As I've gotten older I have had occasion to pause and consider life and where I am on my journey. While my journey has had its share of challenges and obstacles through the years I can truthfully say I am blessed!
Throughout the years I have had a good number of physical issues. These issues date back to my late 20's. I have had back issues with one doctor telling me rheumatoid arthritis in my spine will have me wheelchair bound by the time I am 35. By God's grace I have never been wheelchair bound. That is not to say I don't have back issues. However, I rely on His grace and strength.
I seems every time I enter a new decade age-wise, something else comes up. It was my back and ankle in my 30's. In my 40's I sustained a head injury and concussion that resulted in me having partial petite seizures. I would just zone out without notice. I called it going to "Ray's world". I was on so much anti-seizure medication that I felt like a zombie. The neurologist tried a number of medications and different combinations of medications to get these seizures under control. At one point I was taking a handful of anti-seizure medications. We prayed and we believed for healing and eventually healing came!
The next thing I battled with, and still do, is migraine headaches. At the present time these are controlled through medication.
In my late 40's I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Anyone who knows me knows I have very poor eating habits. I'm also not a very good patient so I don't monitor this like I should.
In my 50's I started having trouble with my knees, my left knee in particular. I found out last year I have bone on bone in my left knee. I was told eventually I will have to have a knee replacement. On top of that, I have osteoarthritis in both knees.
In addition to the aforementioned, I have battled with carpal tunnel for many years. This is aggravated by typing and even playing bass guitar.
I don't share these things looking for sympathy by any means. I know there are those in worse shape than me. My intent in sharing this is to share my determination to make the most of each day I have.
Like many, I have good days and better days. I won't accept that I have bad days. Any day I wake up and can get up is a good day. Some days I actually feel good and those are better days.
Each day belongs to the Lord. I have determined to make the best of each day. I want to do something I enjoy each day whether it's sitting on the swing with Cindy, relaxing in my recliner, watching a favorite tv show, blogging or going somewhere to sing. I want to make the best of the time God has allotted me. I want to make the time I have count.
I have a fantastic wife, a wonderful family, a good job that I enjoy and have need nor want for anything . As I stated earlier, I am blessed. God is good.
No matter what you are facing I encourage you to determine to make the best of each day.
Until next time...enjoy the journey!
Ray
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Sunday, February 8, 2015
CHURCH VISIT - BAPTIST
This is my fourth blog post in a series I am doing on our experience visiting churches of various denominational labels, sizes and different styles of services. It is not my intent to be critical, but rather to be real and honest in our experiences. We have established criteria we are looking for at all of the institutional churches we are visiting. I do not intend to mention the church specifically by name.
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - Baptist
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional
*Contemporary
*Blended xxxxxxxxxx
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Small (30-40)
~FRIENDLINESS - This was a friendly congregation from the pastor to the congregation. Many in this congregation know is from having sang at the church previously.
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION - 40-50
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual
~GREETING - We were greeted upon entrance by the pastor and his wife and then by others as they came in after Sunday School
~MUSIC - They had no musicians. They utilized video DVDs to sing along with.
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - There was a good deal of music spread throughout the service. The message was about 40 minutes. There was fair balance of music vs Word.
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED - Power point projectors were used - two on each side in front and one in back for the worship leader.
ALTAR CALL/INVITATION - There was an invitation given
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - They have a food pantry where they provide food to those in need on a monthly basis. They are starting potlucks once a month which will also celebrate birthdays for the month. They are also working on cleaning and maintenance of the building.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- KJV
~PREACHING STYLE - Pastor was more of a preacher as opposed to a conversational style.
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - There was good use of Scripture
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - The topic of the message was a good and interesting topic. However, the pastor got off topic and started "chasing rabbits". He got on to an entirely different topic.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE - 1 hour 50 minutes
~OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
*Service started about ten minutes late.
*Being in a blended service with both traditional and contemporary music was a bit of a challenge for us. While we knew both of the traditional hymns they sang, we only knew one of five or six choruses. For me, this was a hindrance to my worship as I was focused on watching the words on the screen and trying to catch the tune.
*The pastor and another minister worked together in the service each doing different things. They did seem to work well together as a team.
*The pastor did lose his place in his notes two or three tomes and had to shuffle pages of his notes to find his place.
