Arizona is not Montana

 It has been a while since I last wrote here on my blog. As I look back at what I have written in the past, I see and am reminded of my plans to move to western Montana. Well, here I am in Arizona. Life will take turns that are not expected. I still want to move to Western Montana but for whatever reason God has moved me to HOT Arizona instead. I am currently looking for work with applications sent into a couple different places. One job that I came down for keeps putting off the date they need me so I wonder if that is what I will even end up doing down here. I have been chasing wildland fire jobs now for a few years, and now I have been wondering why I am doing it. Is it because that is what I want to do or is it something God is using to prepare me for later in life? Am I chasing a vain life dream? “For who knows what is good for man in life, all the days of his vain life which he passes like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will happen to him under the sun?” Ecc. 6:12.

Having been here in Arizona now for a few days I have been introduced to several of the people from the Church here as well as seen some of the ministries that they are involved in. One of my desires is to get involved with the people and ministries, but then I have to ask myself why do I want to be involved? Is it to show others that I am Godly because I work with the youth? But being concerned about my wrong attitude and avoiding the ministries is equally as dangerous. “Do not be overly righteous, nor be overly wise: Why should you destroy yourself? Do not be overly wicked, or foolish: why should you die before your time? It is good that you grasp this and remove your hand from the other; For he who fears God will escape them all.” Ecc. 7:16-18. I keep in my prayers that my desire to minister to others is a desire to serve God by giving myself and time for the spiritual benefit of others, not the desire to show others how righteous I am for serving God (this in reality is serving self rather than God).

What is God's direction in my life? People ask me “do you feel called to the ministry?” I always give the answer, “Ultimately yes, but I feel that as one communicating the Word of God to another I would better relate intellectually having been living in the day to day life like every one else rather than jumping into 'full-time ministry' right out of school.” But as I sit back and think about the answer I give, I wonder if this is really God's leading or if it is just my 'ideal' idea. I believe God wants me in 'full-time' ministry, but am I going at it His way or mine? Am I following the “ideal” ministry method or am I following what God has for me here and now? As I think in these things my prayer is that my heart is truly set on God's direction, not my ideal. I think Solomon concluded well in Ecclesiastes, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man's all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:13-14.

Fort Chip

 My time spent in Fort Chip was much more relaxed than the travel experience. I was able to get to see the area by snow mobile. The main highways there are the rivers and Lake Athabaska that are traveled by snow mobile by winter and boat by summer. The area is made up of beautiful islands surrounded by water or delta. I am not capable of giving you a written tour of the area so I will not even try.

My over all schedule of the 6 weeks spent there consisted of speaking on Sunday mornings 3 times, leading music 2 Sunday mornings, speaking once for a communion, singing a special music on Good Friday, and meeting people in the community and making friendships with them. My day usually was spent studying and practicing Guitar in the afternoons and visiting people in the evenings. Towards the end of my stay there I was able to get in on some drumming songs and bbq/cook outs with some of the young people in the community. I did a lot of picking people up and dropping people off for Church and Bible studies so I was able to talk during short drives as well.

As I was going to Fort Chip my prayer has been that God would give me a greater passion for those who do not know Him as their personal Savior, that I would have a better understanding of missions, and I would have more of a passion for missions. God answered all three of those requests and He felt it necessary to add more lessons of faith with that as well. The entire time I was there I never was able get my new debit card so I was unable access my funds besides the cash that I had on hand. The day I left Fort Chip my card arrived a few hours after I was gone, but God provided for all of my needs. Well my mind is drawing a blank but if you have questions you can contact me and chat for a while. TTFN  

Canada Travels in Hind Sight

 Hey all! Thought that I would let you in on a little of what has happened with my adventures to Fort Chipewyan, AB., Canada. I would have to say that the adventures definitely started before I even left Montana. I was redirected from the first border crossing I tried to another because the first was not able to issue me the visitor's permit that I was unaware that I needed. On my way to the other crossing I received a phone call from the bank saying that my Debit card was being used in France so I had to have it closed out before they spent more than the $500 of my traveling that they were so kind as to take from me. So I now no longer have access to what was supposed to be the money I was going to use for fuel (I now only have $500 Canadian and $500 US cash). So at this time I pulled over to clear my head (or eyes) and get a hold of Dad so as to see what could be done at that point. After 30 min of delay I was back on the road headed to the border (the decision was to see how far I could go on what I had). When I got to the border they decided that in order for them to issue the visitors permit I needed a letter of invitation and expectation from Arlyn (In my research of requirements to get to Canada none of this was mentioned). They would not allow me to use their Fax so I then drove back 30 miles so I could receive a fax at a gas station. Now with that done I then started back to the border where they finally allowed me to continue on my way. All of this took place between 9:00am and 7:00pm on the 21^st of March.

