Life as a Dude

Right now I’m just a dude. Not a desert dude (Arizona) or beach dude (Florida). That’s fine, I like being a dude!

I’m getting back to posting on my blog, now with Wi-Fi and a laptop all set up for wireless, I can work in the house instead of my home office/studio.

My blog posts may be a rant, a rave, a blessing from a scripture, or something about life at the moment. Check back to see what this dude is blogging about. I love to write and this blog gives me that outlet.

From Dale, a Dude! Be blessed!

Life as a Desert Dude…

It’s now been a couple weeks since I returned home from the desert, that is Phoenix and Scottsdale, AZ. This was a long-awaited, well planned out trip, with literally no agenda! Five days in the desert sun was great. It just so happened the Saturday I was there the region had record temperatures! It was 118 degrees in Phoenix! Of course I was out and about in Scottsdale, but spent “cool” time at Scottsdale Fashion Square people watching, keeping cool, shopping, looking for bargains, cooling off…..I did come home with some great new “skinner” clothes from a great sale at Dillard’s (please come to Oregon, Macy’s needs competition).

I spent time at the Heard Museum, home of Native American art and artifacts, and the Phoenix Art Museum. While in Scottsdale I was able to get to the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and the many shops in Old Town Scottsdale.

The new Metro Light rail was great for getting around central Phoenix to downtown and on out to Tempe and Mesa.

It was great to sit outside in the mornings by the pool and read, soak up the sun and just relax! Often times when at home I don’t always find the time to just kick back and relax, at least not by a pool!

I’ve really come to love desert living and do plan on returning in the future! I’m wondering if I would enjoy living in Arizona when I retire. That’s a question I haven’t been able to answer yet. Retirement is years off yet, at least 6-8 years away.

From a tan desert dude, Dale.

Going…

This past month, the Community Group that I’m a part of at my church has been studying missions and the many scriptures that cover this topic. Our assignment was to read five chapters from selected books of the Old and New Testaments. It was our challenge to pick five consecutive chapters and look for a common thread of missions. It was amazing what I found once I got into the word! I knew months ago that God was stirring in my own heart to go to the mission field, and share the good news. I would be “going”. I had to find the official definition of this word:

Going: advance; proceed physically. We “go” on a mission trip to teach God’s word, and to make disciples of all nations!

Looking at the scriptures this week while on vacation, I began to find many verses that addressed the topic of “going” and missions. I want to share just a few of the scriptures that spoke to me this week.

“The hungry consume the harvest”. Job 5:5

“Come quickly to help me”. Psalm 38:5

“A man’s steps are directed by the Lord”. Proverbs 20:24

“RIch and poor have his in common: The Lord is maker of them all”. Proverbs 22:2

“A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor”. Proverbs 22:9

What powerful messages we see in God’s holy words! It was confirmed to me once again that God is directing me to go to the mission field in the Middle East as a short-term missionary! I don’t know when but God does. That too will be revealed in His timing.

Sharing God’s holy word from the “warmth” of the Arizona desert….Dale (aka “Desert Dude”)

Being in “Carolina in the Morning”

I’ve arrived in North Carolina, after a long travel day. Actually it was very uneventful, very smooth flights all the way from Portland to Atlanta and on to Asheville. Thank you Delta, for such a great experience. The onboard satellite t.v. helps pass the time away on a four-hour flight.

As of right now, Sunday morning, I haven’t had much time to experience Asheville. Later, in a few hours, I’m heading over to Biltmore Village, just blocks from the hotel. I’m planning on heading over to the downtown area of Asheville, a good mile walk which I’m up for! Today’s weather is supposed to reach into the low 80’s! Woo Hoo, finally a warm weather experience!

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted on my blog, L-O-N-G overdue I see! I hope to post snippets of the mini-vacation along with highlights from the conference I’ll be attending later in the week. Tomorrow I’ll head over to Ridgecrest Conference Center and work with a couple of others on the conference orientation session I’ll be speaking at Tuesday afternoon. I’m attending the “Christian Meetings and Conventions Association” (CMCA) spring showcase conference. Looking at the attendee list I see several good friends will be here, some I haven’t seen for a few years!

“Nothing Could Be Finer Than To Be In Carolina In The Morning”!

Dale

What happens in heaven when we pray?

This is one of the nicest e-mails I have seen and is so true: I dreamt that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We walked side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels. My angel guide stopped in front of the first section and said, ‘ This is the Receiving Section. Here, all petitions to God said in prayer are received.

I looked around in this area, and it was terribly busy with so many angels sorting out petitions written on voluminous paper sheets and scraps from people all over the world.

Then we moved on down a long corridor until we reached the second section. The angel then said to me, “This is the Packaging and Delivery Section. Here, the graces and blessings the people asked for are processed and delivered to the living persons who asked for them.” I noticed again how busy it was there. There were many angels working hard at that station, since so many blessings had been requested and were being packaged for delivery to Earth.

Finally at the farthest end of the long corridor we stopped at the door of a very small station. To my great surprise, only one angel was seated there, idly doing nothing. “This is the Acknowledgment Section, my angel friend quietly admitted to me. He seemed embarrassed.” How is it that there is no work going on here? I asked.

“So sad,” the angel sighed. “After people receive the blessings that they asked for, very few send back acknowledgments”

“How does one acknowledge God’s blessings? I asked…”Simple, the angel answered. Just say, “Thank you, Lord.
“What blessings should they acknowledge?” I asked. “If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep you are richer than 75% of this world. If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish, you are among the top 8% of the worlds wealthy. ”

“And if you get this on your own computer, you are part of the 1% in the world who has that opportunity.”

“If you woke up this morning with more health than illness…You are more blessed than the many who will not even survive this day.”

“If you have never experienced the fear in battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation …You are ahead of 700 million people in the world.”

“If you can attend a church without the fear of harassment, arrest, torture or death you are envied by, and more blessed than, three billion people in the world.”

“If your parents are still alive and still married …you are very rare.”
“If you can hold your head up and smile, you are not the norm; you’re unique to all those in doubt and despair…….”

Ok, what now? How can I start?

If you can read this message, you just received a double blessing in that someone was thinking of you as very special and you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.

Have a good day, count your blessings, and if you care to, pass this along to remind everyone else how blessed we all are

ATTN: Acknowledge Dept. “Thank you Lord, for giving me the ability to share this message and
for giving me so many wonderful people with whom to share it.

If you have read this far, and are thankful for all that you have been blessed with, how can you not send it on???? I thank God for everything, especially all my family and friends.

Grief is not a speed sport!

“Grief is not a speed sport. Grief must be allowed to wander around the mysterious shafts and canyons of our heart. It’s trek is usually best taken in the dark. But in time, the human heart is ready for light to shine again. Insights such as those provided by Moses begin to light a few candles, piercing the darkness and announcing that a new era of healing is coming. So, do feel free to share these thoughts with others–not like an unthinking night nurse throwing on all the light switches at once–but as a friend quietly lighting one candle at a time.”

A quote from Pastor John Stumbo, Salem Alliance Church (Salem, OR)