*The pastor invited us back for next Sunday but I explained we would be at a different church next Sunday morning.
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - Baptist
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional
*Contemporary
*Blended xxxxxxxxxx
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Small (30-40)
~FRIENDLINESS - This was a friendly congregation from the pastor to the congregation. Many in this congregation know is from having sang at the church previously.
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION - 40-50
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual
~GREETING - We were greeted upon entrance by the pastor and his wife and then by others as they came in after Sunday School
~MUSIC - They had no musicians. They utilized video DVDs to sing along with.
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - There was a good deal of music spread throughout the service. The message was about 40 minutes. There was fair balance of music vs Word.
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED - Power point projectors were used - two on each side in front and one in back for the worship leader.
ALTAR CALL/INVITATION - There was an invitation given
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - They have a food pantry where they provide food to those in need on a monthly basis. They are starting potlucks once a month which will also celebrate birthdays for the month. They are also working on cleaning and maintenance of the building.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- KJV
~PREACHING STYLE - Pastor was more of a preacher as opposed to a conversational style.
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - There was good use of Scripture
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - The topic of the message was a good and interesting topic. However, the pastor got off topic and started "chasing rabbits". He got on to an entirely different topic.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE - 1 hour 50 minutes
~OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
*Service started about ten minutes late.
*Being in a blended service with both traditional and contemporary music was a bit of a challenge for us. While we knew both of the traditional hymns they sang, we only knew one of five or six choruses. For me, this was a hindrance to my worship as I was focused on watching the words on the screen and trying to catch the tune.
*The pastor and another minister worked together in the service each doing different things. They did seem to work well together as a team.
*The pastor did lose his place in his notes two or three tomes and had to shuffle pages of his notes to find his place.
*The pastor invited us back for next Sunday but I explained we would be at a different church next Sunday morning.
Sunday, February 1, 2015
CHURCH VISIT - ASSEMBLY OF GOD
This is my third blog post in a series I am doing on our experience visiting churches of various denominational labels, sizes and different styles of services. It is not my intent to be critical, but rather to be real and honest in our experiences. We have established criteria we are looking for at all of the institutional churches we are visiting. I do not intend to mention the church specifically by name.
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - Assembly of God
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional "Classic"
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Large church overall with three Sunday morning services. However, the "Classic" service was sparsely attended.
~FRIENDLINESS - The greeters as well as some of the church folks were very friendly and welcoming
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION - 60-65 for this service
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual to dress
~GREETING - There was a short greeting time at the conclusion of one of the songs
~MUSIC - A praise team/choir comprised of 21 people led the music. A band consisting of a piano, bass guitar, drums and a small brass section.
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - There was a good balance of music and Word.
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED - Power Point projector with three screens. Pastor utilized tablet for his message.
ALTAR CALL/INVITATION - None given.
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - Cell groups, Missions Week coming up and church cleaning day.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- ESV. Pastor did share a couple of Scriptures from the KJV during the message, as well.
~PREACHING STYLE- Conversational while sitting on a stool.
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - Pastor utilized a good amount of Scripture in his message.
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - I found parts of the message to be somewhat relevant given today's society and church.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE - 1 hour 5 minutes.
~OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
~As mentioned previously, this is a large church overall with three services on Sunday morning. The "Classic" service we attended appears to be geared more toward senior citizens with traditional hymns and older choruses. This service started at 8:15 am and was done by 9:20 am. I find it a bit unusual for a Pentecostal church to have such a short service and no altar call. There were 40-50 attendees.
~Pentecostals are also known for having the spiritual gifts in operation. There was no indication of that in this service. That is not to say these spiritual gifts are not on display there, We just did not see them today.
~I am uncertain if I found the pastor boring or if I was just tired, but I found myself dozing off during the message. That's all I'll say about that.
Be watching for my next blog post.
Until next time... enjoy the journey!
Ray
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - Assembly of God
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional "Classic"
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Large church overall with three Sunday morning services. However, the "Classic" service was sparsely attended.
~FRIENDLINESS - The greeters as well as some of the church folks were very friendly and welcoming
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION - 60-65 for this service
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual to dress
~GREETING - There was a short greeting time at the conclusion of one of the songs
~MUSIC - A praise team/choir comprised of 21 people led the music. A band consisting of a piano, bass guitar, drums and a small brass section.
