Returned home from New Mexico

Hi friends.  I returned from my New Mexico trip last night. That drive from Amarillo to McKinney is a LONG one!  Good roads, but having to slow down ever 30 miles or so for another small town was getting old.

Did God give me any new revelations?  Not that I know of, yet.  I made a number of contacts and know I blessed Jeff and Debbie as they are preparing to move to Africa.  Other than that, I'm not sure why God called me there...yet.  :)

One of the contacts I made was in Santa Fe.  I made a quick trip up there on Saturday and stopped in one of the stores in the Plaza.  One of the guys working the store struck up a conversation and I shared with him how God called me to come to New Mexico.  He gave me his contact info and said to let him know how things went.

Another contact was the pastor of a church I attended on Sunday.  It turns out he was a youth pastor at my old church in Lucas (after Lucas church birthed New Hope church, where I now attend).  I had met him once in Lucas, and now here he is a pastor in Albuquerque.  Small world, but not a surprise to God.

I also met some other friends of Jeff and Debbie's and had good conversations with them.

By the way, thanks for the suggestions for naming the monkey.  I think I have settled on Herb (or Herbert), naming him after the older brother of Stephen Curtis Chapman.

As I get settled back into life here and pay bills, etc, I have found it necessary to encourage myself in the Lord today.  I have no other direction (except to downsize and get rid of a lot of my unneeded 'stuff').  The bible says that without vision the people perish, and I feel sort of "blah" right now because I do not have any real sense of direction...yet.

Can I find a good slogan for "yet"?  Y-E-T. 

Yesterday, Eternity, Tomorrow. 

Young, Energetic, Testing. 

Yearning, Expecting, Trusting.  (I like this one!)

 

New Mexico is calling me...

It is hard to believe it has been just over 2 years since I last posted an entry.  But, hey, God is calling me to a new adventure - New Mexico.  Not sure if it will just be for a quick visit, or for a short contract job, or for something longer.  All I know for sure is that He has given me signs that I need to take a trip out there.  Let me explain...

The week before Thanksgiving was my last week at Lennox doing contract work.  On Wednesday of that week, I took a walk during lunch.  I walked down a side street, turned around and walked back on the same side of the street.  While walking back I was praying and told God "I know You are my provider."  Right then I looked down and found a crumpled up $10 bill!  No lie.  (There was a guy weed ending the empty lot near where I was walking, and I actually went and asked him if he lost a crumpled up bill...he had not)

Later that same day I was pulling data cables from underneath the floor in our data center, and was just letting my mind wander...fast forward about 2 hours...I went to Andi's cube and her and I were just talking about life, family, etc and she asked me "Ron, do you ever go to New Mexico?"  I started laughing so hard I was crying, turned red and could hardly breathe.  Her and a coworker John just looked at me, wondering what was so funny about that question.   I explained to them that a couple of hours earlier, while pulling data cables and letting my mind wander, that I wandered into thoughts of New Mexico!  Not sure how my mind got there, but it did.  So when she asked the question I just started laughing.

The next morning as I was heading into work, the car in front of me had a New Mexico license plate (with "Aggies - New Mexico State" frame).  Too much "coincidence" to ignore - I figure God was telling me, for whatever reason, to go to New Mexico. 

 So...I am stepping out in faith, folllowing His leading as best I can, and spending money that logic says I should not spend since I do not have a job now.  I am leaving Thursday and will be returning late Sunday/Monday.  I am going to be staying with some friends.  

Let the adventure begin! 

Unfortunately, KFC (my chicken traveling companion) will not be joining me.  I sent him and his cousin Nugget up to Minnesota to stay with some friends for a while back in the summer.  So my traveling partner for this trip will be (drum roll please)...a stuffed white monkey I haven't named yet.

Hiking at Dome Rock Park
Today I went hiking at Dome Rock State Park, which is about 30 miles west of Colorado Springs (take 24 West, then 67 south for almost 6 miles, then "veer to the right" on Fourmile road and go on that for about 2 miles). Ok. I missed the "veering off" because the road is not marked. I took the next right (dirt road) and that took me up the mountain side to various roads where an occassional house is being built. One part of the road was SNOW and since it was on the edge of a dropoff, well, let's say I made sure I concentrated real good!

I left that neighborhood and found Fourmile road and made my way to the park. Got my hiking boots on, grabbed my half-filled bottle of Gatorade and my walking stick...I was ready to go hiking. The trail is used by both man and horse (although the entire 2 1/2 hours I was there I did not see anyone or anything...not even a bird!). The trail was a gradual incline, and then it was a steep incline. Had to stop a couple of times to catch my breath and to let my heart stop beating up my insides (in other words, it was working hard!). :) There were occassional parts of the trail that had snow...

After about an hour I made it to the "top" of the main trail, but there was another part of the trail that went even higher...and it called my name. So I answered the call. Probably another 50-75 yards of trail before I reached the top. And it was scenic. No wildlife to be seen, but the views were really awesome.

