Shame on Iowa

The joke was told by my Iowa friends that when I move to Missouri from Iowa that I would raise the IQ of both states. Seems more like that when I moved here that the moral standards of Iowa declined. The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled that the ban against gay marriage is unconstitutional. Starting on April 24 gay couples will be allowed to become legally married. We are talking about Iowa, which was once a solid religious state that had most residents being a part of an organized church. But with the growth of major cities like Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Sioux Falls, Iowa City, the state has grown constantly more liberal. Last year an attempt was made in the state legislature to define marriage as being between one man and one woman. But there was no heart for it as legislators feared that they would commit political suicide to take a stand for such an amendment. Now it will take nearly three years for such an amendment to be passed and put in force. Most likely it will never happen. Iowa will become the third state to sanction gay marriage. Since they have no residence requirement, it will be possible for gay couples from the surrounding states, including Missouri, to go to Iowa and get married and then ask for their marriage to be accepted in their home states. I am not up to date on Missouri law, so I do not know if our legislature has taken any action to refuse to accept marriages of gay couples conducted in another state. We see just another sign of the moral decline of our nation and of the world in whole. We must pray that God will send revival upon his church that his people can once again become an influential force in our nation.

Lent Looms Before Us

I am preparing for this Sunday and facing the reality that on Wednesday we have our Ash Wednesday service at the church along with a pot-luck sandwich supper. It is hard to believe that we have moved from Christmas into the preparation for Resurrection and Spring. This winter has not been bad enough to create in us a longing for spring, but we will look forward to the greening of the lawns, the budding of flowers, the foliage on the trees, and warmer weather. Lent is a time of preparation for the greatest event in history: the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. It is a time to remember how much God hates our sin and was prepared to sacrifice his only Son to justify us and impute to us the righteousness of Jesus Christ so that we will be saved from the punishment of sin and be guaranteed a place in heaven. I hope that if you do not know the wonderful peace that God gives to his children that you will stop and consider the deep, deep love of God, the wonderful work of Jesus Christ, and be open to the work of the Holy Spirit in your heart. If you will bow the knee in humble acceptance of God's judgment on your sin, repent of your sinful life, and accept the work of Jesus Christ on your behalf, God will give you the joy of becoming his child and the assurance of eternal life in God's presence.

Final Day of Diving

Today we went on two boat dives. The first at 8:30 am took us to a site called Rappel because before they had boats to take the divers out, you had to rappel down a small cliff or be daring and jump in. This area did not suffer a lot of damage from the hurricane and was absolutely the most beautiful spot that we visited this week. The fan coral was full with no broken corners. Karen and I went on our own taking an easier dive around the 40 foot mark. We really enjoyed it seeing some new species of fish and many of the familiar.
The second dive was on Kein Bonaire at Captain Don. This was a deep wall, but Karen and I kept it at the shallow level. This was the most exciting of all the dives for we got to see Spotted Eagle Rays. These are like sting rays, about 4-6 feet across and they glide through the water like an eagle flying in the sky. They were magnificant. This was the highlight of the trip for me.
After lunch and the old-folks-nap we did our final dive on Bonaire. We just went off the dock here for a shallow dive. We wanted to see some squid, which we did right away. The bonus was we also some some Peacock Flounders, which can really camoflage themselves in the sand. We saw a spotted eel on the way back to shore. It was a very exciting way to end our underwater time in paradise.
Tomorrow is no-diving so that we can off our nitrogen that we build up during our dives and thus be safe when we fly to home on Saturday. We have to leave the resort on Saturday morning at 4:30 am to get to the airport and through customs and security. Friday will be spent in shopping in the downtown area and relaxing at the resort. Hopefully I will get the sermon all finished that day.
Saturday ends our time on this island paradise. Isn't it wonderful to know that the paradise that Jesus has promised us will be a million-zillion times better and will never end. Six days of diving is enough. We are tired and ready to head back home. We look forward to seeing many of you on this weekend or when God arranges for our next time together.

Fifth Day in Paradise

Karen and I are sitting on the patio of the restaurant/bar where we eat and looking out at a cresent moon shining with a smile over the waters of the Caribbean. We had a wonderful day of diving on our own. We are now getting more relaxed and able to look around much more. The first dive was just a casual and slow swim just off our resort. We saw lots of beautiful fish and glorious coral. We saw a Queen Parrot fish which is just as beautiful as any parrot in the air. We saw tiny little angel fish. And then there was the Great Barracuda.

After lunch and a nap we did dive two for this day. We went on the site La Machaca, which is the name of a small wreck in rather shallow water (35 feet) and then we kept on swimming past it. As we started out, we found an octopus hiding under an old oil barrel. We could just see his one tenticul and head with two eyes starring at us. Our planned third dive was aborted when I noticed that Karen's connection with the tank and her regulator was leaking. Turned out she had a bad O-ring on the tank. We decided that God wanted us to quit for the day and this was his way to get our attention. We seldom check our connections once we are in the water. So this was surely a "God Sighting" even though it was not real dangerous. Karen would have used up her air more quickly, but since Walt "sucks" air much faster, she still would have had air left after he ran out.