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - There was a good balance of music and Word.
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED - Power Point projector with three screens. Pastor utilized tablet for his message.
ALTAR CALL/INVITATION - None given.
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - Cell groups, Missions Week coming up and church cleaning day.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- ESV. Pastor did share a couple of Scriptures from the KJV during the message, as well.
~PREACHING STYLE- Conversational while sitting on a stool.
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - Pastor utilized a good amount of Scripture in his message.
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - I found parts of the message to be somewhat relevant given today's society and church.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE - 1 hour 5 minutes.
~OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
~As mentioned previously, this is a large church overall with three services on Sunday morning. The "Classic" service we attended appears to be geared more toward senior citizens with traditional hymns and older choruses. This service started at 8:15 am and was done by 9:20 am. I find it a bit unusual for a Pentecostal church to have such a short service and no altar call. There were 40-50 attendees.
~Pentecostals are also known for having the spiritual gifts in operation. There was no indication of that in this service. That is not to say these spiritual gifts are not on display there, We just did not see them today.
~I am uncertain if I found the pastor boring or if I was just tired, but I found myself dozing off during the message. That's all I'll say about that.
Be watching for my next blog post.
Until next time... enjoy the journey!
Ray
Sunday, January 18, 2015
CHURCH VISIT - BAPTIST
This is my second blog post in a series I am doing on our experience visiting churches of various denominational labels, sizes and different styles of services. It is not my intent to be critical, but rather to be real and honest in our experiences. We have established criteria we are looking for at all of the institutional churches we are visiting. I do not intend to mention the church specifically by name.
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - Baptist
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional xxxx
*Contemporary
*Blended
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Small
~FRIENDLINESS - Both pastor and congregation very friendly
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION - 40-50
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual
~GREETING - We were greeted upon entering the building in addition to the greeting time during service. The greeting time during the service was a good amount of time. The folks continued greeting after the service was over.
~MUSIC - Congregational singing music was a combination on of organ and piano as well as sound tracks. Special music singers utilized sound tracks.
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - There was a good balance of music and Word
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED - Power Point was utilized throughout the progression of the service as well as throughout the pastor's message. Pastor also used a video to close out his message.
ALTAR CALL/INVITATION - Yes an altar call was given encouraging a time of prayer
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - This church offers many activities. It has a solid youth program, men's activities, women's activities as well as family oriented activities.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- NKJV
~PREACHING STYLE- Conversational
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - Good use of Scripture throughout the sermon
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - Very relevant message on prayer and necessity of an active prayer life.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE - About 1 hour 10 minutes
~OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
We enjoyed our visit to this church in a small town south of where we live. It is apparent this is a good group of people who love God and love one another. This church is very friendly and joyful.
While the church handed out a bulletin, they did deviate from the bulletin. I was glad to see they are not bound by the bulletin.
Our experience at this church was a very positive one. This is a church we would visit again.
Until next time...enjoy the journey!
Ray
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - Baptist
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional xxxx
*Contemporary
*Blended
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Small
~FRIENDLINESS - Both pastor and congregation very friendly
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION - 40-50
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual
~GREETING - We were greeted upon entering the building in addition to the greeting time during service. The greeting time during the service was a good amount of time. The folks continued greeting after the service was over.
~MUSIC - Congregational singing music was a combination on of organ and piano as well as sound tracks. Special music singers utilized sound tracks.
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - There was a good balance of music and Word
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED - Power Point was utilized throughout the progression of the service as well as throughout the pastor's message. Pastor also used a video to close out his message.
ALTAR CALL/INVITATION - Yes an altar call was given encouraging a time of prayer
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - This church offers many activities. It has a solid youth program, men's activities, women's activities as well as family oriented activities.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- NKJV
~PREACHING STYLE- Conversational
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - Good use of Scripture throughout the sermon
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - Very relevant message on prayer and necessity of an active prayer life.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE - About 1 hour 10 minutes
~OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
We enjoyed our visit to this church in a small town south of where we live. It is apparent this is a good group of people who love God and love one another. This church is very friendly and joyful.
