I’m sure most of you remember what you were doing today ten years ago when you first heard the news of the attacks. I was driving home from an early morning meeting — listening to the 9:00 news on the radio — when they told about the first plane hitting the World Trade Center. By the time I got home they were talking about the second plane. I spent the rest of the next few days glued to the TV, radio, internet, and telephone stunned by what I was hearing, thanking God that my niece in Washington and her husband who happened to be in New York City were safe, praying for those who lost loved ones, and leading Church services. I will never forget the feelings of fear, anger, and sympathy for the victims.

Ten years later, I am proud of the men and women who are serving in our armed services — – doing what they can to make the world safer. My prayer is that they can come home soon and that we can all live in safety. This may seem to be impossible, but I pray that the day will come when it can be true.

I close with a Psalm and a prayer.

Psalm 91 was a favorite of my Dad’s as he service in Italy flying a B-24 during World War II. It’s words speak of the way God protects us. May it’s words give us hope.

1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,2 will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress;
my God, in whom I trust.”

3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence; he will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.

5 You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day,
6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.8 You will only look with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.

9 Because you have made the LORD your refuge,the Most High your dwelling place,
10 no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 12 On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread on the lion and the adder,
the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.

14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name. 15 When they call to me, I will answer them;I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them. 16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation.

The prayer is from The Book of Common Worship of the Presbyterian Church:

God of compassion,
you watch our ways,
and weave out of terrible happenings
wonders of goodness and grace.
Surround those who have been shaken by tragedy
with a sense of your present love,
and hold them in faith.
Though they are lost in grief,
may they find you and be comforted;
through Jesus Christ who was dead, but lives
and rules this world with you. Amen

After Hallie died we weren’t sure we would get another dog, but Bella was too cute to resist — so we are back to a 2 person, 2 dog, 2 cat family!

While I am proud of what they are doing on the field (they won the national championship last year and if they keep winning will do it again this year) I am very proud also of what they are doing off the field. In this picture John is joining his team mates in visiting a children’s hospital and making the lives of the patients brighter.

You can read about the teams trip to the hospital here.

Whatever they accomplish on the filed, what they are accomplishing off the field makes them champions!

Her name was actually Halleluiah, but Sally did not want to actually call her Halleluiah. She was afraid that if Halle got out at night and I had to go through the neighborhood looking for her it would not be a good idea for the preacher to be shouting “Halleluiah” as he walked along — so the shortened version – - Halle — was what we called her.

Halle was a true “miracle dog” and gave us, as well as many others, 12 years of love and companionship. When she was 6 she began having health problems and was diagnosed with a low white blood cell immune deficiency. Since she only weighed 4 lbs, she battled the immune deficiency the rest of her life. What she lacked in white blood cells, she made up for in love for anyone and everyone who would come her way.

Sally did not like to let Halle out of her sight — the joke was that if she left the house and left Halle with me, I knew she was coming back. If she took Halle with her, I would have to wonder if she would return!

Halle became a regular part of Sally’s pottery classes and would accompany us on trips. She loved to be around people. Her last major trip was last summer when she went with us to Church Camp the week that Sally taught pottery classes and I lead the Bible Study. Wherever she went, Halle made friends.

She finally succumbed to the blood disorder over the weekend. She will be missed, but she blessed a lot of folks in a lot of ways!

Stephen and Autumn — I am honored to have met you! God bless you!

If I can help somebody as I pass along, If I can cheer somebody with a word or song, If I can show somebody he’s traveling wrong, Then my living will not be in vain. If I can do my duty as a Christian ought, If I can bring salvation to a world once wrought, If I can spread the message as the master taught, Then my living will not be in vain. Yes, Jesus, I want to be on your right or your left side, (Yes) not for any selfish reason. I want to be on your right or your left side, not in terms of some political kingdom or ambition. But I just want to be there in love and in justice and in truth and in commitment to others, so that we can make of this old world a new world.

These are the words of a brave man, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King worked for justice and to give rights and liberties to all people — a goal that is a part of God’s will for all people. He was indeed a Godly man and a brave man at that. We have come a long way as a country since he spoke these words — but we still have a long way to go. The shootings in Tuscon Arizona few weeks ago, and some of the rhetoric surrounding the shootings, show that we need to be much more tolerant of others who may not agree with us.

Here is a link to a post I made a few years ago and continue to like to post on Martin Luther King Day. It’s about about my Dad, his history with the Civil Rights movement, and how my opinion of Dr. King has changed over the years.

I am excited about going to Haiti — though somewhat leery also. I’m going with Dr. Rob Weingartner of the Presbyterian Outreach Foundation and 10 other pastors and members of Presbyterian churches from throughout the country. The purpose of the trip — as Dr. Weingartner puts it — is to:

“pay attention to the things God is doing through the Haiti Outreach Ministries (the organization the Presbyterian Outreach Foundation partners with for their work in Haiti) and to discern what God is doing in a new way.”

I see this as a way to be involved in a ministry that is helping those in dire need in an tangible way.

I ask for prayers for the safety of those going on this Mission Trip, pray that God will use us in a powerful way, and pray that God will bless us powerfully also!

I’ll be back next Tuesday — so — thanks to my friends at AT&T and their high international roaming rates, my beloved Black Berry will stay at home. 5 days without phone calls, text messages, e-mail, Face book and Twitter will be hard — but God will see me through!

The week was a blessing to many folks — not only the folks in Athens, but the youth and adults who came to serve were also blessed in so many ways. I really admire the way the Group Work Camps Foundation puts the weeks together — the participants are not only blessed by opportunities to serve, but also with worship opportunities that were fantastic! Here is a link to an article that appreared in the Athens newspaper.

The week was truly a blessing to me. I grew in my faith — rediscovered my love for ministry — and was constantly reminded of how important it is to love and serve God and others. I also made friends that I hope to keep up with for a long time to come.

I praise God for the opportunity to serve and be served by so many folks!

To put it mildly, I love July 4! I love the fireworks and the celebration of America. I want to play Soussa marches and I love watching the Boston Pops concert with The 1812 Overture — the church bells of Boston adding to the concert along with army canons.

I can’t deny it — I love America!

But – why do I love America?

I love America for what it is — the freedoms that are ours as Americans — but I also love America because of what it can be. In a democracy, there is always the potential for creating a country where God’s will for liberty, justice, love, and freedom is a reality.

I believe that this was the dream of our founders — and it is still a dream worth dreaming of and fighting for. As long as we believe in this dream — and commit ourselves to praying for it and working for it — we will continue to strive for the greatness that is — and can continue to be — ours as Americans.

I am volunteering with Group Work Camps for the week so I’ll be going tomorrow — the others will come Sunday.

Pray that we will all have safe travels, and that God will bless us and use us to be a blessing to others.