What Have You Been Doing?

Last month our church had to work though the tragedy of the loss of an infant member of a church family.  As Margaret and I sat at the funeral service, looking at the earthly remains of that tiny, precious infant girl, listening to the grieving mother weep uncontrollably...tears filled our own eyes.  In my mind were the age-old questions: "God, why do we have to suffer such grief?  It's not fair.  Please, return quickly and make things right again!"

Instantly in my spirit God reminded me of two Scriptures.  The first was 2 Peter 3:9:

"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." (NKJV)

Death was not part of God's original design. He is "not willing that any should perish".

The second Scripture was Matthew 24:14:

"And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."

And with this Scripture I sensed God's gentle question to me, "What have you been doing to hasten my return?"

Have I been doing my very best to spread the gospel?  Have I been witnessing to all whom God has brought into my path for that purpose?  Have I done my part so that "the end will come"?  Is my slackness delaying His return?

I have to confess that I have not been doing my very best.  Lord, I'm sorry.  Holy Spirit, refresh my spiritual boldness (Acts 4:31) as I stir up the gifts you have given me (2 Timothy 1:6-7)

How about you?  Have you been doing your part to hasten His return?  The Pocket Testament League will send you free pocket editions of the Gospel of John that you can give away.  Their website is also loaded with great resources to help you effectively use those booklets to hasten His return.

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Friday Musings

I haven't felt much like blogging the past month or so.  Margaret and I were both sick with whatever this sinus/bronchitis stuff is that is making the rounds.  After two trips to the doctor and a second round of antibiotics, I am finally feeling better.  Margaret did not get any prescriptions from the doctor and she got better about a week earlier than I did (and $300 cheaper).  Go figure!  Praise the Lord we are both better now and getting back to normal activities (as normal as we get).

Margaret and I have decided to get more serious about our health.  We are eating healthier - almost no deserts (except chocolate, of course, that is one of the basic food groups).  Since last November I have lost 16 pounds and Margaret has lost 13 pounds.  PTL!  We are also exercising regularly.

Neither one of us get very excited about getting out and walking in bad weather.  We do some walking at the big mall in Dover, DE when we are home.  Since we aren't home that much, mall walking wasn't doing us much good.  I searched the web for a portable exercise machine that we could use both at home and at the chapel and that would be easy to transport back and forth.  Some portable machines are mostly plastic and the reviews of them were not good for folks our size.  The machine also needed to be small because we have a very limited space in the chapel living quarters.  And of course, it had to be economical enough to buy on a missionary's budget.

We settled on an InMotion E1000 from Stamina.  It has a steel frame but is only 24 pounds and very compact.  It now goes back and forth with us between home and the chapel.

Margaret exercising at the chapel.  We use her old walker for stability.
Because the walker folds up and is very light weight it works great for this.

I could barely manage 50 steps on it when we first got it.  We both lost some ground while we were sick.  Now I'm able to do around 300 steps at a time twice a day.  That is a long way from where I need to be but at least I'm headed in the right direction.
Margaret can do about 150 steps per session and a daily total of 500 to 600 steps.

We have also been introduced to the books of Dr. Batmanghelidj.  Marty Miller, an Elkton Volunteer Chaplain, has an amazing personal testimony about how the Lord used the teachings of Dr. "Batman" to bring about an amazing change in his life - from a back injury 10 years ago that was to have resulted in chronic pain and disability to now being a marathon runner.  You have to meet Marty and have him share the details!

Anyway, after talking to Marty and reading a couple of Dr. Batman's books, we are now drinking a lot more water - up to a gallon a day for me.  We have cut out all caffeine drinks and the use of artificial sweetener. It is amazing how much damage can be caused by caffeine in our system.  (Chocolate doesn't have that much caffeine in it, does it?)

The past few weeks have been especially busy for us.  As of last Saturday, we had been in Elkton for ministry 16 of the past 19 days. - the result of a combination of the sudden death of a truck stop employee and volunteer chaplains needing time off.  On the plus side of that we were able to provide much needed pastoral care and ministry to employees and chapel visitors.

A very big praise report: Volunteer Chaplain Allan Graham led two drivers to the Lord in recent weeks.  PTL!

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Merry Christmas!

^Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.  Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”  Luke 2:8-14 (NKJV)

Margaret and I wish you and yours a blessed Christmas!

 

Here is a classic illustration of the reason for the season, Paul Harvey's modern day parable of the incarnation of Christ. (Make sure your sound is on)

 

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Huckabee Christmas Message

Check out the Christmas message from Mike:

(if you don't see a video above)

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Mike Huckabee

This is a rather long video (42 minutes) but, I believe, well worth the time. A speech Rev. Huckabee gave to a group of pastors:

(if you don't see a video above)

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

It's Called Christmas...with a capital 'C'!

(if you don't see a video above)

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

The 23rd Psalm

Out of the mouths of babes...

