From Uganda to Disneyland

The last few weeks have been some of the busiest and most blessed of my life.

First, I went to Uganda. There I spoke at a pastor's conference to 200 Ugandan pastors. It was a great time and the Lord will surely use it to strengthen the churches in Uganda. If you want to hear the report I gave to the church on this trip, you can listen to it by going to our church web page: bfsatx.org.

I arrived home form Uganda on a Saturday, preached on Sunday, caught up on a bunch of stuff Monday, then, on Tuesday, Roberta and I flew to LA and went straight to ----- Disneyland (well, we stopped at In-N-Out on the way). Talk about a contrast! Uganda and Disneyland are definitely on the far ends of the cultural spectrum. While at Disneyland we got to see Bill and Cory, and Bobby, Christa, Tyler, and Emma. Priceless.

From Disneyland we drove to Santa Barbara to see my dad and we arrived on the night that a growing wildfire was threatening the city. When we got out of the car it felt like we were inside a smoky barbeque joint. Fortunately, the weather changed in time so that while the fire caused considerable damage, it could have been incredibly worse.

Just as a footnote: Going to Uganda was somewhat of a health risk. I had to get 7 shots before I left and I am still taking malaria pills. When I returned, however, I found out about the Swine Flu and that our city was at the epicenter of this outbreak. Then we go to fiery Santa Barbara. It appears I was safer in Uganda than I am at home.

Of course, as nice as it is to go to Disneyland and see Bobby, Billy and their families, and as nice as it is to visit my dad, the reason we were in California was to see Ben graduate from The Master's College. Ben is our youngest so this is it. They are all out of college now. It has been a joy to see Ben go through college and I have never known anyone who enjoyed everything about college as much as Ben did. I am thankful for The Master's College and, most of all, I am thankful for the Master's work in the lives of our children. The above picture is of Ben and me at his baptism last year.

Ben had preceded me in Uganda. He was there last summer for 6 weeks. At the beginning of my visit I was known as Ben's dad and that's okay with me. His being there before me really paved the way for me being so quickly accepted.

Jesus said that in Him we would find abundant life. Our Lord gives us a peace and joy that is full and complete. I am amazed at what He does in my life and the opportunities that He gives to me. For all of this I am profoundly thankful and I don't want to waste my life.