Proud papa observations #1

Yes, I'll be getting back to gospel music topics at this little corner of the web soon...but if you'll pardon the indulgences of a proud new father, I'd like to share something very cute my new youngest daughter, six year old Jessica said yesterday when asked what first grade felt like after a year of half school days in kindergarten.

"It's all right, but sometimes it feels like two whole days of kindergarten with no night in between."

Old Art Linkletter was right, wasn't he, when he said, "Kids say the darndest things."?

The joy of knowing the Couriers

With apologies to original Courier Neil Enloe, who's song "The Joy Of Knowing Jesus" was among the most beloved of all Couriers' songs, I wanted to share a recent anecdote involving that group and my new older daughter Amanda, who no doubt is now a lifelong Couriers fan.

It happened this past November 7th, when my wife and I went to see the original Couriers(Dave, Duane, and Neil)in Puyallup, WA. Since the following day marked Amanda's eighth birthday, we chose to take her there for her birthday present. As I noted in my last entry here, Amanda is a budding musician, learning the piano and the violin, and already has written four songs of her own...so I felt she would love to meet some of the best Christian men and musicians around.

When we entered the church and told Dave Kyllonen it would be Amanda's eighth birthday, Dave pulled out a $20 bill and gave it to Amanda as a birthday present. Amanda has never had a $20 bill before, and certainly not an American $20...to say she was thrilled would be an understatement. She was glued to Dave the rest of the evening, and was excited to learn of the special CD offer the group had that night...their two latest CDs [;us their Christmas CD(a 2-album set)for $20.

Amanda was determined to spend her birthday $20 on the package. I tried to convince her she didn't need to buy them, but her heart was set. So when Amanda made it up to the front of the line to see Dave, she told him her intentions. Dave just told her, "You can't do that", when Amanda offered her $20 to buy the CDs. Dave just gave them to her, reminding her that the $20 was her birthday present, and could not be spent that night. I put the bill in my pocket for safekeeping as a delighted Amanda clutched her CDs from her new favorite group.

And Amanda has played them ever since, her favorites being Neil Enloe's "Euroclydon" and "The Next Time I Get Married" from their latest CD.

Just another story of how the original Couriers minister to all lives, young and old.

The $20? It's still in that same pocket of mine, waiting for Amanda's instruction on how I'm to distribute it.

Did ya miss me?

As I was saying...

It's been over three months since I've had access to my own little corner of the web, due in part to my poor planning....and some unexpected misfortune that has turned into great joy for me.

This is my first blog entry from my new home in Canada...I am at last with my beautiful new wife of two months and our three wonderful adopted special needs children.

It took this long because I sadly underestimated how easily I could come across the international border and set up shop. At first, the Canadian authorities were less than impressed with my reasons and qualifications to move up here...so I was denied initial access to Canada.

I had to wait across the Washington border in the sleepy town of Sumas for two months while I got legal help from some Vancouver immigration lawyers and a lot of moral and spiritual help and support from fine Christian friends on both sides of the border. And along the way, on October 21st in the beautiful community of Lynden, WA, I married the girl of my dreams.

We plan to do a more formal ceremony after a while here in Abbotsford(our home)for our family and friends, but it was a most humble and beautiful ceremony in the home of the minister who married us...with his wife playing the organ and a couple of their friends(who'd been married 67 years!)to be our witnesses. It'll be a day we'll both cherish forever, and a milestone in my life.

We have both made tremendous progress on our immigration procedure, and I am now applying for permanent residence status, which I anticipate no problems in eventually attaining.

So how did I finally get up here, you ask?

Well, I wish it could have been under happier circumstances. You see, my wife has developed a painful lesion on her throat that is causing her a great deal of pain. And with the help of my lawyers, I was able to convince the customs agents to let me across so that I can be a help and comfort to my wife and family is this time of need. I still have to go through the formal process of application, but now I can be in our home with my wife and kids while this whole scenario plays through. Please keep my wife in your prayers as she awaits word on her condition and how it will be treated. And pray that I will be the kind of man God wants me to be for her at this time...I have no doubt of the positive outcome of that, either...God is merciful and faithful, and I can see where He is leading with all of this.