Tomorrow is our last day for diving. We will go on two boat dives tomorrow and then have free diving in the afternoon. Walt might try a night dive if anyone is interested in going with him. The two pictures are obvious, Karen and I fully outfitted to begin our dive this morning. Please don't laugh too hard. All that gear weighs over 70 pounds each and is quite the struggle to get on each dive. Now a word from Karen...

Hi. It sure is beautiful here. When I first drafted this part, we were sitting on our porch with two couples in our group journaling and logging in their dive logs, all talking "fish talk".

I feel like I have three guardian angels with me on this trip. One is the real one assigned to me as a believer. The second one is our dive leader who miraculously appears on our boat dives always when I need him to get me down and started in the right direction. Then he passes me off to my third guardian angel...Walt.

With each dive Walt and I are improving in our skills and keeping together better as "dive buddies".

Two scriptures have taken on increased meaning for me. Psalm 139:9 "If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Thy hand will lead me." I feel so peaceful and secure "down there" (as long as God's three guardian angels are near.)

The second scripture describes the fifth dayof creation...Genesis 1:20, 22. "Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures...And God blessed them saying, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas.'"

As a six day creationist, God created each kind of these glorious fish all in one day, just with the sound of His voice. I know God is awesome, but seeing His underwater world He made makes Him even more so!

Day Four at Bonaire

Sorry to hear about the lousy weather you are having up there. Wish I could somehow send you this great weather over the internet to you. Today had high winds, which made for some new experiences for Karen and myself. We did two boat dives in the morning. The first was to Hilma Hooker, a wrecked ship that was sunk several years ago. Seems the ship was in trouble and dropped anchor off of Bonaire, which has a no-anchor rule. So the ship was seized. But the authorities could not find any manifest or origin or owners of the ship. Turned out to be a Columbia drug ship with tons of marrijuana hid in the hulls of the ship. So after seizing the drugs, they took the ship out and sunk it to make an artificial reef. It did not land upright, but tipped on its side. Karen and I dove down to 85-90 feet to look the ship over from stern to bow and back again. We were limited to 25 minutes and made it back safely. It was interesting. But Karen and I like the wildlife more than an old ship. Maybe an old pirate scooner would excite us more.

Our second dive took us to Keine Bonair, a site called "Just A Nice Dive." And it was. We swam against the current going out from the boat and then drifted in the current coming back. We saw a very small eel, plus lots of other great fish. Our depth was only 45 feet. Karen and I are both getting better at this sport and finding it something that we both enjoy. Again, I cannot find the words to tell you how beautiful it is under the ocean surface. Even pictures and movies do not capture what our eyes see. Hopefully when we are done we will get some great pictures from those who have underwater cameras. Maybe someday we will invest in one, but right now our focus is on being better divers before we tackle something as complicated as underwater photography.

We finally got to the grocery store to get some food for lunch. Their prices are high, but that is understandable since almost everything is shipped from the USA or Holland. Bread, milk products are local. But even meat comes from Brazil, etc. Cost us $30.00 USA$ for two bags of sandwich fixings and of course my Diet Coke. Karen, the expert bargain hunter, found buy one get one free cookies, so we have lots of cookies to eat and share.

The afternoon was spent with a nap and then I have been working on the sermon for Sunday. I am looking forward to being back in the pulpit, though I could get used to this kind of life. We love all of you and hope to share with you some of our experiences in more detail. I am attaching two pictures. One is Karen in front of our first boat we used on Sunday and the other is me in front of our condo. Hope you enjoy.

Good Monday evening. It is now after 9 pm here in Bonaire. We just got done with a beautiful buffet dinner that included bar-b-q chicken, ribs, grilled fish and pork. It was very good food. This is a view in the day from the restaurant which is part of Capt. Don's Habitat.

No boat dive today, we were on our own for our own dives. After breakfast we went to a grocery store to get food for our lunches. We waited until 9:15 and no one showed to open the place. We went back at noon and it had a sign, "Closed--Chineese New Year. Guess we buy our lunch foods tomorrow.

We do not dive from this dock as it is used only for the boats. Our dock is just out of sight to the right. Today we made three dives. Karen's weights are just about perfect for her. So we could just concentrate on enjoying God's wonderful creation under the surface of the ocean. Words can not describe the variety of fish, coral, sponges, colors, and just the awe of seeing a world that is not our everyday world. We are seeing the regular fish, like Sergent Majors, Blue Tangs, Four-eyed Butterfly, and Trumpet Fish. But on occassion we see something that we did not know and study it for a moment, hoping that we can find it in the fish book. Three dives--we are almost experts. Walt is getting his sucking air time to be longer, going from 18 minutes to 31 minutes today. Karen always ends with more than half of a tank of air remaining.