Now that I was across the border the snow storm that had been brewing since that afternoon had hit its worst. The roads all seemed to be melting as fast as it was snowing but I had slowed down for the conditions anyway. At 60 mph the back end of the car felt that the last shall be first when I hit a patch of black ice, but I tried to resist the car's stupidity. With the back end being so light I lost control and started concentrating keeping the car upright as I was spinning circles toward the ditch. The Car remained upright the whole time, but I think that was more due to God answering the repetitious “God, help me!” rather than my own skill. After several tries of get back on the highway I was back in business and on my way down the road. I had made contact with the people that said they would allow me to stay at their place for the night and they said they would leave the door of the house open so I could find a place when I made it to that point. As the night went on the storm got worse along with the roads, so I had to chain up sometime around 2:00am. I finally made it to my destination at 3:45am for the night. So due to poor road conditions what should have been 4 hrs in Canada was closer to the 8hr side of things. It is now the 22^nd of March.

After my 4hr nap I was up eating with my wonderful hosts until I left at 8:45am. The roads were still quite slippery, but after an hour and a half and a piece of chain later I was able to remove the chains and be on my way to the plane I was supposed to catch later that day. I made it in time to have my car dropped off at a former pastor's house and to be waiting for the plane. I arrived at Fort Chip by 7:00pm on Tuesday 22^nd of March.

On Wednesday I caught up on some sleep. We then looked around the village more so that I would better know how to get around and have a better understanding of the different people in different sections of the village. We then went to visit an old man named George Wandering Spirits. He is one of the men from the church there.

On Thursday we sat down for some prayer and planning for the next 6 weeks. Later that day we went out on the ice bridge before it was closed for the season. Friday was Annette's birthday, so that evening there was a handful of people that came over, This is when I was able to meet Edward, and play some guitar. He decided we needed to get together again so we could jam some more (His wife goes to the church but he does not). We did end up singing and playing before everybody left that evening.

Sunday was my first day in church, but I acted as their guest the first day. That evening I was settled into the house I am to be staying at the rest of my time in Fort Chip. We walked around in the evening so I could meet my new neighbors. We were able to talk to 2 people before it got to late.

A note from Captain Obvious to say 'God is Amazing!'

   So in my recent concern of trying to get the details of my trip to Fort Chipewyan, Alberta, Canada figured out, I have been trying to figure out the cost of living, cost and arrangement of the plane ride, where to store my vehicle while I am up there, and such details. I tried getting a hold of Arlyn (the missionary) to discuss these details so I could plan and do some more precise budgeting for the journey, but after several days of calling I was not able to contact him. I was then starting to wonder what I was going to do as the time grew shorter and I needed to know what was needed for my traveling details (It is not uncommon for him to be gone for several days here and there). He finally got the message I sent him, and called with some excellent news. The housing is paid for the whole time no matter how long it is I decide to stay! The house I will be in is located in the village and a walking distance from just about every where I would need to go. He also said that he would have my plane ride arranged, so I will not have to be concerned about getting that lined up and figured out. He also said that there was a place for me to stay as I was traveling up there so I could break the 15 hours of traveling up and not exhaust myself. This means that I plan to leave Ekalaka the 20th and stay the night before I cross the border to Canada and stay south of Edmonton on the night of the 21st, and then finally arrive at Fort McMurray to leave my car and fly the rest of the way into Fort Chipewyan. So until I come up with more to share...ttfn

Bovine Organizing and Other

Ya, so here are some pics of my recent doings...

My Boss had me pull his 69 GTO out and wash it

Here is a view from the driver seat. I have to say it was a fun car to drive even though I only backed it out of the garage and pulled it back in again.

Here are the Bovine begging for me to give them food.

As you can see the cold weather has in no way effected my sanity.

According to the Grace that is Given Us

 God has provided gifts to the believer's for the growth and edification of the body of Christ (The Church).  Ephesians 4:16 "...from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love." In Romans 12 the list of these gifts is given in this order: Prophecy, ministry, teaching, exhort, giver, leader, mercy. One may say that people have these characteristic without having Christ as their personal Savior, but the gift that comes from God enables one to act with these characteristics beyond what the natural man is able. These gifts can only be seen in one's life as one is yielding to the Spirit of God. 

 Not every body has the same measure of spiritual gift given to them (One may say his gift is ministry and another's may be mercy). In Romans 12:6 it says, "Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given us, let us use them." God in His infinite wisdom and knowledge knows what is needed in each person. I believe that all of these gifts can be seen in one believer's life the more he grows in Christ (Like one cannot separate the attributes of God from one another, you cannot really have one spiritual gift without the other complimenting it... Made in the image of God I guess).  I also believe that God may change one's prominent gift according to what is needed for the further growth of the body of Christ (One's atmosphere may change from many believers to just a few such as going from the States to a sparse mission field). 