Abbotsford is an extremely pleasant community of some 125,000 people just 45 miles(70 km)east of Vancouver in British Columbia, IMHO the most beautiful of Canada's many beautiful provinces. It is a community strong in churches(known as BC's "Bible Belt"),services, and friendly people,,,with a very strong Dutch factor as well. A LOT of people with Dutch surnames live here, and both my in-laws are Dutch immigrants...and strong Christian people. Abbotsford's gently rolling terrain and mild weather, along with its' glorious scenery(and its' equally beautiful neighbors)make it a great place to live and raise a family.

And what a family I now have...let me introduce them to you.

Our oldest child is Kerry, a cute 9-year old boy who loves being active, police cars, reality TV shows, and he is a very good artist as well. His recent paintings are very accomplished. And although he is much the typical 9-year old boy with restless energy and mischievous brown eyes(on occasion), he has a quite generous heart and is very protective of his family, including his two younger sisters. I have seen him do some very compassionate deeds for both his sisters and his mother and me....it is encouraging to see that kind of development in a young boy. Kerry's major contribution to my arrival is the name I have to the family...since I am a late arriving father figure, he coined the name "John-Dad" for me...and I'm proud to be the kids' "John-Dad". And I would be remiss if I didn't mention Kerry's adorable pet stuffed cat.Spaz. who's given him much joy since he was but a year old.

Next in age is our "bookworm", 8-year old Amanda, who loves reading books as much as I did when I was her age, and who is quite musically accomplished as well. Already she has written four songs, and is learning both the piano and violin. For her 8th birthday, my wife and I took her to a concert by the original Couriers in Puyallup, WA...where she stole the show with her animated enjoyment of the music and the guys, particularly Dave Kyllonen. In a future entry I'll tell the story of how Dave made Amanda's birthday really special..but Amanda herself is special, and I have a special bond with her already.

Possibly the "star" of our family is six-year old Jessica, who has to be the most beautiful six-year old girl on the face of the earth. She is style and personality rolled into a cute ball of charm, and her sparkling smile and tireless energy has to be experienced to be fully understood. All of our children are artistically gifted, and they go to a school for the arts to develop those precious gifts God gave them. Jessica loves to "imaginate", and she never meets a person she doesn't like. The first time I met her, we took her to a McDonalds, where she immediately befriended every child in the restaurant, directed ALL the playtime activity, and made a point to say goodbye to every one of her new friends when we told her it was time to go. And like her big brother, she loves her stuffed pet, a cute dog she named Puppy(Jessica LOVES all dogs).

Are they always angels? Of course not...they're normal kids, and normal kids need to learn and grow. But they stretch me to new heights of understanding, and their little souls are beautiful enough to constantly capture my heart.

And speaking of capturing my heart, no one has ever done it better than my beautiful wife, Leona. A positive woman with a can-do spirit and a lovely Christian heart, she gives me attention, comfort, and love almost ceaselessly. And she constantly gives me that feeling of belonging that can only come from someone who has a lot of true love to give. Leona's true beauty runs far deeper than I can describe here, and God has never given me a better gift(outside of my own salvation, that is).

And the entire family has shown me that love and appreciation that makes me feel like a big part of what they are and do.

So do I miss Fresno? Well, Fresno will always be a big part of who I am and will be...but it couldn't have given me what Abbotsford has already given me...mostly because Leona, her parents, and the kids are here and not in Fresno. I have never been happier in my entire life.

So I hope it was worth the wait for all of you faithful readers waiting for me to post again. I am here now, and will be more consistent than ever in sharing my thoughts and impressions of life and gospel music with all of you. Thanks for hanging in there with me.

History repeating itself?

One of the many books I read early on in my life was a classic historical piece by a man named Edward Gibbon called "The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire"

Gibbon studied that great civilization for somw 20 years in hopes of determining how such a powerful and influential civilization could fall apart from within and collapse in such a relatively short time.

I was always a history buff, and I read books of that nature rather than things like fiction, which was more popular with many of my friends.

In any case, eventually Gibbon in his book isolated five main reasons for that famous culture to have disappeared.

I'll list them below...as you read them, check to see if any of these look or sound familiar to you.

Five reasons for the fall of the great dynasty.

* First: Rapid increase of divorce, with the undermining of the sanctity of the home, which is the basis of society.
* Second: Higher and higher taxes; the spending of money for bread and celebrations.
* Third: The mad craze for pleasure, sports becoming every year more exciting and more brutal.
* Fourth: The building of gigantic armaments, when the real enemy was within; the decadence of the people.
* Fifth: The decay of religion; faith fading into mere form, losing touch with life, and becoming impotent to guide it.