While the church handed out a bulletin, they did deviate from the bulletin. I was glad to see they are not bound by the bulletin.
Our experience at this church was a very positive one. This is a church we would visit again.
Until next time...enjoy the journey!
Ray
Sunday, January 11, 2015
CHURCH VISIT - UNITED METHODIST
This is my first blog post in a series I am doing on our experience visiting churches of various denominational labels, sizes and different style of services. It is not my intent to be critical, but rather to be real and honest in our experiences. We have established criteria we are looking for at all of the institutional churches we are visiting. I do not intend to mention the church specifically by name.
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - United Methodist
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional
*Contemporary xxxxxx
*Blended
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Large
~FRIENDLINESS - This church didn't come across as friendly to us. In addition to the door greeter only two people shook our hands
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION 45-50
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual to dress
~GREETING - There was a brief greeting during service (30-45 seconds)
~MUSIC - Live band (full band)
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - Started off with two songs and ended with two songs. The overall balance of music and Word was pretty good considering the length of the praise and worship songs.
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED
Power Point, You Version Bible app, preacher used tablet, two screens above platform so congregation can better see minister.
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - The church offers several Bible studies throughout the week for men, women and moms, refreshments and fellowship after service on Sundays, they also provide other studies throughout the week for those interested.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- NIV
~PREACHING STYLE- Conversational
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - Minister ministered from text.
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - Very relevant message on spiritual growth. An outline of the message was provided in the bulletin for the congregation to follow.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE 55 minutes
OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
Interestingly enough, the service started off with an old rock song. In fact, as the service was dismissed the band played and sang the same song. The song title was the message title. No one was singing along with this song. It appeared to me that the congregation was being entertained. I will be curious to find out if this is the case in other institutional churches today.
After this first song, the band played and sang one worship song. Utilizing the power point, the congregation did participate in singing this worship song. We observed a few people even lifting their hands in worship to God. I must admit I wasn't aware people in the United Methodist Church did that.
One area of concern was they baptized two babies and a teenager using sprinkling as the mode of baptism. I do not see a precedent for infant baptism in Scripture. I also do not see sprinkling as a scriptural mode of baptism. The Greek word for "baptize" in the New Testament means "immersion" or "to immerse". So this is an area of concern for me.
Little was said about the offering before it was received. However, this being a tech-savvy church, they do have in their bulletin three easy ways to give electronically. They are using your debit or credit card at a kiosk, giving through their website by e-check or credit/debit card or an automatic bank transfer on a weekly or monthly basis.
All in all it was an interesting experience. Not altogether good, but not altogether bad either.
Stay tuned for our next adventure.
Until next time... enjoy the journey!
Ray
I have blogged in the past about Christians who have left and are leaving the institutional church in large numbers. They are leaving for their own spiritual welfare. Most still love God but have become disillusioned or fed up with the institutional church today. I believe this is a timely series. May it open our eyes and our hearts to a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
CHURCH CRITERIA
~DENOMINATIONAL LABEL - United Methodist
~TYPE OF SERVICE
*Traditional
*Contemporary xxxxxx
*Blended
~SIZE OF CHURCH - Large
~FRIENDLINESS - This church didn't come across as friendly to us. In addition to the door greeter only two people shook our hands
~AVERAGE AGE OF CONGREGATION 45-50
~DRESS ATTIRE - Casual to dress
~GREETING - There was a brief greeting during service (30-45 seconds)
~MUSIC - Live band (full band)
~BALANCE OF MUSIC VS WORD - Started off with two songs and ended with two songs. The overall balance of music and Word was pretty good considering the length of the praise and worship songs.
~TECHNOLOGY UTILIZED
Power Point, You Version Bible app, preacher used tablet, two screens above platform so congregation can better see minister.
~ACTIVITIES/PROGRAMS OFFERED - The church offers several Bible studies throughout the week for men, women and moms, refreshments and fellowship after service on Sundays, they also provide other studies throughout the week for those interested.
~BIBLE VERSION USED- NIV
~PREACHING STYLE- Conversational
~USE OF SCRIPTURE - Minister ministered from text.
~RELEVANT MESSAGE - Very relevant message on spiritual growth. An outline of the message was provided in the bulletin for the congregation to follow.
