is our travel letter. Yes, we got to go somewhere other than work! I, Bob, worked out a 6-month contract I had with Anastasia Mosquito control and saw unemployment fast coming into my world. What were we to do? No job. One income (Jackie has her kids, which are no longer throwing things at her!) and no new job on the horizon. The only thing we could think of was to go on a vacation. I haven't seen my brother in about 5 years or so and he lives in North Carolina and it's Fall and all the leaves are changing color so what else could we do but go? Savannah, GA is kind of on the way and I have a Priest friend, Fr James, who has been an email friend for the last couple of years that we've not met face to face so the first phase was to go there and see him and visit his church. What a blessing that was. Fr James was a Monk and is now a Priest and his church service was awesome. I don't think any of you on this mailing list have ever been inside an Orthodox church, but the beauty of one is spectacular. The liturgy, which is sang back and forth and rich and overflowing with the Spirit of God, goes for about an hour and ends in partaking of the Eucharist (communion), receiving Christ into our mortal bodies. Thus filled to overflowing, we had lunch afterwards and met some new friends and spent some time with Fr James.

What a true blessing our trip began on. Then we drove over to my brother's in Franklin, North Carolina. Our '96 Buick, which was given to us by Leah, our daughter, ran beautifully all the way and got about 33 miles per gallon. That's a bonus plus the gas was only about $2.19 most of the way and as low as $1.99. Much better than the $4.15 of a month or so back. My brother, Joe, has

Over there on the right are the mountain peaks around Blowing Rock and the myriad of colors provided by God.

some land with his house and 2 cottages he rents by the week and he had one ready for us.

The back balcony overlooked his cow pasture and the mountains surrounded it. Having a quiet time out on the porch, though very cold, was amazing. The sun would come up and just light up all the trees and the depth of blue the sky shared with us

There's our cottage now, nestled amongst the trees and overlooking the cow pasture and mountains. They are so cheap to rent. Wanna go?

was too much to describe in words. It was just too amazing for us who live in FL and only see green and the ocean's murky brown that we have here in Saint Augustine. Another bonus was to 411.com some old friends we hadn't seen in years, Ty and Malissa Bryson. They live in Blowing Rock so we drove over there (4 hours) to visit them. There's just nothing like the love of old friends being applied to your lives--maybe we could say it's like the "balm in Gilead." God has continued to bless them and their children were great.





That's Ty and Malissa.

We hadn't seen them for about 14 years or so. We spent the night and since I was now unemployed, we spent the extra money needed to not sleep in a dive and stayed in a very nice motor lodge kind of place that had been renovated and made very inviting. Jackie deserves such things for living with me these 36 years (our anniversary is November 22nd if you want to congratulate, or send condolences to her). It was still only about $70 so we were blessed.

From there it was back to my brother's and we spent another 3 days there and then just as quickly as the time came, the

Surf where you can....

vacation was over. 10 hours of driving south found us back in St. Augustine and we were grateful to Father in heaven for such a marvelous and rich time. God is so good to us.

PRAYER BUSINESS I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that Janell was having heart problems and asked for prayer. She got past that and seemed like she was back to normal, but yesterday her husband, Dale, emailed that she was bleeding internally




Out in the pasture with the cows

and in the hospital again. The doctors were able to stop the bleeding after 10 pints of blood has gone through her but please pray for this dear lady. She is as close to us as our own kids and it saddens us so much to see her constantly getting into these physical challenges.

I could also use a job. I've spent the last few days driving around town, going to employment offices and filling out many applications, but not much is happening.





Us being happy together


Actually, nothing is happening! It doesn't matter to me what I do so anything will be fine you pray for.

Penny continues to fight the cancer in her body.
Kenny still needs a new liver.
We all need to see Christ magnified in our lives and His precious named taken to all the nations and people who have not yet had the privilege of knowing Him. Blessings to you all....

Bob and Jackie

Through the trees and the sky all the way to the sun













Jackie even did some hiking on her new knee. It hurt, but fun often does!

















My brother and his wife, Ann. She can sure cook!

YOU CHOOSE

Time to catch up with Robinson news. Wow, doesn't that sound exciting? Our lives are such wonders, so filled with adventure that most everyone wants to get this semi almost most of the time monthly update....

What's been on your mind lately? For me, it's been how to make good choices and "pray without ceasing."

But before we get into that I should tell you all about Jackie's legs. We just got back from a bike ride (yes, she can ride again!) and I told her that her legs were looking kind of striped, sort of like candy cane legs with a blue/greenish topping on the shin. She missed her cats that had adopted us in Thailand so her sister gave us one about 6 months ago. It's a bit on the insane side as most cats are and last night it attacked her. She has scratches all over her leg. Of course when I come in the cat purrs and wants to cuddle.

I guess that's the irony of owning a cat. I mean I get along with it but cats, seriously, they'll never replace a good dog! The blue/greenish topping, you wonder. One of her little darlings at school chunked a chair at her and knocked her pretty good so she has a yucky looking bruise. She isn't going to win the leg beauty contest this week!

