A sad goodbye to Minsk

Well, yesterday certainly lived up to its expectations. We had a wonderful time of fellowship at Pastor Jaroslaw's church. Bruce brought the morning message at John the Precursor Church, which literally meets in a renovated garage! It was a wonderful service celebrating Reformation Day, all in Belarussian not Russian. The church is very nationalistic in their approach to recognizing the historic and reformational past of the country. They had special music, skits from costumed adults and children, and, after the service, everyone sat down to cake, sweets, and fruit in celebration. Wow! We don't even celebrate reformation like that in our American churches. Bruce's message was well-received, though he was worried later that he spoke below their level when we were reminded that 80% of the congregation was college-educated and 20% were university professors! Both percentages are extremely high for Belarussian churches and society in general. But, it was really just fine, and there were many church members who approached us with excellent questions. I was approached by two physicists (!) who wanted my opinion on 1) President Bush's assistance and benefit to evangelicals in America and the world; 2) the war Iraq; 3) human cloning; 4) movies like Terminator and Lord of the Rings; and 5) heavy metal music like Metallica. Yikes! Just your run-of-the-mill conversations in the course of reformation ministry! But what gracious and curious people. We loved it.

After church, we drove with Jaroslaw, Antonin, and Mikhail, our interpreter, 100 kilometers to Njasvizh. After two police stops within 15 minutes of each other, we arrived unscathed. The second stop was merely a license check. The first stop was for speeding, and Bruce and I cracked up when Jaroslaw said, in all seriousness, that he simply told the officer, "Forgive, and you will be forgiven." Apparently, he was convicted, because Jaroslaw got off with a warning! Njasvizh is a small village in western Belarus where Radziwill the Black built his palace, and where much of the reformation of Belarus in its golden age of the 16th century was begun. Simon Budny, a local priest, was also instrumental and had the first publishing house that turned out Protestant works. There is a statue of him outside the Farny Polish Cathedral that we toured, Polish because this whole region of Belarus was Poland until WWII. Just beyond the church is the original gate to the Radziwill Palace Fortress and the start of a long driveway up to the palace itself. We arrived around sundown, and it was simply beautiful to walk the long drive, around the lake, and right up the doors of the palace. Built at the end of the 16th century, it still stands and is being restored to its former glory. During Soviet times, it was commandeered and made into a sanatorium. Isn't that something?! The palace of a believer and reformational hero made into a mental hospital! Just like the Soviets to stick it in the eye of Christians. Now, however, its history is better known once more, and it was a marvelous thing to see. The only problem was that it was freezing! The temperature was about 25°, and the wind blowing off of the lake made it even worse. But, we survived. On the way back to Minsk, Mikhail, who is a 21 year-old university senior majoring in teaching with specialties in English and history, peppered Bruce with questions about what he feels is his real calling, attending seminary and becoming a pastor. Pretty cool.

After we arrived back in Minsk, we went back to the church house and spent three-and-a-half wonderful hours having dinner and talking about the Lord, homeschooling, Belarus, and all things reformational with Jaroslaw and his wife, Natasha, Antonin and his wife, Natasha (pattern?), and Andrew and his wife, ?. They are so hungry to know how to homeschool and continue this work of reformation in their country. They also served us wonderful and traditional Belarussian food! Mashed potatoes, breaded pork chops, cold sausages, fruit, fruit juice, bread, and salads. The salads are unlike anything we have at home and take a little daring on my part to try some of them. For this particular meal, we had a mayonnaise-based salad with little bits of ham, carrots, peas, and cheese--not so bad--and/but another that was diced carrots, red peppers, and tomatoes. Yeah, that one was interesting, but I can proudly say that I ate all of my portion without an instant chasing of water to get it down! The evening was just great.

As I write now, we are on the plane to Vienna, connecting on to Bucharest. It was another sweet time today with Jaroslaw, Boris and Bela, and the staff of Church of Jesus Christ. We spent about three hours with them in the CJC office answering questions, offering suggestions, and getting a feel for where they stand in the reformation implementation and how we can help going forward. We ate another wonderful lunch with similar food as last night, and then got to tour the new music studio that they have built in the basement of the church building (really just a very large house). It is just another outreach center for them, and they are allowing Christian bands to use it as a base of ministry. Dima Petrovsky from Psalmyary designed and runs the studio, and he was there. So, it was very nice to see him once again and get to talk for a little while longer. The band is coming back to the States in the spring of '06, and we are going to try to work it out for them to perform at KPC. Excellent!