~LENGTH OF SERVICE 55 minutes
OBSERVATIONS/COMMENTS
Interestingly enough, the service started off with an old rock song. In fact, as the service was dismissed the band played and sang the same song. The song title was the message title. No one was singing along with this song. It appeared to me that the congregation was being entertained. I will be curious to find out if this is the case in other institutional churches today.
After this first song, the band played and sang one worship song. Utilizing the power point, the congregation did participate in singing this worship song. We observed a few people even lifting their hands in worship to God. I must admit I wasn't aware people in the United Methodist Church did that.
One area of concern was they baptized two babies and a teenager using sprinkling as the mode of baptism. I do not see a precedent for infant baptism in Scripture. I also do not see sprinkling as a scriptural mode of baptism. The Greek word for "baptize" in the New Testament means "immersion" or "to immerse". So this is an area of concern for me.
Little was said about the offering before it was received. However, this being a tech-savvy church, they do have in their bulletin three easy ways to give electronically. They are using your debit or credit card at a kiosk, giving through their website by e-check or credit/debit card or an automatic bank transfer on a weekly or monthly basis.
All in all it was an interesting experience. Not altogether good, but not altogether bad either.
Stay tuned for our next adventure.
Until next time... enjoy the journey!
Ray
Saturday, January 10, 2015
NEW ADVENTURE
Here we are in 2015! Wow, where did 2014 go? When I was younger I used to hear others who were older talk about how time is flying by. Now that I am older I am saying the same thing.
I would like to start by giving you an update on our ministry from 2014. Last year was the busiest year we have had as the New Jerusalem Singers. We sang in institutional churches, various events, fairs, festivals, senior hi-rises, retirement homes, nursing homes, gospel sings plus we hosted a number of gospel sings around our area. In total, we ministered and lifted up Jesus through music 84 times! We praise God for the opportunity to serve Him.
As good as last year was, its in the past and we are living in the present with an eye to the future. We anticipate 2015 being an even greater year lifting up Jesus through music. As we usually do, we are taking January, February and half of March off. this is normally our time to begin scheduling for the year. We usually produce a new recording that we release in March. Things don't always work out that way, but that is our "norm".
This year has started off as anything but normal for this ministry. Cindy ended last year with a detached retina which has sidelined her for three weeks. Thankfully we got her to the doctor in time as there is a narrow window to get this tended to before the loss site in that eye would be permanent. We are expecting a complete recovery. She my still have some issues for up to six weeks. Also, Sharon (who takes care of our product table) will be having knee replacement surgery this Monday.
On the bright side, both of these ladies should be in good shape and ready to go when it comes time to start singing in March. We praise God for. that.
In the meantime, Cindy and I are going to visit some area churches over the course of the next several weeks. I will blog about our experiences at each church so be sure to check out my blog often.
Until next time... enjoy the journey!
Ray
I would like to start by giving you an update on our ministry from 2014. Last year was the busiest year we have had as the New Jerusalem Singers. We sang in institutional churches, various events, fairs, festivals, senior hi-rises, retirement homes, nursing homes, gospel sings plus we hosted a number of gospel sings around our area. In total, we ministered and lifted up Jesus through music 84 times! We praise God for the opportunity to serve Him.
As good as last year was, its in the past and we are living in the present with an eye to the future. We anticipate 2015 being an even greater year lifting up Jesus through music. As we usually do, we are taking January, February and half of March off. this is normally our time to begin scheduling for the year. We usually produce a new recording that we release in March. Things don't always work out that way, but that is our "norm".
This year has started off as anything but normal for this ministry. Cindy ended last year with a detached retina which has sidelined her for three weeks. Thankfully we got her to the doctor in time as there is a narrow window to get this tended to before the loss site in that eye would be permanent. We are expecting a complete recovery. She my still have some issues for up to six weeks. Also, Sharon (who takes care of our product table) will be having knee replacement surgery this Monday.
On the bright side, both of these ladies should be in good shape and ready to go when it comes time to start singing in March. We praise God for. that.
In the meantime, Cindy and I are going to visit some area churches over the course of the next several weeks. I will blog about our experiences at each church so be sure to check out my blog often.
Until next time... enjoy the journey!
Ray
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