 It is beneficial to know your spiritual gift so you may know how you can best serve others in the body of Christ, but you do not need to know what your spiritual gift is in order to use it. As long as you are yielding your life to Christ your spiritual gift will become evident as you use it and naturally edify the other believers with it. The first three Chapters of Ephesians talk of our position from the natural man to the new man... reading this and understanding what Christ has done for us should provoke the desire to grow in Him and share with others about the grace and mercy He has given to us. Reading the last three Chapters of Ephesians show how we "walk" through life, but as you read it you will see how the spiritual gifts that God gives us plays a huge role in our walk and interaction with those around us.

God works even in the "insignificant" trials of life (A Redneck's Struggles)

 I had been hunting all season and had no deer to show for it. It was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and the last week of huntings season. I decided that this was going to be my last day hunting so I could spend the rest of the time with family over the holiday. My plan was to hunt the early morning for a buck, but if I had not shot one by then I was going to shoot the first deer I saw so I could bring home some meat. This morning was between -5 and 5 degrees with a nasty wind chill. I sat in what I thought was a good spot to get a chance at a BIG buck seen the day before. To my disappointment the deer were all moving farther down the hill so they could stay out of the wind. I had spent a portion of my time, as I sat there, praying for a chance to shoot the BIG one, but telling God I would be content with whatever He provided for me. After sitting about an hour I noticed movement down the hill but the trees were to thick for me to see if what I was seeing was a buck or a doe. Needless to say I was so cold that moving seemed like a better idea than sitting did to me, so I slowly got up and started my way down the hill. As I inched closer down the hill I found a buck that looked about 17 in. wide and a small doe. They were darting back and forth as they flirted with each other (kinda like some people during my junior year at college). I must have been 70 yards from the deer at this point but I was unable to shoot because I was shivering to hard to hold the gun steady. At this point I started praying that God would allow me to get close enough to get a good shot at the buck. I continued down the hill watching the deer very carefully to avoid being spotted. The the deer and his dear finally bedded down in some brush. I got even closer. I must have been 40 yards away but I was still shivering to hard to make a shot at this point. I walked to within 25 yards of the two deer (completely by the grace of God). The buck sensed something was not right so he stood up to see what was wrong. this was my chance so I shivered really hard so I could hold still long enough to take the shot. BANG! The buck ran to the right as I started to jack another round into the gun, but the action on the Winchester 94 was cold enough that it didn't take the round, so I tried again and finally got a round in, and by habit I put the gun on half cock safety. The buck stopped presenting another beautiful  broadside shot. BANG! Another miss! I stared in shock. How could I miss such an easy shot? This is when I started to have a personal pitty party for my self as I went to check and see if there did happen to be blood. Nothing. At this time I was in an all out fit blaming God, myself, and whatever else for the remarkably terrible shot. I continued to follow where the deer went still not believing that I missed such an easy shot. I eventually circled and was back where I started that morning, the whole time maintaining my pouting and poor attitude. As I continued I decided to put plan 'B' into action, shoot the first deer I see. As I walked I spent more time in prayer as I struggled with what happened just a short while ago. I knew that my actions were wrong but in my flesh I was still struggling with the idea of repenting for the poor attitude. I had now at this point started walking down the hill but in a different drainage than I did previously. I was not paying close attention being how my mind was still distracted. I glanced up as I was walking and stopped quickly. 50 yards in front of me looked to be like antlers in the buck brush behind a rise in the ground. Looking back it is interesting to see how I went from struggling with the poor attitude to praying that God would allow me to get close enough to shoot this deer (by this time the hiking warmed by body back up). I worked my way closer to this buck asking God to dull the buck's senses so I could get a shot off (and hit this time). I got within 30 yards and stopped for a shot... nope I still could only see antlers and ears. I tried getting closer. 20 yards... still only ears and antlers. 10 yards... still only ears and antlers. I sat there not wanting to move any closer in fear of scaring the game away. I was praying still that God would allow me to shoot this deer (the size of the deer was not registering in my cranial cavity). The buck finally stuck his head up just enough that I was able to try for a neck shot. BANG! He didn't even get out of his bed. I walked over to look at what I just shot. I took one look at the buck set my gun down, fell to my knees and cried in brokenness, amazement, and thankfulness. I in no way deserved to get a deer that day, but God in His Grace and Mercy allowed me to shoot this deer to remind me that He answers prayers, and that He works despite how rotten our attitudes can be. I am so thankful that God uses even the things that seem to have no spiritual value to show us His power and that we can trust in Him for all of our needs.