After that, it was time to leave for the airport and on to Romania. It was a bittersweet goodbye with our dear friends here. I would like to think that I will be back in Minsk very soon, but I never know what the Lord has and how His calendar lines up with mine. I have really come to love this country and its people. It is very often that I think of Minsk in my daily life and wonder how the churches and pastors that we've met here are doing. They are just so passionate about the Lord and His work. This land will be reformed, because they are setting it in motion each and every day, and in every sphere of life. I wish that you all who are reading this could join me on a trip to see their wonderful spirits, their incredibly passionate worship, and their love for their own land. It is repression that builds desperation and desperation that builds passion. I admire them so much and wish that we in America could have only a small portion of the zeal that they carry. I can't wait to be in Minsk again.

More to come...

A crucial shift

Another good night's sleep last night, although we forgot the time change and got up an hour earlier than we had to. Darn!

While we at dinner last night, Pastor Boris told us of a crucial shift that his church and church network had made in their reformation work. When we were here last year, much of our teaching, and much of their focus, was toward Christian government and politics. We taught on family life, education, media, etc. but the bent was definitely toward government and politics. The church here had determined that they were going to work to get Christian politicians in positions that could help to bring about the freedoms they desire in Belarus. Last night, however, Pastor Boris told us that they made a conscious decision to shift that focus toward the end of last year. Now, they are primarily teaching about self-government and a reformational view of family life and education. The thinking is that they didn't have mature enough Christians who were grounded in a Biblical worldview. To expect large political changes when the hearts of believers weren't ready or their families weren't strong enough to handle it would be detrimental. Newfound freedom without Godly restraint and foundations to employ it would be dangerous. When he shared that, Bruce and I were so excited. Boris is exactly right! The grasp of a Biblical worldview begins with self-government and extends to the other spheres such as family, church, society, and government. It showed remarkable maturity for the church here to realize that when they have a much larger and loftier goal of wholesale governmental system change. They are starting with the reformation of self, families, and Christian education. It was also a wonderful caution to us as teachers not to put the cart before the horse. Praise God!

This morning, we go to the church of Pastor Jaroslaw, a reformational fireball. We met Jarsolaw last year when we came and he visited with us in Virginia Beach earlier this year when he traveled to the US to preach at various Slavic churches in our country. He is married and has three children, one of whom is named Martin Luther! How's that for serious about reformation?! Jaroslaw and his wife pastor a local church, and he is the leader of local efforts to spread the reformational history of Belarus, which is quite deep actually. He publishes articles and newspapers regularly on the subject and produced the concert we went to last night. He's a young guy, maybe mid-thirties, and totally sold out to the Lord and the work of reformation. Really, he's a radical and proudly so. I told Bruce last night that when revolution finally comes to Belarus, Jaroslaw will be the one standing on top of the tanks preaching! This weekend is the celebration of the Day of Reformation, so Jaroslaw is all excited about church today. Should make for an interesting morning!

More to come...

What a day!

Do you know what it's like to sit across the dinner table from a pastor and watch him tear up as he thanks you for flying across the ocean and Europe to visit his country and minister? Bruce and I had that experience tonight, and it was overwhelming. Pastor Boris Chernoglaz has got to be one of the most humble men I have ever met. He and his wife Bela pastor the Church of Jesus Christ in Minsk and battle unbelievable things that we American believers could never imagine. First, they are Jewish in a formerly Communist land, so that tells you something right there. Boris' father escaped the Stalinist pogroms only because some co-workers shielded him. Boris was a boy at the time. He was then an engineer for 30 years for the State under Communism before becoming a pastor. Now, he fights the State for the right to pastor a congregation and have it meet regularly as a body. He is absolutely passionate about reformation in all spheres of life, and he is teaching this word all over Minsk. And he thanks us for what we're doing? Please! I wish that you could sit down with this man, for half an hour--fifteen minutes even. He's barely five feet tall and speaks almost in a whisper, but he is a giant in my eyes.

Today was incredible all around, really. Six solid hours of teaching on Christian education, and the people soaked it up. Their questions were so insightful! As it turned out, the primary interest of many here is homeschooling. It was a foreign concept to most of them until recently, but they are ready to run with it. If it's like anything else the people of Belarus do, they'll have it down pat in no time! Right now, they are simply trying to grasp the concept that parents can teach their own children. Bruce taught about the whole principle of Christian education and making your home a center of Godly education even if your children attend a public or private school outside the home. The teachings and the response were fantastic. The Lord is moving here!