What about the monster kid? The Director wants to allow him to grow and fit in. Me? I'd fit him in somewhere--like in a locked room with our cat. Hmmm, anyone need a good pre-school teacher?

I'm feeling OK. No bruises, stripes or anything. I tell Jackie all the time my health just scares me because I am so healthy. I don't even work out anymore. Surfing? Sure, but that's a bit sporadic and comes with a few days on and a week or two off. You need waves to surf.

Not much to report on the kid front. The grand kids, Leah and Nathan are all fine and well. Jake is playing football and we enjoy going to the games to see him play. That's him on the left getting warmed up. He really enjoys playing and his team is undefeated so far. They practice 3 nights a week and he doesn't get home, with Leah the football team mom, until 9:00 PM. I don't know how they do it. I guess being young helps.

Are you wondering about Bum? Remember her? We miss her so much it hurts and we can't figure out how to just pop back over to Thailand for a visit. She is very happily married and doing well. She still works at the church we went to in Chiang Rai. Glynn, her husband, is still going to the university where I taught and we first met. He's planning on graduating from there and then teaching. What a blessing he and Bum will be to the students. They already are, actually. Here's a photo of Bum from a friend of mine showing how she is suffering for Christ in the dark, foreboding land of Thailand. She''s that cute Thai girl on the right. You knew that!

Do you remember when Elijah was fighting it out with the Baal guys and he said to them, "Choose this day whom you will serve." What a challenge that is to me. When I get up in the morning I choose who I'm going to serve by my actions as well as by my thoughts. That ties in with the "pray without ceasing" verse in 1 Thessalonians. An Orthodox Bishop in Russia a couple of hundred years ago said this: Do not gravitate to the earth--it is corruptible. Only the happiness beyond the grave is eternal, unchanging, true, and this happiness depends upon how we spend this life of ours!

Last Sunday I had to make a choice. I could gravitate toward earth or I could go the other way. I woke up early like I always do and had my prayer time, which was good. Then I hopped on the Honda and rode over to the beach to see how the surf was doing. Friday after work it was really good and then Saturday it was fair at best. Oh, but Sunday morning it was very big and glassy and looking like way too much fun. Here I was, faced with a choice. Go surfing or go to church and miss the waves. As a rule, what you get in the morning is the best you get all day long with afternoons more often than not being not worth the paddle out. It was so good....

YOU CHOOSE
I thought about it for a minute and then I realized that in a few hours I would be at church and we'd have communion and I'd partake of the bread that came down from heaven and drink the cup that gives me life. Confronted with either going surfing or partaking of Christ, it was an easy choice to make. We went to church. Besides, after church Jackie and I were asked to be a part of the mission committee and help plan some things for the new year. I certainly didn't want to miss that.

Here's what the waves looked like on Friday after work. Sunday afternoon it was about 3 times as big!

We didn't get home until around 2:45 and I just happened to notice that on the way (35 minute ride) the wind wasn't blowing at all. That meant the surf was probably still good. Just as we pulled into the driveway I saw the trees in our yard blowing back and forth and it was not looking so good for surfing anymore. "Oh well," thought I. "I'll go on over to the beach with my bike and surfboard and see what's up." It only takes about 5 minutes to get there so when I pulled up on the beach and started looking around, much to my delight the wind stopped blowing--just like that. So I paddled on out and had 2 of the best hours of surfing I've had in a loooooong time. Big old waves folding over in long lines that allowed for lots of turning and screaming along at 100 mph (maybe not that fast). There were only about 6 guys out where I peddled to and they kept yelling for me to take the waves so I didn't want to hurt their feelings so I did. ha. Some days are just like that. No matter what you do it all works out wonderfully.

So next time I have a choice like that to make will I come home and find the best waves ever? Maybe not. One thing I've learned is that life is preparation for the next life and whatever it takes to ready us for the one that's really more important than this one, God is more than accommodating to supply us with really good waves or something not quite so pleasant. But it is all working together for our good and it's all a blessing from above and it's always good and right to say "THANK YOU LORD JESUS!" Pray without ceasing? Yes, you can. What does it take? I'm working on it. Maybe next update.

MOSQUITO MADNESS

Who dat? Well, that's Nathan. For you who last saw him when he was 3 feet tall with big ears, here's the big version. Nathan called tonight to tell us he scored a promotion at Apple. He was is and always will be stoked about that. Life hasn't been that smooth sailing for him the last few months, but hopefully the boat will come about and starting going downwind. Much smoother that way. All it takes is HIM increasing and US decreasing. Nathan always has some kind of gizmo going and he wants me to play with them. Here he is showing me his I-phone and I'm as inept as usual with such inventions. What else is new in our lives? Well, we are all alive and well. Here's the last "all of us" family photo so you can see us for yourselves.