Look familiar?

It is said that those who don't learn from their mistakes are doomed to repeat them...are we so doomed?

I pray not.

A quote that sums up my life right now

"There's a real sense of adventure in a life of submissive abandon to the will of a providing God."

Frequent readers to this little corner of the web will no doubt recognize the quote and its' source.

Now, this is no contest. I have no prize to give whoever can name the author of this quote or where it came from.

I offer it here only as the perfect summation of my life at present and for however it may inspire any of you.

What a ride!

After this latest lengthy absence from this little corner of the web, a bit of explanation is probably in order.

No, iy's not due to an extended road trip with a gospel music group(what fun that might be, though!).

And it's not because of any health issues(thanks be to God!)...I'm in pretty good shape for the shape I'm in!

I have alluded in the past to personal issues that keep me from posting here as often as I'd like...and it might just be the time to share the most consuming(and joyous)of those with all of you, right here...right now.

After just over a half century of living and working in this all-too-fallen world, I am finally going to do something that most people my age have been doing for quite some time by this point.

I am finally getting married/

What's taken me so long?

Well, call me picky, but given my inclination, I've never felt I could make a lifetime commitment to a woman until I was convinced that she shared my love for and dedication to Jesus Christ and His Word and Way. All the other sruff(llooks, income, personality, etc.)is nice indeed, but if my intended does not share the most important part of my being, then she cannot be my soulmate, which is what I believe God would want a wife of mine to be. Period. End of discussion.

Happily, I've found such a person. Leona is absolutely committted first, foremost, and primarily to Jesus...and wants her life companion to be the same. She has proven that repeatedly, over and over again, to the point where she motivates me to be as Christlike as I can possibly be, to a degree that no one I've ever met has. I need that as a part of my daily life. And her devotion to me is most reminiscent of God's love for me through Jesus, and I need THAT around me every day as well.

At this point, I can't afford NOT to have that kind of person and love in my life.

And I am looking very forward to returning that same kind of love and devotion right back to Leona, and soon I'll be doing that on a daily basis.

Leona is also gifted with a sunny and cheerful disposition, a most kind and caring heart, and a wonderful sense of humor that keeps life interesting and lively at all times...that doesn't hurt in considering her for a soulmate.

We have talked daily for nearly eight months, and have come to the mutual conclusion that God has deigned to join us together...so we are going to do just that.

But what a roller coaster ride this has become! Daily, my moods range from ecstasy to frustration to depression to wonder right back to ecstasy, in just minutes at a time!

Not having been in this state before, I'm concluding that this is just par for the course for an expectant groom...either that or part of the largest possible "teachable moment"(how I'm already tiring of that phrase!)one can imagine...and it's all in the education of a regular guy who's trying to live his life in the light of the gospel of Christ the best he can.

And I'm learning more and more daily the absolute joy that comes with belonging to somebody, and having someone to belong to him.

And I'm loving every minute of it...and can hardly wait for this next stage of my life to begin! Bring it on, Lord!!

I'll keep all of you posted on this latest divine adventure as it progresses...and I have NO doubt it will do just that!!

Just pondering

Every once in a while I just ask myself questions, and ponder over the answers to them...I imagine most of you do exactly the same thing.

Without going into all the reasons I bring this up, I'll simply share this one question with all of you, and not elaborate to much on it for now(although I could).

Is anyone else besides me old enough to remember when the adherents to Islam were called Moslems, and not "Muslims", a corruption of the name Moslems popularized by a Islamic cult which developed in the first half of the 20th Century here in the United States?

Islam is not understood well in this part of the world, not even by many of those who follow it here.

I'm just askin'.

Challenging days…

For the better part of my life, regardless of whatever has happened there, the presence of gospel music has always been a balm and a comfort...a soothing ocean of stability, direction, and inspiration in an otherwise stormy sea of life(boy, I sound like a gospel song, don't I?).

It got me through my college years, and those rough first post college years, when I actually had to start supporting myself financially.

And it got me through my first years in my chosen career field, even played a big role in that!

And it got me through the tense times around September 11, 2001, when no doubt all of us had a LITTLE uncertainty about our futures.

Now, though, the challenges are greater than ever.

The current economy is depressing, people are angry and contentious, the future seems so uncertain, and I am now entering the most topsy turvy, challenging, and potentially the most thrilling, exciting, and rewarding time of my life.