 

(If you don't see a video above)

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

A taste of the future?

This short video, from the American Family Association, shows a little sample of what can happen if the Senate passes S.1105, the "hate crimes" bill:

(if you don't see a video above)

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Five Months of Confusion

I have not been posting very often to any of my blogs.  Frankly, the past five months have been very unsettling, beginning in April when our ministry finances were turned upside down.  We have not received a check from TFC since March, when we got a check to reimburse us for our February ministry expenses.

Since that March check God, through many wonderful individuals and churches, has miraculously provided for our personal needs plus covered our ministry expenses.  Praise the Lord!  We believe God has affirmed to us each month that he wants us to serve at the chapel in Elkton.

We fully expected this month to be authorized to resume being able to submit our monthly ministry expenses for reimbursement.  Unfortunately, this latest expense submission was again denied.  And, as before, we were not informed that it had been denied.  Margaret found out that it had been denied after the expected check did not arrive and she called to find out what the delay was.

In my mind I keep coming back to Paul's statement in 1 Corinthians 14:33, "For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints." (NKJV)

This entire process has been incredibly draining, distracting, and disheartening!  Our personal relationship with TFC has been strained to the breaking point on more than one occasion.

Please continue to keep us in prayer.  Our only desire is for us to be in God's will.

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Coolest Video!

(if you don't see the video above)

Visitors From Virginia

Our daughter-in-law, Liane, and granddaughter, Anna, came to visit yesterday.  They were spending the week with friends in North East, MD and came to visit with us for a few hours.

Before they came inside Margaret showed Liane around the yard.  In this picture they are checking out the herb garden.  That's Anna in the background waiting to go inside.

Margaret keeps an assortment of toys on hand for visiting kids.  Anna got the building blocks out to build a castle

No one had eaten lunch yet so we went to a local restaurant, the Wagon Wheel, to eat.

While we were waiting to be served Anna colored and the Margaret and Liane visited.

Our server saw me taking pictures and offered to get one of us together

Anna was fascinated by the restaurant's big aquarium

We went back home after lunch but I didn't get any more pictures before they left...I had a nap attack.

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Margaret's Flowers

Here are some more pictures of some of the beautiful flowers in Margaret's garden:

Celosia

She has a number of different kinds of Day Lily plants

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

AECC Northeast Conference 2007

July 13-14 Chaplains Tom Kramer, "Hoppy" Hopkins, and I went to Waverly, NY to attend the annual AECC Northeast Regional Conference.  We stayed in a lovely Victorian Bed and Breakfast in nearby Sayre, PA, the BriMarie Inn.

My room at the BriMarie

Chaplain "Hoppy", second from left, and Chaplain Tom next to him.
(see more pictures)

Some of you may remember that my ordination was at this conference last year.

The first session was Friday night followed by a time of fellowship.  I gave a presentation about our TFC ministry during one of the Saturday morning sessions.  Lunch was provided by the host church and no one left hungry.  The final activity before we left was communion.  It was great to see some of the folks we met last year.

Margaret and Tom's wife, Linda, did not go with us this year.  They were in D.C. for a Women of Faith conference.

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

CUFI 2007

This past Monday Margaret and I went to Washington, D.C. for the week. We were blessed with an all-expenses-paid trip, including attendance at the Christians United For Israel (CUFI) 2007 Conference. An elderly couple that support our ministry wanted to attend the conference but could not due to failing health. They decided to send us as their representatives.

We stayed at the Westin Embassy Row Hotel
(now the Fairfax at Embassy Row)

We had a great room

The conference sessions Tuesday were held at the Wardman Park Marriott Hotel. The conference ran shuttle busses from the other hotels back/forth to the Wardman. There were over 3,000 attendees. When we got to the Wardman we went to breakout rooms according to CUFI Region. Delaware is part of Region12 which also includes Virginia, West Virginia, and D.C.

Regional Director Dr. James "General" Hutchens moderated our group.

The screen at the front of the room displayed a closed circuit TV signal from the main meeting room. The morning session was a Middle East Briefing with three panelist: Frank Gaffney, Founder and President of the Center for Security Policy; Robert Satloff, Executive Director of The Washington Institute; and Brigitte Gabrielle, Founder of the American Congress for Truth. David Brog, CUFI Executive Director moderated.

A box lunch was provided followed by an afternoon discussion about our Congressional meetings tomorrow.

Tuesday evening was the "Night to Honor Israel" at the Washington Convention Center. There were more than 5,000 at the three-hour event. (My camera batteries were dead) Guest speakers included:

• Ambassador Sallai Meridor, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S.;
  .
• Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israel Prime Minister (via video);
  .
• Ambassador Dore Gold, former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S.; and
  .
• Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House

Tuesday was a LONG day!

Wednesday morning we took our shuttle bus to the Capitol to visit our Delaware congressmen.