That's us, there on the right, unless it flipped and went somewhere else when I got all this pasted up and laid out. But you can tell from the crowd it's all of us. From the left you see Zack (14), Becca with the long dark hair (hanging with Nathan), Jackie just below her and Nathan towering over me. The guy near my right ear is Jake who has grown at least 6 inches in the last 6 months since this photo was taken and under him is Elijah (6) and Leah. How about something a bit different? Down below on the right is me and a bunch of 2nd graders.


One of the fun things I got to do at work was to go to schools and teach about mosquitoes. Talk about a crazy thing to do. I'm no entomologist but you don't have to be too sharp to teach 2nd graders about bugs. Just read 'em a story and show some pictures. I've gone from university students to 2nd graders and come October 31st unemployed again. We just love adventure.












The girls + Jake and Max the dog. That's how Jackie looks nowadays without a knee brace, crutches or other helps. She's thrilled to be walking, working and bringing home money. We were sending it out so long it's great to see it actually coming in again. A few of the little guys still try and push her around. One tried to headbutt her helper yesterday and when she got home she was about ready to move--anywhere! We have a really nice house we rent with a very big yard (garden for you Brits and cousins of Brits) for the kids, dog and cat to play in. Here's what it looked like a couple of weeks ago when Tropical Storm Kay came blowing by. It hovered over us for 3 days and brought tons of rain.

As you can see, we did get some rain. The boys had a great time playing in the 40 mph (68 km) wind and rain. Leah, the mom in charge of the wet clothes and mess, wasn't nearly as excited about it as they were when they came in soaked to the bone. One really bonus of this storm was I had two days off work.

So, there's us. Hope you enjoyed spending a few minutes with us. You know what would really make our day? For you to send us an email kind of like this one and show us what's going on in your part of the world.

Oh, let me tell you about what happened to me at work the other day. We'd been out trapping mosquitoes and in 3 days brought home about 700,000, which didn't make a dent in the population where we were at. I had to dig through them and put 'em in petri dishes. That's a lot of dishes. To do that you obviously don't want them flying around so we put them in the freezer until they are dead. So I had a pile of 50,000 frozen mosquitoes on my desk and I started to put them in petri dishes. A pile like that tends to spread out on the desk so when some fell I didn't think much of it. But then I thought I noticed one twitching so I looked a little closer.

...Twitching? How could you be twitching? Must be the wind from the A/C blowing this way. So I kept on working. Bzzzzzzz. A mosquito went flying by my ear. I looked closer and lots of them were twitching. Not good. I only had to squeeze them into 12 or so dishes so I thought maybe if I worked fast, I could get them in and refreeze them. I don't really like to touch them, though they are pretty soft, but in large numbers they really stink. About that time a few more went flying by and then circled back to get even.

I work in the lab. In the lab we don't want to introduce poison so I'm looking at this pile wondering what to do with them. I ran into the kitchen and found some window cleaner and came back and started spraying the pile with that. You know what this reminds me of? John the Baptist. No, I haven't been drinking. I'm completely sane (allegedly).

I'm reading a book about icons and how they fit into the Church. Perhaps you are wondering about my sanity, right? Really, icons are awesome and the stories they tell are quite interesting. Anyway, John the Baptist came to us in a flash in the gospel of Mark and appeared in the desert telling us we better repent: The ax is at the roots and if you don't bear some fruit, you'll be cut down and burned. That's my version of it. So how does a pile of half frozen and all-alive mosquitoes remind me of saint John? I saw that pile as my life. When it's lying still and not doing anything, life's good. But when the passions get caught by some enticing little (or big) opportunity to sin, it can fast turn into a mess. How easy it is to say something about someone that need not be said: Bzzzzz, goes a buzzing mosquito. Or how about seeing something on the Internet you don't need to see? Bzzzzz. Did that fine looking girl catch your eye? Bzzzzzz. Is that really how it happened? Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....

The icon of John is looking toward the icon of Jesus (not shown) and His head is bowed and his hands extended. What you are seeing is an icon that says, "I must decrease and He must increase." And that's what we need too. In his eyes you can see he's asking for mercy and showing thanks for the mercy he has received. He's perhaps even praying on our behalf. In church we stand in front of this icon, and many others, and extend our hands toward Christ along with John balancing our prayers for mercy with intercession. There is a cloud of witnesses that assemble with us in church--we are not alone no matter how small the group may be that is meeting in worship. Being not alone is a good thing because together we can move toward Christ and if we are moving with a heart of repentance, we know that when the books are opened up and read, we'll be fine. Until then, we should be living the best life possible. If someone like Paul could say he was the "chief" of sinners, we need to take a good look at ourselves and see how we measure up. Do you think of yourself as a sinner or do you just cruise along and figure with it's all a done deal so when you die you'll just ride the rocket up and all will be cool? Unfortunately, in our era, people tend to think that it's all grace so what difference does it make how you live? I believe it does make a difference. A huge one. Our life in Christ is meant to be transforming, going from "glory to glory."