After the seminar, we had the pleasure of attending the Concert for the Day of Reformation, a celebration of the religious and reformational history of Belarus. It was held in a large hall with probably 500 people in attendance. There were actors portraying significant Belarussian reformational historical figures, dancers to traditional music, and three bands playing contemporary music. The first band was Psalmyary, the band that came to KPC last spring! It was great to see Dima Petrovsky and the band again; we got to talk to them for a few minutes afterward. Bruce and I also really liked Antivirus, the third, "rockiest,' band. They reminded me a little of Linkin Park--great! All of the songs the bands played were written just for the concert and spoke of reformation. Several of them were traditional Belarussian poems set to music. Of course, we couldn't understand a word and had to be filled in later!

After the concert, we went with Pastor Jaroslaw and his wife, Pastor Boris and Bela, and Vitaly, our interpreter, to the Mirski restaurant. Mirski is the name of a famous castle in Belarus (especially for its reformational connection), and the interior of the restaurant looks like an old castle. It even sports suits of armor, maces, battle axes, crossbows, and shields on the wall! I had "Belarussian peasant food." Fried potato pancakes served in a crock with what is essentially beef stew, only the beef was pork. And for desert, fruit salad with whipped cream. Delicious! We had a delightful time of talking about our ministries and churches. Of course, when I brought out pictures of Jonathan, Andrew, and Karen, the conversation shifted to stories of our families, funny anecdotes, and general enjoyment of life. We got back to the hotel about an hour ago, and Bruce and I have been gabbing and laughing about anything and everything. It's about time for me to call it a night, and I'm so excited to say that we get to sleep until 8:00 in the morning!

Tomorrow, we go to Pastor Jaroslaw's church and then have an afternoon tour of important Belarussian historical and reformation sites from him. He is the premier reformational historian in Belarus, and it will be fascinating! He and his wife are precious people. I can't wait!

More to come...

Finally, some sleep!

After being up for 33 hours, Bruce and I were finally able to get some sleep last night! We both crashed about ten o'clock after a wonderful night of teaching and a three-hour seminar. These people in Minsk are amazing. When I was here last year, I was so taken by their zeal and desire to reform their families, their society, and their country. And last night was further evidence of that! People have traveled from all parts of Belarus to attend the seminar; there were probably 100 there last night, and more are expected today. Most of them were diligently taking notes and passionately agreeing with points as Bruce went along.

Bruce spoke so well, as he always does, about the Biblical role of parents in education in the first session and about Christian principles and methods of education in the second session. The role of parents in education is namely that they have the primary responsibility for educating their children, or as I call it, they have a mandate to 'oversight and ownership' of the process for their children. That includes providing an educational atmosphere in the home, take full advantage of "teachable moments" when they occur, and, in some cases, directly providing the day-to-day teaching for their kids. We found out yesterday that there is a burgeoning homeschool movement here in Belarus. Surprisingly, it is legal to homeschool, though regulations make it such that the children must really be "attached" to a registered school for exams and such--much like back home in the U.S. And last night revealed that parents are parents everywhere in the world, and they struggle with inadequacy when it comes to homeschooling. Many people here lack real formal education beyond the compulsory Communist dogmas and primary schooling, so they are terrified to homeschool for fear that it will wreck their children. Sound familiar? That was a stumbling block we uncovered last night along with the need for further clarifying that homeschooling a wonderful Biblical ideal, but it is not the only Biblical ideal. That's a misconception back home, too, when one teaches about Christian education. It can come across that homeschooling is the only answer. But, it's not. So long as the parents are deeply involved in the educational process--oversight and ownership--and take great care to insure that their children are being taught Godly principles and within a sound Biblical framework.

Today, it's back for four more seminar sessions and then a "Concert for the Day of Reformation" this evening. October 31 is Halloween, but it's also Reformation Day, celebrating the history of the Reformation in the Protestant church. The churches we're working with here do it up right with a public concert and celebration in a city park. Should be fun!

More to come...

Back in the USSR!

Back in the USSR! We made it safe and sound to Belarus. Travel was a snap with three good flights, and passing through customs was really a breeze. The Frankfurt Airport was frustrating; there wasn't a single place with two chairs together so that we could sit down! I did see some cool airlines, though--Vietnam Airlines and QANTAS among them. Once in Belarus, Bruce went first at Passport Control. They asked the reason for his visit, who he was working with here in Belarus, and how long he planned to be in country. After that, he was waved on through, and when they realized that I was with him, they pretty much just checked my passport and cleared me. Praise God! The first hurdle cleared...