The buffet tonight is in honor of Captain Don, the founder of this dive operation. He was the first white man on Bonaire and worked his whole life to make this place the number one dive island in the Caribbean. He is a character with a real peg leg. He did not lose it fighting a pirate ship, but to Diabetes. That is old Capt. Don reaching out to give Karen a hug. Yes, I am sunburned on the hairless dome. Tomorrow we have to get up early to take another two boat dives. Until then, God bless you and give you a great Tuesday.

Day Two in Bonaire

After a great night of sleep, we were up early for a 8:30 a.m. boat dive. We went to an area called North Belmen. It is named after the first two residents in the area, Harry Belifonte being the first. We dove down to 64 feet. I still suck air too fast, so we could only stay down about twenty minutes. Karen still over half her air left, I used up nearly all of mine. Shows the difference between men and women--lung capacity. Then we came back for about an hour and went out for another boat dive at 11:00 am. This time to the island Kein Bonaire. We did not dive as deep staying around 40 feet or less. But still my air did not last long. Anyway, the world underwater in this area is beautiful. God is so creative. We see just droves of tropical fish in magnificant colors. I am hoping to be able to get some pictures from divers with cameras. My topside camera is taking pictures of people, food, and pelicans. But somehow I did not grab a cord that I thought I had brought home. So I am unable to download my photos until I get home because it uses a smaller end on the USB cord.
After a nap Karen and I went diving on our own just off the pier. The purpose was to work on our weights because we were carrying too much weight and it makes things difficult when you are down deep. It was work and not fun. But necessary for the rest of the week. Hopefully we have it all done right.
Tonight I am sitting out on the resort porch and looking at the surf as it surges into the shore. We saw a hermit crab in his stolen shell walking in the preparation room. The air is warm, but the breeze from the ocean is refreshing, so no sweat.
Tomorrow we are on a free dive day. So Karen and I will work of the resort pier and just swim the reef out in front. I could just spend days looking at it. We are hoping to be doing more underwater sightseeing and not so much work at doing our staying in the right positions. Maybe I can report the sighting of a squid or a turtle or some other interesting creatures of the depths. So I bid you good night and hope that your Monday is filled with blessings.

Day One in Bonaire N. A.

We had a very long flight from Tulsa to Houston (4 hour layover) and then to Bonaire (over 4 hours flight time). But everything went smoothly for us. We arrived here at 6:30 a.m. Atlantic time (Central time would be 4:30). Took almost two hours to get our rental trucks and get checked into the resort, Captain Don's Habitat. Orientation for diving on Bonaire was at 9:00 am. Then we got to dive after that.
Karen had a great deal of time getting her weights right. She just kept bobbing on the surface. Walt had too much weight. So he dumped some of his and she added and by the third attempt, we were both doing fairly well. My air was mostly used up helping Karen get down and going in the right direction. So our dive time was only 18 minutes. But in that time we descened to 63 feet and saw the most beautiful reef. It is just off the pier of the resort. We saw parrot fish, four-eyed butterfly fish, trumpet fish, and many others. We also enjoyed brain coral, tube sponges, and other beautiful aspects of the reef.
Tomorrow we will take two boat dives starting at 8:30 a.m. They serve a breakfast buffet so we get our carbs and protein each morning. It is included in the group rate. They have a restaurant on site that serves great food. We had a pizza thin crust. It was very tasty. My woe is that Diet Coke is $3.00 for a 20 ounce bottle.
No pictures yet to post. But hopefully we will get some soon. Please keep us in your prayers for a safe diving time and some good rest.

Vacation Time

Karen and I are taking a trip to Bonaire, one of seven islands in the Netherland Antilles. We will be SCUBA diving with a group going from Aquasports out of Springfield, Missouri. There will be twelve of us, including the dive trip host Don Lee. This is our first real dive since Karen completed her certification this last fall. We will be posting pictures as we are diving and keeping both this blogpage and Walt's facebook page up to date as time and connectivity allows.

Time Flies!

I could not believe that it has been since August that I wrote on this site. Now I understand when I go to other's blog sites and do not find anything new on it week after week. We had a great Christmas with a beautiful cantata performed by our choir under the leadership of Janis Neher. She is a very talented young lady and I appreciate the hard work that she and the choir did to put this all together. Christmas Eve service was a big success with our youth doing the program and the children performing the living nativity. It was nice to see many of our former children coming home with their children. We really do grow up to quickly.
This is a wonderful time of year as we look to the future of 2009 with a new President being inaugurated and a new congress coming in session. This will also be a significant time for the Presbyterian Church USA as we vote on amendment B regarding fidelity in marriage and chastity in singleness. Up to this point only thirteen presbyteries have voted and they are maintaining their historical approach. If that continues, then B will be defeated and the PCUSA will maintain its moral integrity. John Calvin Presbytery will be voting on March 7 and First Presbyterian Church of Monett is hosting the meeting. So we will have a big crowd at this meeting and probably lots of discussion.
Pray for President Obama and our Congress. Pray for the PCUSA. And always remember to pray for the persecuted Christian Church as our brothers and sisters maintain a faithful witness under difficult if not deadly circumstances.