At the Baptist church we used to go to, there are stained glass windows all around. They are really cool. When it's dark, you can barely make out the details of what you are seeing. That glass scene on the left would be obscured if it were dark outside. The lighter it gets, the more details you begin to see and the clearer the image of who's who. The more we are filled with the light of Christ, the more people can see Him in us. So that's the point of killing those mosquitoes before they kill you.

The window cleaner kind of worked. It made them dizzy and they couldn't take off. So I put some newspaper on top of them, wrapped 'em up and put them back in the freezer and let them peacefully slip into a colder and happier place. Actually, I killed them! The particular species of mosquito I had on my desk is a highly aggressive one and a vector of some not- so nice diseases. I wonder how my career as Bob the mosquito guy would have gone if I'd allowed those pesky 50,000 critters to get loose in our offices? It makes me wonder how our lives in Christ will fare if we don't take care of all those little sins that constantly try and distract us from our relationship with Jesus? Well, that's about it for now. I really hope your life in Christ is truly going from glory to glory to glory and that the light of heaven is illuminating your innards and the fragrant aroma of Christ, who loves YOU very much, is blessing all those you come in contact with. Feel free to leave any input you might want to share with us.

WISDOM FROM ABOVE

Wouldn't it be great to be as wise as Solomon? How many times have you done something and thought to yourself, "Wow, was that ever dumb"? I know I have my share of those times where I've not shined like the brightest bulb in the package.

What is a grown person to do who lacks wisdom? All of us know what the apostle James had to say: "Ask God." And all of us have done that--we've asked God and here I sit (maybe you too) not a whit wiser than I was prior to my asking. So I fall back upon the second thing James had to say, "But let him ask in faith." I figure I don't have enough faith so I concentrate really hard and ask again, mustering up all the faith I can. I look in the mirror and I look as dull as ever. What's up with that? Doesn't God want to give me wisdom?


A bit on the blurry side, but this is my 59th b'day picture. How on earth did my body get so old. My brain thinks I'm 18.


Of course He does. For my 59th b'day celebration I was given an Orthodox Study Bible. What a gift! The Orthodox didn't throw out the books of the Bible the guys of the Reformation said weren't supposed to be in there and as I was looking at it I started reading the Wisdom of Solomon. It's one of those bonus books in the Bible the Orthodox get. So in it I read this:


For the beginning of wisdom is a very genuine desire for instruction. And careful attention to instruction is the love of her. Now this love is the keeping of her laws and giving heed to her law is the assurance of incourruption: And incorruption brings one near to God. So desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom (Wisdom of Solomon 6:17 - 18).

Like you, I wanted the GIFT of wisdom but here it speaks of how to get it and it begins with a desire for instruction. Instruction is pretty simple to figure out: We go to church, listen to a sermon and go home after being instructed by said sermon. WRONG. So instruction must be like when you put something together: You read the instructions and come out with a perfectly fine finished product. WRONG AGAIN. How many times have you read the instructions of the Scripture without being wisdomfied? If that hasn't made you wise, what will?

I think what we are dealing with here is something we tried back in the late 70s and early 80s--the shepherding movement. For you youngsters, that was one of the darker periods of our lives in many ways and not worth going into detail. The premise was that everyone would get a shepherd and he'd (definitely not she) tell you how to live your life: Where to work; who to date/marry and so on. You laugh. Thousands and thousands and thousands of people willingly did it all around the world. It finally exploded as most well-meaning unbiblical things do and left in its debris many who will never have anything to do with "church" again and quite a few who have just decided it isn't worth trying.

"Instruction," in the context of these verses, implies that we come under the teaching of the Church and walk in accountability to a mentor. Something else I'm figuring out is that instead of challenging every instruction, we walk it out in faith that God is working in our lives. How's that different than the shepherding thing? It works within the context of the Church--not some made up system of authority. Once you find your place in the Church, you can find the safety and security of instruction that comes from 2000 years of practice. Not 20 years from the latest split off of a split off that split from a previous split.

And where does that get you? It leads you to love of God's commandments (and ways) and that leads to "incorruption," which is another way of saying you become more and more like Christ--our goal in life. Read the verses up there in purple again. See, "incorruption." We want to live lives that aren't corrupted by the taint and stain of sin. Where else do you go? Check the last sentence: "...wisdom leads to a kingdom." I wanna go.

The Wisdom of Solomon has 19 chapters and I have been so blessed by all I read in it. I reread it, wrote down notes and am pondering and pondering and pondering. Am I wiser? Good question. I'm trying....


Jackie made the yummy coconut cake from scratch and was kind enough to not put all the candles on it that belonged there! That's Elijah, waiting to chow down. Wish you could have been here....