And, as always(because if it ain't broke, why try and fix it?), I'll have the sounds of gospel music as my life soundtrack as I enter this most exciting and challenging part of my life.

Some of my best friends are really concerned about how I'll manage all this...but, as has always been the case, I think I'll be just fine.

Keep those posts, comments, and most of all prayers, coming!

I'll be just fine!

In quiet mode

Well, here I go again.

It's another of those ultra-quiet periods of my life where I don't post here much.

Now why do I even bother to tell you all THAT much? After all, Deon and Susan and Chris post even more sporadically than I do, but they apparently don't feel they need to explain that to the degree I do. Why do I feel so, then?

In my case, I feel as though I'm expected to stop by this little corner of the web fairly often(if certainly not daily)and share some of my thoughts about SOMETHING anyway(such are the expectations for those who are semi-regular or regular bloggers), and when I don't, I kinda feel I owe you all at least a bit of explanation as to why.

And now, this time, I'm dealing with a number of important challenges in my life. Big changes are underway, and suddenly I'm in the midst of preparations for the biggest change in my life(it's a really GOOD thing, so don't anyone be unduly alarmed for me)...and I want it all to come off well.

But sadly, simultaneously, I've had to endure some of the frankly stupidest, most mindless behavior I've encountered in some time as well(and I've seen plenty of stupid over the years). And since some of that has been in connection with the event alluded to above, it's been particularly discouraging.

But I knew ahead of time that challenges of that nature almost always await the one who puts his trust in the will of the Almighty God who controls this world. The Scriptures(and the rest of history)are replete with the examples and testimonies of those who have met those challenges, trusted in God's leading, and endured triumphantly.

Yes, God gives us all lots of "pop" quizzes...but He also equips us to pass all of His tests, and come through each one better for the experience. This has been a recurring theme all through my life, and will happen again. Do I know that for a fact now? No. But am I willing to stake all I believe on it? Absolutely.

Mastery of this process will guarantee that all of us will meet our life challenges, and rise over and above them. And while I devote my energies to passing this latest exam, I do so confident that all will end gloriously, and will be back here faithfully to share more of my thoughts with all of you...my friends.

In the meantime, I'm in concentration mode(no, not the Hugh Downs-hosted game show of bygone years)...so that means I'm relatively quiet...for now.

Happy birthday, Daniel!

Today I want to salute someone I've saluted many times here, but since he's a friend of mine to me more than anything else, I want to celebrate him right here in my very own little corner of the web!

Daniel Mount burst into all of our lives a few short years ago, when the message board fad was still predominant in online southern gospel music discussion.

When that fad began to fade, and the blog trend took it's place, Daniel moved right in and started his very own gospel music news, information, and commentary site, and before too long, it became the most-read such site on the web!

As it deserves to be...Daniel gets all the main news, encourages positive interactive discussion on gospel music topics, and works very hard to make his site as versatile and accommodating as a website can be.

And best of all, Daniel does all this with a love and appreciation of gospel music unsurpassed by any other writer. He also is a young man who loves God very much, and this shows in his writing and his taste in music.

And of all the other bloggers out there spending the majority of their time writing about gospel music, he is probably the most supportive of his fellow writers of any of them.

He reads everyone's thoughts, comments regularly on them, and when he feels one of us has posted a particularly worthy entry, he gladly links his readers to those postings, and thus helps support his compatriots in this endeavor. Some of the most read posts in this little corner, for example, are read because Daniel has unselfishly called attention to them at his site.

And Daniel is also an engaging discussion partner, and loves to discuss and analyze not only the music itself, but the business of it as well.

Recently, Daniel has even become a part of the industry himself, fulfilling a dream of his. Now, if only some major artist will record one of his compositions...

In short, Daniel has become a good friend, runs a great site, has his ducks all in a row with God, and is most supportive of both gospel music artists and those who support them, either by attending concerts, buying recordings, or discussing and writing about them. He has become a blessing to all those who love southern style gospel music.

And today, he turns 24 years young! How does someone so young appreciate a genre of music whose most classic renditions of it are as old or older than he? Listening, study, and love for it...to name three reasons.

And his birthday is easy for me to remember...it is the same day as my younger older brother...who is nearly 40 years older than Daniel, but...

Hsppy birthday, Gary...and happy birthday, Daniel...my very good gospel music-loving friend!:-)

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