Tomorrow I head back to Texas. This journey is almost over. And I am ready to come back home. Oh, I forgot to mention that I got a phone call after I started heading back down from the final top of the trail. It was Steve, the guy who is watching my house. That was kind of cool, because once I left the top part of the trail, no more phone service.

Thank you for taking this journey with me. Once I get home and learn how to get video from my camera to my PC, then I will post some more entries with interesting clips, like the windy time atop Pikes Peak.

Until next time, remember that God exists, Jesus rose from the dead and is returning soon, and to live your life as a living sacrifice to Him.

Garden of the Gods - Pikes Peak
Yesterday after time with the Lord, I ventured out to the Garden of the Gods (sorry, no pics). Beautiful scenery, a good chill in the air (my nose was like, COLD!) and yet I just felt kinda blah. Not real sure why. I have had probably 3 days like that this whole trip.

Today, I decided to ride a Cograil trail up to the summit of Pike's Peak. What a ride! The 2 train cars were packed out as the weather was perfect. The ride up the mountain (which is 14,110 feet high) takes just over an hour. Lots of great scenery and the tour guide (Paul) reminded me a lot of Wick Neese. On top of the mountain, the wind was blowing hard and steady, they had fresh snow from yesterday (I think) and IT WAS COLD!!! I just watched the video that I took up there and I just kept saying "Man, is it cold!" :) Great views. Here is one pic of the mountain on the way up...

I am definitely ready to head back home and see everyone. I have one more full day in Colorado Springs and I am debating between finding a place to go hike and going to mall that is across the street from the hotel and watching some movies. Yeah, I'm ready to get on the road and head back to Wylie.

Crossing the Jordan
This morning, after sleeping in, I spent some good time reading the Word, praising God and praying with intensity. I believe I am ready to re-engage and get on the frontlines of ministry again. Except for some sight-seeing in Colo Springs that needs to be done, I am ready to return home.

Time to go play! :)

A different type of entry
This entry will be a little different, as I am writing it before taking off for the drive from Cheyenne to Colorado Springs, instead of writing at the end of the day.

I am nearing the end of this incredible trip and have started to "re-engage" with things back home a little. As I was praying this morning, I reminded God that I wanted ALL that He has for me on this trip. I want that special "Daddy-son time" with him, since He is my Father. Not that we haven't had it, but I yearn for more. That is why my sight-seeing will be limited in Colorado Springs. I want to get out and enjoy Him in His creation. Pray for me that I find those special places to just hang out with Him.

Winds are gusting up to 45 mph here in Cheyenne, so the first part of today's trip will be getting blown all over the road. A good reminder that He created the winds, He knows how strong they will blow today, and this too is a beautiful part of His creation.

Enjoy your day and think about Jesus. :)

Custer State Park
Today I drove out past Mt. Rushmore and headed for Custer State Park. The park has a couple of narrow tunnels to drive thru, the Needles highway which has lots of awesome scenery and curvy roads, and a wildlife loop where you can see deer and bison (and do lots of hiking). For part of the drive on the Needles, I put my video cam on the dash and just hit record button. Should be interesting to see. I went on a 2.3 mile hike (climb a big hill, walk around the top, cross over a fence twice and a stream twice, climb down the big hill). It was so much fun. On top of the first part of the hill, I ran across a herd of prolong (?) deer.

I kept looking for the Bison, but never saw any on this hike. I finished the hike and got back on the Wildlife Loop road, and after a short while I came up to the corrals where they keep the Bison at times.

It was fun to see them, but it would have been better if they were "loose on the road". Well, guess what? No pictures of this (but I do have video) but I got back on the main road and all of the sudden, there was this single Bison, in the road! I stopped my truck for a minute as he was scratching his chin on a roadside barrier. Then he climbed over it to get off the road and I continued on.

Tomorrow is a driving day as I head southward to Cheyenne, Wy for the night and then continue on to Colorado Springs. I'm kind of ready to come home, but I don't want to rush it. I think Colorado Springs will be less "sight seeing" and more hiking and spending concentrated time with the Lord.

Thank you to those who are praying for me. I need it, especially these last few days on the road. I want to experience all that God has for me on this trip and not rush the return home.

KFC says Hi.

Mt Rushmore and More
One aspect of this vacation that I truly enjoy is that I have a lot of freedom to do - or not do - whatever I want to (remembering, of course, that I represent Jesus in all I do). Today, in my original plan a couple of weeks ago, was going to be the day I went to Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse monument and other things in between. However, last night as I was winding down after the Badlands, I decided I would just sleep in, and maybe just hang around the hotel doing much of nothing. Sleep in I did. I woke up about 7:30, listened to some worship music for a bit (I highly recommend this...praising God is one of our purposes and it is extremely fulfilling) and then went back to bed...until noon! Man did that feel good! I decided to hit the streets in search of lunch (the weather was actually warm, maybe in the low 70s) and found a mexican restaurant. During lunch a constant debate was going on in my head - do I want to go somewhere or just hang out. I headed back towards the hotel and decided that I may as well go see Mt. Rushmore and "get it out of the way". Check my attitude. For some reason, I was not all that thrilled about Mt. Rushmore but I knew I had to go there since I was so close (23 miles). Am I glad I did go. First of all, this is the off-season for tourists so there were not many folks there. Secondly, the area is just beautiful. Pine trees, big rocks, mountain goats (just a few feet away) and 4 big heads cut out of stone.