DULLED BY DISTRACTIONS

Have you ever noticed how much alike we humans are? You talk to people long enough and you start finding out even the ones who seem so confident are insecure and the ones who are so good looking think of themselves as rather plain. When Jackie and I used to be the DTS leaders at YWAM/Montana, we had lots of students. We could nearly always tell how things were working from week to week just because the students from school to school (about 12 or 13 schools) would behave in very similar ways. Then when it came to counseling sessions there were also lots of similarities. What really amazed the students was when I'd tell them I'd done something just like what they'd done or thought some of the same crazy thoughts as they had. Yea, we are all very much alike and of course very diverse too. As it says in Psalms, "We are fearfully and wonderfully made."

What do you think it is that joins us together in this family of man we belong to? If you know me, you know my answer and since the only people who would actually read beyond the first sentence are those who do know me, then you have already guessed it's because God created man in His image. Man (and women of course) didn't come from monkeys, tadpoles or even some cosmic goo that melted and molded itself into a person. We are the product of a very loving and wonderful Father who lives in heaven and beholds us, His creation, with much love and tenderness. Jesus, though not created but rather begotten, while living on earth showed His disciples and friends (and enemies) what it was like to live in the image of God. If we're created in His image--if there's something of Him in you and me--how come we don't quite look the same as Jesus did when He was here? Maybe it's because Jesus was only satisfied when He was feasting on the food of heaven--doing God's will. “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work (John 4:34). I, on the other hand, tend to feast on the junk food of this world. Jesus' food was exciting, challenging and it cost Him His life. Mine dulls my senses and dims my vision of God.
We should be looking up--beholding Him who gave us life and loves us with such affection that He would give the life of His son for our ransom from sin. Do we? Sometimes. There are times when I get up to pray in the morning and all I want to do is be there in that moment for the rest of my life. There are other times when my mind is racing around like a I don't know what to offer as a simile but I can tell you my mind can move at the speed of light when a random thought blows by and catches my attention. The dullicious things of earth catch my attention and steal me away from the presence of God. I talked about this on the "BE QUIET" page but it's a subject that I'm still exploring and wondering about.

What kinds of things blow through my mind? Probably the same things that blow through yours. I'm starting to think that it's the "little" sins that catch us and steal the heavenly food we should be eating. Those "little" sins are the ones that dull our mind to the Divine King of Glory who describes us as the apple of His eye (Zechariah 2:8). Our dullicious appetite craves things that don't make us healthy and when our minds start dwelling on them--we are toast, gone, distracted, out of here, adios.

What's so very amazing about what I've just shared is that nearly all of us get deceived by the delusions of the dull and mundane. And the really fantastic thing is that all the time we are being such crazy people, our Father in heaven is longing for us, His pride and joy, with tender affection. Our senses, our very relationship with God, are dulled by the distractions of this world that we think are so exciting--even though they pale in light of the grandeur and glory of Christ Jesus our King and Lord. This God, this King I'm talking about is the One who...




Created us in His very own image; gave us paradise on earth and when we rejected Him gave His life so that we could once again experience heaven on earth through Christ Jesus.
















Caused the Red Sea to divide in two so that the people He so much loved could escape from their enemies.










Took a wild and unruly man (Jacob) and opened heaven up to Him.










Sent an angel to talk to the Virgin Mary about her future as the mother of God.



Our God. The One who loves us so passionately, does not have favorites. What He did for others, He can do for you. Do you remember this verse from ACTS 10:34
“In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality... ." The very same God who gave Paradise to Adam and Eve; safety to millions of Israelites fleeing for their lives; opened heaven to Jacob and honored Mary so extravagantly looks at us with compassion and finds great pleasure in giving us His Kingdom. He's so amazing that when He wants to go somewhere, He's already there. When He wants to do something, it already happened because He's not bound by time as we are. When we are lost, confused, in a daze, by our dullicious appetites, He's waiting at the right spot so that when we come to our senses and take our eyes off the dull things of this world we immediately see Him and are captured by His mercy and forgiveness. And when we don't just come to our senses He's already worked out a plan that will jerk the bit in our mouths and turn our eyes toward Him. He will spare nothing when it comes to winning us back from the dull and mundane distractions of our dire existence.

I've made a decision and I'm trying to hold fast to it. I WON'T BE DULL BOB. Would you care to join me? Would you allow yourself to be overwhelmed by God? Would you pray with me: Enter, O fire of God, and burn up the thorns of my sins and ignite my inward parts and heart with the flame of your love. Enter, O my King, and destroy in me the kingdom of sin and sit upon the throne of my heart and reign in me alone...? If you can remember this little prayer and remember our huge God at the same time, when the dull comes knocking at your door, you'll ignore it completely. If you can do it, so can I because we are very much alike--fearfully and wonderfully made in the likeness of God.

By the way, if you were wondering about the Coptic Church and the icons I borrowed from them off the web, I'm not a member--I simply thought their icons told a great story.

Got thoughts about this? Need prayer? Let us know. It's our great pleasure to pray on your behalf.