One bad news nugget, though. Somewhere between baggage claim at the airport and checking in at our hotel, I lost my cell phone. I'm thinking it was in my pocket and slipped out. You'd think I would hear it hit the floor/pavement, but I didn't. Please pray that it turns up, and that no one runs up astronomical bills on it in the mean time.

We are settled in our hotel with great views of the tributes to Communism, block after block of concrete apartment buildings. The Orbita Hotel really isn't bad at all, a bit dated and worn, but nice and clean. There's even a McDonalds a short walk away, of which we took full advantage at lunch! Not a bad way to ease into a foreign country, but, yes, the food is just as bad for you here as at home.

We're enjoying a much-needed but brief respite before a three-hour seminar tonight. Christian education is the theme, and we're excited to share our reformational view!

More to come...

Thoughts from Seat 54K

Seat 54K! Yikes! You have to love an airplane that has 61 rows. As I type, I'm aboard United flight 916 from Dulles to Frankfurt, a Boeing 747-400. I've been so excited to fly on this plane! Once aboard, my first thought was, "man, I'm already a long way from the ground, and we haven't even started taxiing yet!" This is one tall, heavy plane. It lumbered into the air on take-off, but we're now cruising at 698mph and 35000'. Just waiting on dinner to be served so that I can get a few hours sleep.

The flight from Norfolk to Washington was as you might expect--short and uneventful. We barely got airborne before we began our descent into chilly Washington. Good to be traveling again!

More to come...

Miers withdraws!

What a stunner this morning!  Miers has withdrawn her name for consideration as the next SCOTUS justice!  I feel badly for her but I'm thrilled!!!!  Now, President Bush needs to seize the moment and nominate Janice Rodgers Brown or Michael Luttig and ram them down the Democrats' throats!  Conservatives rejoice and unite!

(It is very interesting that President Bush cited the Senate's request for internal White House documents as one of the reasons for the withdrawal.  This very strategy and "cover" by the certain Senators to give Bush a legitimate out was posited just last week.  Very interesting…)

More to come...

T-minus four hours...

Well, it’s the morning of October 27. Today is the day I leave for my trip, and a number of things are going through my head. Have I packed everything? Will I remember that I forgot something halfway to Belarus? Will our team be safe? Will my family be okay while I’m gone? All the normal things one associates with travel.

Other things are also on my mind. Andrew had a terrible night last night, up every couple of hours on average, so I know that the enemy is ramping up his attack. Jonathan was also up really early this morning. He’s being his normal cheerful self, but just the fact that he was up so early means that he senses something is going on. It’s also really hard on Karen who needs good rest each day. It really starts to thinking about being gone and being used by the Lord effectively. I always have doubts that I can pull my weight on the trip and teach effectively when called upon. That part of me still needs some boosting up and surrendering to the knowledge that God has truly called me to this work and opened the doors wide for me. I appreciate your prayers.

There is a verse that has really stuck with me in preparation for this trip, and we’re claiming it as our team verses this time around. Psalm 119:46 (NIV) – I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame. This reformational work places us in the halls of governments and the offices of politicians. It can be overwhelming, but God has, indeed, given us His word to speak. There is no reason to be ashamed; there is every reason to bold! That charges me up! How ‘bout you?

Okay, for some quick fun as I sign off before packing my toothbrush. Here’s my route of travel:

Should make for some great insights into what the Lord is doing in another part of our world!

More to come…

No news is good news

Nothing really to report today, and that's good news. Our plans are set, our visas are approved, our airline tickets are purchased, our passports are in hand, our luggage is packed. What else is there? I can't think of anything! Just be praying for safe travel tomorrow and easy connections with our hosts in Belarus. I might not have a chance to post before I leave. If not, I'll be in touch as soon as Internet access and travel allows!

More to come...

The daily schedule

Here's the daily schedule for our team for the upcoming trip. I post it here for your fun in perusal and for your use in prayer while we're traveling. Of course, everything is subject to change at the last minute...and probably will! Get out your maps...

