What a week!!!

20 Jun

OK, I haven’t posted in forever … I know that … But last week was an awesome time of recharging.  So, here goes:

We had two weeks at the beach this summer … The last week of school and this past week.  This only happens every other year, but it sure is fun!!!  Mom and Dad came down for both weeks (at least, part of each week).

Dad is doing well … Stable.  Seems to be holding his ground.  He didn’t do much other than wheel around the condo.  It was good for Mom to be able to get out … have some help … Go a couple of places she wouldn’t normally get to go.  My job was staying with Dad.  We had some interesting conversations!!

I really enjoyed spending time with Krissy and Diana on our walks.  We walked almost 20 miles each week!  Got to talk about a lot of good stuff!  It was a great week … But now, back to the office!

I go back to Dr Mezzanotte tomorrow for the first time in 10 weeks!!  Hoping for clearance to drive, a more definite timeline, and maybe a smaller brace!!  Pray for me!!!

Another one bites the dust … or does it???

10 Jun

The morning after … I’ve just survived my 17th VBS at Ebenezer.  WOW!!  Every year it gets better and better, too!

This year was no exception.  HUNDREDS of people worked behind the scenes and out front, too, to make this thing happen.  I don’t know what the total enrollment was, but each night hovered around 500 in attendance.

You know what I love about VBS??  It is a perfect picture of how the church is SUPPOSED to function: TONS of different people, using their gifts, with building God’s kingdom as the ultimate goal!!!

So, even though we are tired and weary, rest well knowing the Word of God NEVER returns void.  VBS might be over, but the seeds planted will live on!!

Why we do what we do

23 May

Ebenezer is blessed in many ways!  Volunteers make 99% of the things that happen successful, and the staff is GRATEFUL!  One of the areas where we have awesome volunteers is technology … As a geek, those folks have a special place in my heart!!

No one realizes the countless, thankless hours they put in working in sound, video, and computer stuff so what happens in worship is seamless and flawless.  The only time they are noticed is when something messes up.  No one ever really notices when things go off without a hitch!  It is the ultimate thankless job!

Sometimes tech teams get discouraged ….  Then, an email like this comes in!  Yesterday I got a message from across the pond:

Hey David!!

I woke up this morning feeling a little under the weather, so I stayed home from my regular activities and just decided to stay at home and rest all day. This morning, I prayed that God would just bless me with a new song today, cause its been a little while since the last time i wrote a christian song. then, i sat down and watched the first service that you preached after you had broken your arms, and God spoke to me so strongly through that message and words just started pouring into my head! the inspiration came from john 5, when Jesus healed the invalid. this is how i know its from God: i finished the whole song in less than half a day, and it is POWERFUL! I’m going to try to make a video and post it tonight or tomorrow, but i just wanted to say thank you for being obedient. I know that God blesses so many people through what you do!

-Drake

This is NOT me …  Stuff like this DOESN’T HAPPEN without many volunteers, doing their parts!!  It is why we do what we do!

Thanks to ALL volunteers at EBC, whether you are on the tech team, the greeting team, in children’s church, serving in the nursery, and ANYWHERE ELSE serving the Kingdom of God!  To God be the glory!!

Be careful, little mouth, what you say!

18 May

Circumstances this week reminded me of something that happened a long time ago, but has a valuable lesson attached.  So, here goes:

Many years ago, I had a friend that coached Dixie Youth baseball.  As adults sometimes do, there were some who tried to do some unethical things and wanted to pull this man in … But he wouldn’t bite.  This setup culminated in a confrontation between my friend and another.  It was not a pretty scene at the park!

The day after this scene, my friend came to me and told me everything.  I encouraged him to keep doing the right thing, and admired him afterward for the guts it took to stand up.  He died later that day in a freak accident.  (This is a true story)

I wonder now, years later, how this impacts those who were giving him such a hard time for their agendas??  I also use this to remind me to be careful how I conduct myself with others!  This reminds all of us there are no guarantees for tomorrow, and we should all be ready to meet our Maker by knowing Jesus Christ as our personal Savior!!

Most of all, it reminds me of this song I learned in preschool:  Oh, be careful little mouth, what you say!!  Hope you have a good day!  And … let’s be careful out there!

P.T.

10 May

What does PT stand for??  On Parris Island it refers to the things one does to maintain and build physical fitness.  On a job application, it could mean part-time.  It was what they called the greatest circus man of all time, PT Barnum.  But when you have broken bones or illness, it means something totally different!

Pain & Torture

Personal Torture

Physical Terrorism

aka – Physical Therapy!!

I’m doing my PT at Progressive Physical Therapy on Irby Street.  And I highly recommend them!! They approach this thing on a very personal level, and I like that!!  We started with my right arm (the better of the two).  Honestly, my right arm LIED to me!  I breezed through almost everything they threw at me!!  The elbow is probably at 98% right now, although we are still working through some shoulder issues.

How did Righty lie?  He convinced me that Lefty wouldn’t be so bad.  And, in every way Righty was easy, Lefty is HARD.  Double-hard.  We are making progress, but the progress is slow.  When first out of the cast one month ago today), I could barely move my hand and arm.  We are working hard on this and it is coming along, but there is still so far to go!  The most painful thing is when we stretch my left hand out, but it feels so much better afterward.  Yesterday it was almost nauseating.  We have a long road ahead.

And, even though I give them a hard time and accuse them of trying to kill me … And claim to see a bright light and my grandpa sometimes during therapy … I’m very appreciative of their hard work and care!!  I don’t know if they’ll even see this, but thanks, Pam and Dana!!  You guys are awesome!!!

Does God Speak?

9 May

I was talking with a friend the other day when the question arose … Does God speak to us?  Does He answer questions for us?  How can we know it is Him?