HEROES

They aren't soldiers in the typical sense of the word. They didn't need guns where they served. They didn't have the backing of the U.S. government. In fact, the U.S. government didn't have much to do with them at all except at tax time. What kind of people serve at their own expense and still pay taxes to Uncle Sam? Missionaries, of course. We don't see ticker tape parades for those coming back from serving overseas that were/are missionaries. And that's probably a good thing because whose ego could stand a parade in their honor? Not me! ha. Sadly, though, 1000s of missionaries come home every year from sharing Christ to those who live in strange and far away places and usually come home to a warm welcome from their families and friends and are soon forgotten. And when they've been gone for more than a year or two, often their friends have made new friends (quite normal) and the close connection they once had isn't nearly as close so they feel a bit isolated or disconnected. I'm going to throw a blog parade in honor of our friends, Chuck and Janet Lichtenberger, who are returning from Thailand next week after giving five and a half years of their lives to sharing Christ. You've read about them if you've kept up with our blog over the years. You've even seen their photos. Here's a photo of one of their "smoother" moves on a motorcycle. That red stuff all over them is mud! Let me back up some and tell you how this all started.

Somewhere in the 6.5 year ago range, Chuck and I were out surfing and wondering what we were going to do with our lives. He was a pastor and moving in a different direction and I was working at a hotel that was going out of business and would be unemployed January 2006. As we caught waves and played, I told him I had friends in Thailand and we could go over there and be missionaries. There are plenty of missing details, but that's it in a nutshell. We decided this was a good plan; our wives agreed and in January 2003 we flew to Thailand together.

That photo below is after Chuck had been riding for a bit longer and his smooth factor had gone up considerably.

Are Chuck and Janet heroes of the faith? I think so. What elevates to them such status in my mind? Chuck did something very simple a year ago that really impressed me. Jackie and I moved back here last May. Chuck and Janet were feeling like us, that their time was about up in Thailand. But they stayed another year after we left. You know why? 2 years before Chuck signed a 3-year contract to teach English at the university while I signed two one-year contracts. My commitment ended and we moved back. He had a year to go and stayed.

To leave would have been simple. It's done all the time--you give 90 day notice and they let you go without any hard feelings. Chuck gave his word and he kept it. Janet also had made a commitment to teach at a school for a year and she followed through too. Integrity speaks very loud.

They are hospitable. Chuck and Janet loved to have our university students come over to their house for ice cream get togethers. I don't know how many he did but they were numerous and always fun for us and the students. And the gospel, in one way or other, was always shared in a very natural and friendly way. Nothing was pushed down their throats except for maybe the ice cream and brownies. Oh, Thai kids love our western brownies!

Chuck's only equal in Thai language ineptness would be me. He was as bad as I was and most of the time we went from place to place clueless of what was going on. Yet even with that challenge--being unable to express your deepest feelings-- he's a man that is greatly loved by his students. How can that be? Because he cares for them. If one of his students was hurting, he kept pursuing until he could figure out how to help.

They are inventive. If you want to disciple a nation, you have to be able to speak to them. So he figured out a way to do that. He had written a discipleship manual years ago so he painstakingly had it translated into Thai, working with students to get the work done. It wasn't easy to do but he found a way and did it. He also taught a Bible study at our church (in English) on Sunday and from time to time preached. Does all of that make him a hero? Maybe. What sealed it for me is in the email he sent me the other day telling me of his arrival date and such. I'll quote him: I've been thinking about our time here and figured that it's not so much about 'what did you do?' (if someone asks), but 'what did you learn?'. I think that's better. God can raise up teachers from stones, but what He desires is our growth.

That very simple statement spoke volumes to me about what it means to be a servant of God. How easy it is for our egos to inflate as we look at all the things we've done. But when you look at God you realize that it's not that amazing and even what is amazing is because God worked through us in some miraculous way. Let's face it (pointing a finger at Bob), you aren't that special, but the God you serve and love and try and honor is very special.

Chuck and Janet aren't spectacular--they are down to earth folks who love Jesus and said "Yes" to the Great Commission. Another thing that I find amazing about them is that they have won a race they ran against me--they beat me to 60! Ha. Janet of course is still young, beautiful and energetic, but poor old Chuck....


Yep, they are heroes. And we are honored to have them as friends and honored that they will be starting all over again in Florida, pondering that "next step" that most people don't even think about. If you think about it, say a prayer for them as they reenter the U.S. It's never easy to start all over. If you'd like to send them an email and congratulate them on working for 5.5 years in Thailand, you can email them at: friarchuck60@gmail.com

ENTERED HIS REST...yet?

Greetings, all. It's Blog time so here come's the latest from Jackie updates to our pursuit of becoming more and more like Christ. We'll begin with our challenge to be changed into His likeness...

THE ORIGINAL 4 ROBINSONS ABOVE

Are you tired? Are you harassed by the pace of life? Do you find yourself wondering what it might be like if you could only ____________. You have to fill in the blank. In Hebrews 4:10 it tells us that when we enter into God's rest, we cease from our own labors. If you are like me you've read that a number of times, thanked God for such a wonderful promise and then jumped right back into the race where you had done everything but cease from your own labors. Why is that? How can we change?

