Homecoming

When breath is gone and mortal life is done
How precious will that moment be to Thee,
As spent and bruised my finished race is run,
Collapsing in Your arms in victory.
But crowns and garlands I do not deserve,
For truly it was Christ who bore me through.
In spite of flimsy flesh and failing nerve
Your Spirit worked within to make me new!
At times I wondered if the cost so dear
Against my flesh were truly worth the prize.
Yet now beholding You suddenly near
Hath destroyed doubt and caused my joy to rise!
From here the trials were transient, short and light.
My joy is full as faith gives way to sight!

Jonathan D. Eller

Well Done, Good And Faithful Servant...

Larry Norman, the father of Christian rock and roll, died early last Sunday morning. He will be sorely missed by those of us left behind. His pioneering work paved the way for the relatively easy access that we have to Christian music today.

Larry was aware that he was approaching eternity and dictated a message to be published on his website after his death.

I feel like a prize in a box of cracker jacks with God's hand reaching down to pick me up. I have been under medical care for months. My wounds are getting bigger. I have trouble breathing. I am ready to fly home.

My brother Charles is right, I won't be here much longer. I can't do anything about it. My heart is too weak. I want to say goodbye to everyone. In the past you have generously supported me with prayer and finance and we will probably still need financial help.

My plan is to be buried in a simple pine box with some flowers inside. But still it will be costly because of funeral arrangement, transportation to the gravesite, entombment, coordination, legal papers etc. However money is not really what I need, I want to say I love you.

I'd like to push back the darkness with my bravest effort. There will be a funeral posted here on the website, in case some of you want to attend. We are not sure of the date when I will die. Goodbye, farewell, we will meet again.

Goodbye, farewell, we'll meet again
Somewhere beyond the sky.
I pray that you will stay with God
Goodbye, my friends, goodbye.

Larry

Larry also shared some thoughts about his mortality on the following video. The video also pays tribute to many of his friends. Those of you familiar with contemporary Christian music's roots will recognize most of these faces.



So long, Larry. I'm sure you wouldn't come back if you could. I look forward to meeting you in heaven!

What Now?

With the announcement of the untimely demise of the congregation known as StillWaters, perhaps some of our readers wonder what will become of this blog. The answer is simple - it will continue on. This has become my favorite blog. There is no way that I will chloroform it. The sponsorship of the blog will change, and there may be some minor content changes, but this blog is going to continue right along, just as each of the individual members of StillWaters will.

It still remains to be seen what will happen to our little congregation. Will we somehow stick together as a unit in a different church, will we become a mini diaspora spread like seed among the churches of Rowan County, or will we stand together and soldier on as a new congregation in our God-given mission to the people of this area? It would seem that scattering is the most inevitable of these possibilities, and yet there are some among us who really have no interest in being anything else but a congregation. It is going to be interesting to see what happens.

Tomorrow is our last Sunday together as StillWaters. If you are near-by and can join us, I think that it will be a memorable service. We meet at KidSports off of South Main Street in Salisbury, NC. The service will start sometime around 10:30.

Then keep coming here for information about what is happening with our little band, where the StillWaters Jazz Band is playing, where you can find a house meeting, and for the content that you have come to expect on this blog. Thanks for your prayers, and thanks for reading.

He's Alive!!!

"The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated"
- Samuel Clemens AKA Mark Twain

Hello, friends. I am sorry that it has been so long since my last posting here. Much has been going on since my last post. As many of you know, I lost my Grandfather on December 21. Between his loss, the business of the holidays, and the intense need to get some much needed studying and work done, I wasn't able to complete my Advent series as hoped and promised. I am sorry for that. Motivating myself to write during that period was more than I had energy to muster.

I do anticipate a much more regular posting here in the new year. We are fast approaching Lent, and I expect that there will be some meditations leading up to our celebration of Christ's resurrection. I doubt that they will be daily posts - that took more out of me than I had expected - but I do expect that there will be some content here to encourage you as you prepare your heart for this very important remembrance and celebration of the Church.

2007 was a very difficult year for many. I, for one, am glad to see it go. I hope and pray that 2008 will be a year of great blessing, breakthrough, and abundance for all who read this post. May God bless you all.

Happy New Year.

Well Done Good And Faithful Servant

I don't know how I missed it. I have been on conservative news websites every day and yet somehow I missed the news of the death of Dr. D. James Kennedy. The first that I heard of it was Sunday morning at church. I am not quite sure how it happened. How could a man of his stature die and I not know about it at all? Well I may have missed the news here, but I can assure you of one thing - nobody in Heaven missed it when Dr. Kennedy showed up for his welcome home party.

I have never been able to follow Dr. Kennedy avidly. I'm more of a music guy in the car and I don't watch a lot of religious programming. However, I have always enjoyed the times that I was able to hear or watch his teaching. He always struck me as a man of great intelligence, piety, and integrity.

The list of his accomplishments is long and distinguished, and I have heard numbers bandied about that the evangelism tool that he developed, Evangelism Explosion (a.k.a EE) is responsible for over 5 MILLION conversions to Christianity. I can't even begin to imagine having that kind of impact on the world and it not being the front story of every newspaper, news site, blog, and newscast.

I found a very good interview with a co-worker of Dr. Kennedy's that sheds some light on this man of God.

The Homegoing of Dr. D. James Kennedy
By Paul Edwards
Sunday, September 9, 2007


Welcome home, Dr. Kennedy. You sure left some big shoes to fill.