October 27-28 - travel from Norfolk to Washington to Frankfurt to Minsk

October 28 - In Minsk mid-afternoon; dinner; education seminar

October 29 - In Minsk; education seminar from morning to evening; Concert for Day of Reformation celebration in the evening

October 30 - In Minsk; education seminar from morning to afternoon; afternoon visiting sites important to the religious and cultural history of Belarus

October 31 - In Minsk; meeting with pastors group; evening travel to Bucharest, Romania

November 1 - In Bucharest; tour city and meet with local politicians; meet with pastor of a local gypsy congregation

November 2 - Morning in Bucharest; speak at military academy; afternoon travel to Brasov

November 3 - Morning in Brasov; meeting with apostolic leaders and pastors group, visit BIG Impact Romania site; evening travel to Sibiu to speak at another military academy

November 4 - Morning travel to Sarmisegetuza and Deva; afternoon meeting with local politicians/educational leaders; evening visit to CCIosua Orphanage

November 5 - Morning travel to Timisoara; meeting with local political leaders; evening tour of sites from Romanian Revolution in 1989

November 6 - Morning in Timisoara; speaking at morning services of House of Worship and Agape Church; evening Communion service at Agape Church

November 7 - travel home

The details of the Belarus schedule are purposefully vague due to the political situation there. I'll fill in more as we leave the country. Thanks again for all the support you've shown to me!

More to come...

Airports are fun...really!

Okay, so I love airports, airplanes, and airlines. The logistical machine that is an airline or airport absolutely amazes and enthralls me. Part of my own weird preparation for this trip has been to assemble information on the airports that I will visit in transit. For the record, we'll hit Norfolk (ORF), Washington Dulles (IAD), Frankfurt, Germany (FRA), Minsk, Belarus (MSQ), Vienna, Austria (twice) (VIE), Bucharest, Romania (OTP), and Timisoara, Romania (TSR). The Frankfurt, Minsk, Bucharest, and Timisoara airports will be new to me, so that's exciting.

For those of you who share my fascination with both air travel and Pocket PCs, I have found the holy grail of software! KeyJet makes KeyFlight, an incredile piece of software. Installation is a pain in the neck (!), but once you get it, the software gives you TAF weather info by WiFi; a plethora of conversions for temperature, weights, etc.; and best of all, airport runway diagrams for thousands of airports worldwide! It is truly awesome, even integrating the CIA Factbook for maps and country descriptions, flags, etc. Here's the kicker--it's free! Check it out; you'll be impressed.

Packed my suitcase last night. Just need to throw in a few last minute items that will have to wait until Thursday morning, and I'm set. Two days to go!

More to come...

Three days and counting...

After so much planning and preparation, the time is nearly upon us. In many ways, it seems to have taken a long time to get here, but my trip to Belarus and Romania is only three days away now!

As you might expect, there are a number of loose ends to tie up, but the three of us that are traveling are excited to see what God is going to do. If you have read my previous updates, you know that divine appointments are a big thing that we look for God to do on these trips. All the planning in the world can go out the window in an instant if our paths cross with someone who needs ministry or is open to the word we are trying to bring. The planning for Romania has been the biggest struggle in this whole process, and I suspect that is precisely because God wants us to remain flexible enough to hear from Him as we go from place to place while there. Should be interesting and fun!

We are flying to Minsk via Washington, DC, and Frankfurt on Thursday, arriving into Minsk on Friday, October 28. Our visas and passports are in order--just pray that the border officials let us in the country with no problems. I really don't know whether to expect a fairly simple and
expedited process of checking passports and waving us through, much as we Americans are used to when we enter most other countries or if we should expect some (mild?) interrogation about our intentions and stay in Belarus. That part has me a little nervous!

One great thing about our travel on Thursday is that I will have the opportunity to fly on a Boeing 747 for the first time! It's a 747-400 no less! I can't wait for that. United Airlines has no idea what a treat that will be for me and how upset I will be if they pull an aircraft substitution at the last minute! Those of you who know me well know that I LOVE airplanes and airlines...

A few quick prayer requests to close: pray for Bruce as he finishes preparation of all of his teaching materials and plans; pray for me to be able to surrender control of the itinerary as God sees fit to minister in ways we don't anticipate; pray for boldness for me in those times I have to teach directly rather than simply support others teaching; pray for my family's safety, calm, and peace (the enemy is ramping things up signficantly already); and pray for safe travel throughout the trip as we will be in several cities and moving around often.

It is my sincere hope that I can post daily updates as our team travels. All of that, however, is dependent on access to the Internet, so I can't promise anything! Rest assured, though, that I will journal each and every day and post everything upon our return, if necessary. I am so grateful for all of your prayers and support!

Tomorrow, I'll post the latest day-to-day schedules for your amusement and prayers.

More to come...

Great news!

Our team received word yesterday that our visas for travel to Belarus are approved and completed! Praise God! They should arrive back to us by Friday of this week. That is a big hurdle cleared and sets us on our way. Next Thursday is the day!