I don't believe in luck, but if you want an answer, this is your lucky day because I'm going to give you one. It might not be the correct answer, but it's an answer that has worked for me and I'm grateful to God. I'm quite old, possibly bordering on the land of Ancient. If I were as wise as I am old, I'd be unstoppable, but I'm not. But one thing I learned a few months ago came from a prayer our Orthodox church has used for centuries and it's part of my everyday prayer time:

O Lord, grant me to greet the coming day in peace. Help me in all things to rely upon Your holy will. In every hour of the day reveal Your will to me. Bless my dealings with all who surround me. Teach me to treat all that comes to me throughout the day with peace of soul and with firm conviction that Your will governs all. In all my deeds and words, guide my thoughts and feelings. In unforeseen events, let me not forget that all are sent by You.

The last section that is in italics has changed my life because somehow God has answered that prayer in some wonderful ways. Like the sun breaking through the cloud cover, God broke through years of ingrained habitual responses I used to make to challenges and problems and turned my heart and head around so that I can respond differently. When we come to the knowledge that God governs all, we come to a place called serenityville--a place where we can just relax.

I'm not talking about a fatalistic thing here like our Islamic pals. Surely there are times when God expects us to stand our ground and fight the good fight, as the Bible says. But even in that fight we can fight with the assurance that God is on our side (if you are living for Him, that is!). "If God is for us, who can be against us?"

Our ancient Church fathers had some definite ideas about how big God was, how powerful He was and how much He actually cared and loved mankind (oops, I meant "humankind"). I'm not sure who penned the words up there that say, "let me not forget that all are sent by You," but those words have meant much to me. Those words take my mind off the "whys" and put it on the One who controls the causes. We've all read that "all things are working for our good...," but how many of us believe it? It's easy to believe when someone gives you a suitcase full of money, but how about when you open up your suitcase and find that it has been gone through and you've been robbed? That's when our minds start wondering why this happened or ways to find the culprits and do 'em in.

Stop. Take a deep breath. God has reasons for the way things go in our lives because He loves us. He gave His life for me even though I didn't deserve it. He suffered so I could enjoy good health. He died so I could live. He rose from the dead so I could die and be raised up with Him. He came to earth and took on our nature so that we could take on His nature and go to heaven. He became just like us so that we can be like Him and that's why "all things are working for our good." He knows what we need to change so like a loving Father, he spares nothing to get us those supplies that bring about our change. One of our problems is we think we know what we need when we don't even know where we are going or how we are going to get there even though we already know we should have been there hours ago. Is that clear? Not hardly. But I think you are getting my point.

When I first look at the photo below, I see all those little bumps in the sand. Then, I see the sun and all the colors that are associated with it. If we let the little distractions steal our vision of the big picture, we go to pieces--we lose sight of the color and glory that lie on the other side. Let me tell you a short story. Our house is a nice house. It has a dog. It has a mom. It has a dad. It has our daughter and 3 grandsons. It was built near the beach. I love the beach. Only a few of our windows in the house actually open up and some of them have been screwed shut by the landlord. We don't like that. We like our windows open so the cool wind can blow through.

So I went outside the other day to try and fix some of the windows. I was home alone and I had a piece of glass in one hand that had fallen out of its frame, a bunch of screws laying around me and of course a screwdriver in my other hand. I needed the drill from off the ground (I was on a ladder of course). Rewind a few years back. Put me in that same place and I would have been angry. I would have been possibly throwing tools on the ground and breaking the glass in anger. But I didn't. I remembered the words to this prayer and I softly said them again and thanked God for such a crazy situation. I got the glass back in, eventually, and we can now at least prop the window open so air gets in (and out). I didn't get mad--I relaxed and ceased from my own labor.

Sure, I did the work, but I did it with gratitude and I knew that the Lord Christ was there with me enjoying the fellowship we were having in conversation.

When Daniel's 3 friends were thrown into the hottest furnace ever, they knew how to respond. They knew that God's will governs all things. The fire that was intended by the king to kill them was a blessing and brought them into contact with God as He joined them in the fire. That same fire burned up the king's guards. "Our God is a consuming fire," so the fire can be a blessing or really deadly. It can change your life for the good or it can cause you intense pain. What the fire does to you depends on how you relate to God, who is Love. That's not just a definition--that's what He is. But wait, don't stop reading now--there's more. I had to go to an interview later on in the day for a new job. I sat before 2 guys and 2 ladies and they asked me all kinds of questions. One asked me if I could meet challenges.

I said "Of course I can" and told them about the windows and my prayer. Not what you normally tell people at a job interview, but they hired me. If I'd gotten upset and thrown the tools on the ground and smashed the glass against the wall, I probably wouldn't be quite so confident about meeting challenges. But because God has answered my prayer and continues to answer it, I have something to share.