Oh yeah... This is the BIG buck that was spotted the day before...

I decided to have this one mounted because there is a lot more behind this deer than BIG antlers and a good hunt.

I Got My Mind on Christ

There are good things that I want to do,

but don't always do them,

and there are sinful things I want to avoid,

But constantly I join in.

It is not me doing this action

but this sin within is controlling

For there is nothing good within my flesh

What will save me from this mess?

I do not know why I do what I do

I got my eyes on my goal but I am

always running backwards

I got my eyes on my goal but I am

always running backwards

No one is righteous, none at all

Man has no understanding

We do not even seek out God

in fact all have turned away

murder is a reality of the heart

There is no concept of peace

There is nothing good to come from mans' mouth

Where is the fear of God?

I do not know why I do what I do

I got my eyes on my goal but I am

always running backwards

I got my eyes on my goal but I am

always running backwards

Christ, in the likeness of our sinful flesh

condemned sin in the flesh

now the right requirement of the law

is fulfilled by those who walk

by the Spirit but not the sinful flesh.

 I am now being transformed

by the renewing of my mind

So I can know the will of God.

Now I know why I do what I do

I got my mind on Christ and I

Grow in His likeness

I got my mind on Christ and I

Grow in His likeness

Church Hunting

 I have been considering moving to Missoula, MT and so I have been searching out possible housing and Church options. The search so far has been more of a testing field of what my living costs will be and what I will run into when it comes to getting to the nitty gritty of search for a church family. This is somewhat how the Church search went (so far any way)...
Church 1 - "First Baptist Church of Missoula"
 The first Item I saw on their web page consisted of food, and as I scrolled down I saw that they did have a weekly potluck. They also had a "breakfast" before Church... at first I was concerned (we all know how rambunctious a Baptist breakfast can be), but my concerns were unnecessary because the message continued to say that it was "for all ages." As I continued the search I could not find anything dealing with what they actually believed... so the search continues...
 Church 2 - "Open Door Baptist Church"
 One of the First Things I saw on this page was a battle between the devil and the 1611 KJV... the KJV smashed the 1611. Just underneath this moving icon are statistics comparing the KJV with other translations and the comment "If it ain't broke don't fix it." Clearly this Church is KJV only, so me being one who uses the NKJV thought this could be a bad choice especially when I want to join the church I attend.
 Church 3 - "Midtown Church"
 This Church had style, the front page said that they dressed casually and "Love God, Love People, Love our Community." One of their worship leaders had some real big lamb chops and a mullet.
Church 4 - "Missoula Bible Church"
 This Church claims to be "A life changing Church." After some searching I discovered that the pastor preached with much "freedom and joy that brings life." She seemed like a good person but I decided to look on some more.
There were many other Churches that I looked at consisting of: "Christian Science Reading Room," "First Church of the Nazarene," "Garden City Church," "Saint Anthony Parish."
Well the looking is still going but I did find some that looked like good possibilities.
 On a more serious note I would like your prayers as I look for a Church and consider the different job opportunities (Fire, leather, or both). And on another side note I may be taking some college credit classes this coming winter if things go as I would like them to... but may God's direction in my life take first place and may my desires line up with His direction.

Canada or Bust!

 I am planning on a six week missions trip with a Pastor up on North Eastern Canada in Fort Chipewyan. My plans are to leave around the 21st of March (this is subject to change as is the extent of the trip, because I may like enough not to come back as soon. :D. My original plan was to buy a new car before I went up there but after realizing how picky I have been in the new vehicle department I decided to drive my 1978 Chevy Nova most of the way and fly in over the lake that may slow the road trip aspect of things. If I recall correctly the total miles of the whole trip will be in the 4200 mile range of things.
 The people Pastor Arlyn works with are the natives to Canada. The little village splits two tribal groups of people (West and East) so the language is a mix of mostly English and much influence of the native languages. The men are gone most of the winter on the trap line as the women and children stay in the village. Contrary to what people may think, these people do NOT use the sled dog as their main mode of transportation in the winter. They use Ski Doos (Snow mobile) to run their trap lines. There are also ice highways to get into the area during the winter, but in the summer they either have to fly or boat  into the village. Because of the time of year I chose to go up there I will fly in the last leg of the trip so I don't have my car left up there after the ice breakup.

 Pastor Arlyn told me that he may give me opportunity to speak in church at some point while I am up there. The exact details of every thing that I will be doing are not clear to me other than I am planning on being in Pastor's shadow to help where I can and to observe how he ministers to the people according to their needs.
 My prayer in my trip is to better understand missions on a first hand basis as well as better know where God will place to in my service for Him (Missions, Pastorate, Work field, etc.). My desire is as well to be as much of a blessing to Pastor Arlyn as I can while I am there with him.