All I know is what I’ve experienced in this realm.  My answer is YES, and experience is my evidence!!

Have I ever heard His voice, loud, audible, and deep??  No.  But I know He speaks to us in a variety of ways.  Two decades ago, I was a young man who seemed to have the world by the tail!  I had a great job as a senior systems developer for a small computer company on the outskirts of Spartanburg.  I’d been married for almost four years to the love of my life and had a six-month-old daughter.  And life was good, or so it seemed.  Even though I’d grown up in a strong church in Greenville, I’d only known Christ as my personal Savior for a couple of years.  And beneath the surface I was running from a call that would ultimately lead me here to this place.

It was a frightening prospect to walk away from a great job, making great money, to pursue a call to ministry.  As God and I “discussed” this move, I prayed for a voice.  I begged for a voice.  I never got it.  (I even asked for a billboard.)

What I did get was a clear call and many, many confirmations.  Confirmations from God’s word.  Confirmations from His people.  It finally reshaped the WAY I prayed.  “Lord, if YOU open the door, I will walk through.”  My life has never been the same!

Does God speak???  ABSOLUTELY!  He is speaking all around us!

The real question is do we listen?

Seeing the power of God’s kingdom in action

30 Apr

I’ve thought much about something lately … Something that seems trivial, but it’s actually ginormous.  Maybe not where you’d expect to see God’s power at work, but He is showing up HUGE.

PRAYER!!  Well, duh!  I know God inhabits praise and He hears every prayer that we even THINK.  No, seriously, you will never know what it has meant to me to know so many people across this globe that are praying for me!!!  I have friends in almost every church in Florence, and I’ve heard from almost every one of them HUNDREDS of times in the past 8 weeks.    (Yep … 8 weeks on Thursday).

But it doesn’t stop there …  I’ve heard from friends all over South Carolina that fervently pray for me and my recovery.  I’m looking at a prayergram I got in the mail yesterday from West Hartsville Baptist Church (about 20 miles away from me).  Churches in the upstate are praying.  THEN, I regularly get cards from the prayer ministry of Rolling Hills Baptist in Fairfield, OH (Mark & Priscilla Plunkett).

Skipping to electronic media, HUNDREDS of messages from folks in my neighborhood to New Orleans to DC to Nashville to tons of other cities all the way to Lake Forest, California (Rick Warren).  Then, skip across the pond to Hawaii to my friends, the Lopez brothers.

What does all of this mean to me??

THE POWER OF FAMILY.  THE POWER OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD, UNITED IN CHRIST, IS BEYOND OUR UNDERSTANDING.  SOMETIMES ALL WE CAN DO IS WIPE THE TEARS AND BE THANKFUL FOR THE BODY OF CHRIST.

Yep … That’s where I am today.

SLOW Progress

29 Apr

Yes, therapy progress is SLOW.  The right arm deceived me (although I’m still doing some things with it, too.)

I am moving my fingers, elbow, and shoulder on the left side.  Slowly.  The compression glove is ivory-colored, so it really does make my hand look fake.  Little kids stare.  Adults, too.  I HAVE done my Phil Hartman-SNL-Frankenstein growl and swiped my hand at a few of them.  They laugh …  Dawson Daniel tried to pull the glove off last night in Sam’s.  Says he wants one.  I may give it to him!!

I didn’t expect the shoulder pain…  It is the reason I don’t sleep through the night.  Haven’t done that in 8 weeks now.  Thankfully, the folks at Progressive Physical Therapy are addressing all issues and treating the pain!!  I don’t know how bad it would be without them!!

The final analysis is:

  • I AM making progress, and am thankful to God!!
  • I know as we press on, the shoulders are getting better!!
So time is my friend.  And time is on my side!!!

A Special Race & an Exceptional Young Man

26 Apr

Many Florentines remember the story of a tragic accident almost two years ago that claimed the life of Taylor Elmore.  Taylor was days away from starting his senior year at West Florence High School.  Like his mom, dad, and big brother, Taylor was an avid runner.  The following are details from his mom about the annual race in memory of Taylor:

I hope all of you are doing well. Greg and I just got back from Pennsylvania yesterday. We ran in our 9th state for Taylor.

Taylor’s race is on the 21st of May this year. It will be his 19th birthday. This year we are having a 5k/10k and a fun run for children 10 and under with the pirates. We’ll also have food, Mills Brown tshirts, tops for Taylor, face painting, music, and door prizes.

People can register at www.active.com. All of the money raised will be put into Taylor’s non-profit organization to help support The Florence County Track and Cross Country Club, A scholarship for The College of Charleston, and sneakers for runners in need.

Both races will start at 8 am with the Fun Run after. Once again, this event will be held at West Florence High School.

Let me know if you need any more information and thank you for helping to spread the word about the race.

Belinda Elmore

Is that your real hand???

26 Apr

Therapy is moving along … Right shoulder is now one focus, trying to increase flexibility and strength.  And I’m shocked how much I’ve lost!!

Lefty is now moving some, but swelling in the hand continues to be a problem.  Two weeks ago, the doc said he was ordering therapy to supply a compression glove to help with swelling.  The folks at Progressive PT have been great, but needed more detail.  Unfortunately, we’ve learned there is a bottleneck of info at the doc’s office … So the dance began.

Yesterday, since arm swelling has decreased, I needed to have my brace adjusted.  While at Palmetto Prosthetics, we discovered they have gloves, so Diana got on the phone and finished this two week quest … And I have a glove!!!

So, last night I saw my adopted daughter … to protect her identity, let’s call her Pristina Klunkett.  She took one look and asked, “Is that your REAL hand??”

If anyone  asks that today, my answer will be, “No, mine’s in the shop.  This is a loaner!!”

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