Part of the Mt. Rushmore experience is walking the .6 mile Presidential Trail. It takes you close to the monument and has lots of stairs going up and down (I got a good workout). After spending probably a good 2 hours there (souvenoir shopping included), I headed back out of the monument area and got this great pic as the sun was setting.

Another day of being blessed by God and knowing that I do not deserve it. At times my attitude has been nothing less than evil, and yet His mercies are new every morning and His love never ceases. I am thankful and overwhelmed that the Creator of the entire universe cares so much for me - and for you. Let all of us grow in our relationship with Him. I'm not talking about religion. I hate religion. It is nothing but rules. I am talking about relationship with the one who created us. "I walk by faith, and not by sight."

Rapid City, SD
Today I drove through the Badlands of South Dakota (south west of Pierre). That was lots of fun. Saw some mule deer (about 20 yds away), some mountain goats or sheep (not sure, but on one of the dirt roads there were 2 younger ones on the road about 30 yds away, and one of them ran towards my truck like he was going to attack), a porcupine and lots of beautiful landscapes. There were supposed to be some Bison, but I never saw 'em. I couldn't ask for better weather...sunny but cool. All I could say as I drove through the Badlands (and also away from Pierre) was "Thank You God" for such beautiful country. I realize some people would find the grasslands boring since there is not much to see, but I find it beautiful and relaxing. And I thank our Creator for making it.

I need to confess that I fell prey to the fear of man on this trip. During my stay in Rugby I had a low tire and had to take it to a shop to get it fixed. As I was driving to the shop, I saw KFC on the dashboard and moved him to the floorboard...all because I was fearful of what the guys at the tire shop would say. KFC, please forgive me. :)

Time for the 2nd half of Monday Night Football, so I will close for now.

Roots, Cemeteries, High School, South Dakota
I am sitting in a hotel in Pierre, South Dakota as I write this. The last couple of days have been fun and eventful. I found the cemetery where my grandparents are buried (Rugby, ND) with no problem. Then I set out to find the Fulda cemetery where my great-grandparents are buried. The directions I was given were "take highway 2 to Oppens corner, which is where the 5 multi-colored cabins are on the left. After Oppens corner, go 1 mile and take a left ON AN UNMARKED DIRT ROAD. Go south on that road for about 7 miles and you will see the church and cemetery on your right.". Well, I found Oppen's corner and then made the left turn a mile down the road. Nothing but hay fields and maybe a house or two in the distance. Nothing but hay fields. Let me repeat so you get the picture...nothing but hay fields. For nearly 7 miles, nothing but hay fields. And then, you see the church and the cemetery. And then nothing but more hayfields. Really cool, let me tell you. Here is a pic of the church and cemetery.....


Are you ready for something really cool? I'm out at the cemetery, with no one around, 7 miles down a dirt road off of a small hiway...when all of a sudden I see a vehicle approaching...I watched as it passed by and just chuckled...it was a UPS truck! I guess BROWN does deliver anywhere! :)

After the cemetery, I headed to the town of Towner, where my mom grew up. I went to her high school and checked in at the office. I told the lady why I was there, and she had me go down a hallway where they have pictures of all the graduating classes from past years. That was awesome as I found my mom's picture and even my uncle's. A couple of the kids saw me taking pictures, so I showed them mom's pic. Neat experience. I also went to the church where mom and dad got married, and saw the lot where mom's house used to be.

Oh, KFC just reminded me to show you a pic of the decor at the Econo Lodge in Rugby. I'm thinking of doing my bathroom like it...


After visiting Towner, I headed to Minot to stay with an Aunt. One of her 7 daughters took me out that night to visit her son at the bowling alley and look around town. The next day I visited another Aunt in an assisted living house. I think she remembered who I was and we had a good talk. I told Jesus that whether she remembered me or not, I wanted to visit her and just let her know she is valuable. That night the aunt I stayed with gave me some old black and white pics, and we spent a couple of hours identifying who the people were. That was lots of fun.

I left Minot this morning and headed for Pierre, South Dakota. It was an interesting trip. One of the highlights was when I pulled into Linton, North Dakota for a potty break. The town has a small "downtown", and as I pulled into a parking space this is what I saw...



If you can't read the sign, it says "Wangler Chiropratic". That was so fun to see that. They were closed so I couldn't talk with the owner.

The first half of my trip was spent visiting family and friends, which has really been great. But now I am ready for the second half. No one to visit. Just sight seeing and enjoying God and His creation. That ends this addition of "the adventures of Wangdangler". Look for Jesus today. He is right where you are!