More to come...

Justice Miers is a brillant pick, just don't tell the President...

I think I 've finally decided how I feel about Harriet Miers as a potential SCOTUS resident--and my conclusion doesn't really involve her at all. Let me explain.

For the past week and a half I've absorbed all of the criticism and defense of Miss Miers in efforts to form my own thoughts. I've also fretted that I haven't posted anything on the topic here before now. Yet, it was only today that my feelings crystalized. Here's my position on Miers--I'm Supremely disappointed that Bush didn't nominate to the Court one of the Conservative powerhouses that we all hung our hopes on. I do, however, fully expect Miss Miers to be a reliable conservative vote on the Court if confirmed, and I have little doubt that she will. She just won't be a legal giant whose writings we will study for generations to come (i.e. Scalia). For those reasons, I have decided to be solidly ambivalent on Miss Miers. Charming, huh?

But here's why I think President Bush did nominate the best candidate after all. For about six months now, things have been coming to a head among Conservatives. There are just so many No Child Left Behind Acts, Campaign Finance Reforms, and annus budgetus giganticus(es) that one can take. Yet, placation has been delivered via near-permanent tax cuts, national defense, and solid moral stands. Then came the Katrina rebuilding debacle, and the Conservative frustration levee was breached. Harriet Miers was simply insult to injury. Conservatives who did not want to gamble on a former Lottery Commissioner but demanded a known quantity simply revolted. The last ten days have seen more fur fly on the right side of the aisle than the previous five years combined! And there in lies the brillance of the President's choice.

Since about 1998, when the honeymoon of taking back power gave way to actually having to implement those Contract with America principles, too many Republicans have been coasting along on the theory that being Republican meant being Conservative and that as long as they weren't Democrats, they were bulletproof from the sniping of the base. Not any more. I am overjoyed that true Conservatives have taken Republicans to the woodshed this month over spending excesses, Constitutional ignorances, immigration, etc. It was high time that we Conservatives asserted ourselves rather than simply being satisfied that Republicans hold the Congress and White House. The fight to bring to bear the principles we hold dear does not end when an (R) is glued on the door of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and the Capitol Dome. It took the Miers nomination for Conservatives to erupt, and I, for one, am thrilled. These rancerous discussions are good for Conservatives, good for Republicans, and good for our country. It means the base is still alive and thinking! When President Bush convinced himself that he had made the very best pick for the O'Connor seat on the court, I don't think this was among the reasons he had in mind. As one of my favorite political commentators opined today, "this is not a Conservative crackup (as Howard Fineman puts forth) but a conservative crackdown!" I love it!

More to come...

Latest Romania / Belarus update

16 days out now, and things are getting interesting. They continue to shift, and God continues to cause us to rely on Him for steadiness. First, the good news--Isaac got his visa! It arrived in the mail on Saturday and gives him the permission and documentation he needs to travel to Romania and gain re-entry to the US upon his return. Now the bad news--he has decided not to travel with us on this trip. His wife has some real hesitations about him leaving for Romania for two weeks while she stays home in the US with three children in a new city with a pending home search and various other personal and family matters to attend to. That is certainly understandable, and I appreciate that Isaac takes his family priorities seriously enough to receive that God is calling him to that over Romania at this time! He remains excited
about our trip and will join us the next time round.

Without Isaac, our trip is still on, but it will certainly change. Isaac has put a lot of work into planning each day of our trip, and we now have to work with a different host who has not been so intimately involved with all of the planning, etc. Please be praying for smooth interactions with everyone we encounter in Romania and that God would provide us with a good host/interpreter/guide as we traverse Romania over a week's time. God is once again testing me and insuring that Igive up control to Him. Yikes!

More to come...

SCOTUS #2

So Harriet Miers gets the nod for SCOTUS vacancy nmber two. My first reaction is, "darn, he could have done so much better." However, I'll reserve judgment until we know more about Miss Miers; it's simply not fair to cut her down simply because she's a relative unknown. While
George Bush is not fully the type of conservative I would love to see in the White House, I do trust his ambitions to rework the Court into a Constitutional one once again. I sure hope Miss Miers fills that bill FULLY. All in all, I was spoiling for a fight and a known conservative that would send the Left over the edge immediately.

EDIT: (at 1:40pm) Rush Limbaugh had a great point today, though he shares my frustration over this pick. "If you want to go to war, do youwant the Senate Republicans as your army?" EXCELLENT POINT!

More to come...