Our first appointment was 11:00 A.M. in the Longworth Building at Representative Castle's office.

The Delaware CUFI delegates assembled outside the office for prayer before our meeting with Senator Castle's aid.
(left to right: Elizabeth; Chaplain Mary Beth; Pastor Ron, our spokesperson; Margaret; and Pastor Larrie - Elizabeth's husband; (not shown in this picture was Jo, from Newark, who joined us later)

Next we walked to the opposite side of the Capitol to the Russell Building for a 2:00 P.M. meeting with Senator Biden's aid. Finally, we went to the Dirksen-Hart Building to visit Senator Carper's office. We did not have an appointment at Carper's office but left a packet of information for him.

Thursday was a free day and Margaret and I decided to spend it at the Holocaust Museum. It was a very sobering day.

Friday morning we checked out of the hotel and returned home. (see more pictures from the trip)

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Captioned Creation videos for download

The following is from the latest issue of Associates For Biblical Research's newsletter:

Ian Juby is producing a new creation video series, The Complete Creation. The first offering, "Creation or Evolution: WHO CARES?" is posted for viewing on godtube:
http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=2eff11b8ecd9e9ed5bd9
as well as youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=157xEhagMn0

...and is available for sale as an instant download in high-definition at http://genesisweek.com. The series is intended to be exhaustive, "starting right from square one and covering all bases." It is meant to be a valuable resource for Sunday School classes, personal studies, etc. The hearing impaired will be blessed by the open captions included, an unfortunately rare thing in Christian-produced videos.

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Flowers at Home

Today is a Saturday that we don't have any ministry activities scheduled.  It was nice not having to wake to an alarm clock this morning and to wake in our own bed.  I took advantage of the beautiful weather and took some pictures of a few of Margaret's flowers that are in our front yard.

Bergamot - as in Earl Gray Tea

Stella d'Oro - One of my personal favorites

Petunias on the left and Angel Face Blue on the right

More Angel Face Blue

Columbine

Tiger Lily - another favorite of mine

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  (Matthew 6:28b-29) NKJV

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Avery - 6 Months Later

Our friend Chuck Talley came by the chapel with his daughter Avery.  Avery was born last November and was in this blog before she was one day old.

Proud father and little Avery

She likes to have her picture taken!

(see all of the pictures)

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Garden Club 50th Anniversary Show

Margaret is a very active member of the Middletown-Odessa Garden Club, a member of the Delaware Federation of Garden Clubs.  This year is the club's 50th anniversary and last week they had a flower show.

 Margaret had nine entries in the show and won one first-place, two second-place and three third-place awards.

I think her hat entry is gorgeous and should have won first-prize in the hat category!

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Hugs

I expect most people don't automatically think of hugs when thinking about truck drivers.  We specialize in hugs in our ministry.  Many of our visitors receive hugs when they arrive and/or when they depart the chapel.  For me hugs are a spontaneous thing.  I don't go through some mental exercise for each visitor to decide if I will hug them or not - it just automatically happens, or not.

Very few people I have met in my life have shared with me that they are uncomfortable with hugs.  Such folks are definitely in the minority.

For almost a year driver Carl visited our chapel once or twice each week.  He was on a dedicated run.  That means he drove the same route every week beginning and ending at his home in Ohio.  Carl and I got to fellowship enough to become good friends.  Then, as happens in the trucking business, Carl was told that he was to be changed to another route.

Carl had shared with me about his childhood which had largely been lacking in verbal or physical expressions of love.  He had also shared about his very difficult marriage to a woman involved in a corrupt form of religion that left him, as a Christian, excluded from much of the normal marriage fellowship opportunities.

During our last visit, while sharing a meal together, Carl told me, "I'm going to miss the hugs.  This is the only place I get hugs."  I had no idea...

Have you hugged anyone today?  Make sure you do!

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins

Punalicious

I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me.

Police were called to a daycare where a three-year-old was resisting a rest.

Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off? He's all right now.

The roundest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference.

To write with a broken pencil is pointless.

When fish are in schools they sometimes take debate.

A thief who stole a calendar got twelve months.

A thief fell and broke his leg in wet cement. He became a hardened criminal.

Thieves who steal corn from a garden could be charged with stalking.

We'll never run out of math teachers because they always multiply.

When the smog lifts in Los Angeles, U C L A.

The math professor went crazy with the blackboard. He did a number on it.

The professor discovered that her theory of earthquakes was on shaky ground.

The dead batteries were given out free of charge.

If you take a laptop computer for a run you could jog your memory.

A dentist and a manicurist fought tooth and nail.

A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two tired.

The optometrist fell into his lens grinder and made a spectacle of himself.

Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like an orange.

[forwarded by Craig Woods]

Source: http://www.mikeysFunnies.com

In His name,
Chaplain Sam Houchins