God's will governs man's feeble attempts at running the world. Just ask those guys at the tower of Babel. Of course they wouldn't understand you. Feel free to use the prayer. For you who like to be spontaneous and wouldn't think of using a written out prayer, think about this: While you are trying to be spontaneous and thinking up words and ideas and scenarios and then getting distracted by your thoughts that are running like a wild mountain goat up a cliff, I've prayed what I needed to pray and am on my way to meet some challenges and to be changed. It's OK to be spontaneous, but I have found another tool to put in my tool chest to do the work God has given me. Try it out--and enter into God's rest.

BACK TO JACK(ie)
Last Oct. 29th, Jackie went to see Dr. Northrop and he said, "Oops, I hit something." She quit walking the next day, and over the months since spent 14 days in the hospital, has had 2 surgeries (one to replace the knee joint), spent 28 days on intravenous antibiotics to fight the infection Dr. Oops introduced into her body and has been on strong pain pills ever since. We spent 1000s of our money to pay for his mistake and the insurance company has spent no telling how much. Yet, here we are, alive and well and NOT in debt. We had to borrow $3000 along the way but it's been taken care of. She has gone from the photo in the hospital bed to the one at the beach and, yes, we are thrilled. Her pain pills have been cut down to just a few a day rather than 2 every 4 hours around the clock and she WALKED down to the beach with me last Monday (19th of May) without crutches or a cane. She did hold on to me getting down the slope, though. Are we happy? You know we are.















Thank you so much for all your prayers and for the money some of you sent to help us pull through this bit of a challenge. It's nothing we want to do again or encourage you to do. But Jackie told a friend the other day how grateful she is because of the months she had to pray and read. God has been so faithful to her and to me. So, yes, we are glad.

JACKIE'S MOM AND THE JOURNEY

Hello, all. Like most earth dwellers, we've been through some challenging times as have many of our friends. On April 10th, after a long fight with some mysterious disease, Jackie's mom died. Over there on your left is how she looked when I was allowed into the family. That's at Jackie's wedding shower.

The funeral was on April 26th and it was a time of grieving, saying our good byes and a time to reflect on the Lord's goodness to us all. It was a time when much of the family was all together in one place and where we heard, again, the good news of the resurrection and the promises to those who live their lives for Christ. The funeral home had a pastor come and speak and that was a special surprise and blessing. I talked to him a bit by email and when I met him at the funeral home I found out he was a former YWAMer who had served in Africa. Small world. I shared a bit from my perspective about her life and how she exemplified the life of a care giver and servant to others.

Del, who she was married to when I came into the family, died of brain cancer. She kept him at home and cared for him throughout his time of dying and suffering. Her 2nd husband, Harold, died of Alzheimer's and she was at the home daily where he had to stay as his mind deteriorated and needed around the clock care. Whenever there was a need, she was there to give help and support. What an example she was to us as one who gives their all so that others might be comfortable.

Another soft spot in her life was playing with the grandkids and great grandkids. I don't think anything brought her more joy than to be surrounded by her kids--every generation of them. Elijah, our youngest grand son, cried and cried and cried when he realized what had happened. Tears shed testify of love given. Over there on the right is the ever hostess. Justine had to have everyone over to her house for any holiday or excuse so she could prepare a gigantic meal of some sort. But that wasn't enough--she then would try and clean it all up.

When Jackie and I dated, Del and Justine weren't Christians. The strangest thing happened though. We got married, went on our honeymoon and when we came home a few days later, they had become Christians and were going to our church. What a blessing that was and is to us.



There on the left is some of the family. It's a much bigger group when everyone gets together. This was taken a few years ago, before we went to Thailand.






We had about a week's warning, though we didn't really know it, that Justine would soon die. Jackie's sisters went over to see her and celebrate her birthday. Jackie wasn't able to travel because of her knee and was sad. She did talk to her on the phone the night before she died so that was a blessing. Here they are a couple of years ago.





Here's Jackie with her 2 sisters and mom. It's a good thing to have family.

We are always grateful to all of you who have prayed for us and for Justine. When we first heard of her illness we were in Thailand. Jackie flew back and stayed with her for 3 months and you guys supported us with prayers and even your finances. Times like that are never forgotten and people like you are always cherished. We count ourselves as blessed because we have folks like you that care and pray for us. Thank you so much.

We continue our journey toward Christ. A couple of weeks ago Jackie and I became a part of St. Justins Orthodox church. On the left, Fr. Ted is anointing us with oil, praying for the Holy Spirit's filling and joining us to the church.











On the right is Fr. Arkadi. He's a Russian Priest who is leading a Russian speaking service for immigrants. He's a giant and such a tender hearted man. That's Leah next to Jackie. For you old timers who were around with us in the Charismatic wild days, I've met a Don Basham look alike. He's standing in the back just to the right of Leah's head.

We are all on a journey. Justine has begun a new one and we are also on a new one, though we are still earth bound. It is with Godly hope that we will be joining our loved ones in the place of rest where the brightness and countenance of God ever lights their lives. May His joy and mercies be yours in abundance.

Bob and Jackie