I went salmon fishing on the Columbia River a couple of days ago and decided to smoke the fish I brought home, as we have a lot of fish in the freezer from my Alaska fishing trip. I tried a different recipe for the brine and smoked it in my Treagor, and it turned out so good. I also made some salmon dip out of some of it. I am going to take it down to Monday Night Football, and I expect both the smoked salmon and the dip to be a hit with everyone who comes. I hope no one asks me for the recipe for the dip. I looked in the fridge and added a few spoons of various ingredients, including the smoked salmon, and stirred them all together. Then, I checked the spice cabinet and added several different spices. It tastes delicious. When I looked into the spice cupboard, I couldn’t believe the number of spices there were. There were millions, well, maybe not millions, but a substantial number. There are several spices mentioned in the Bible, and their use was often an indication of a person’s wealth. That means we should be millionaires with all that we have. Spices are added to make food tasty and flavorful. I have spices that I add to my life to make it more exciting and less boring. Fishing and hunting are great ways to spice up life. Bicycle trips and other dangerous activities, such as skydiving, are like hot sauces and cayenne pepper. I have a long list of activities that I enjoy, which add excitement to my life. Still, the single most powerful spice is attending worship services on Sundays or Wednesdays with other like-minded believers. I am sure the reason that it is such an enjoyable experience is that God is there. He promises to be in the midst of those who gather together to seek Him, worship Him, pray to Him, and learn from Him. Not everyone experiences Him; only those who expect to and genuinely want to. I do.

I am going on a ten-day fishing trip for bluefin tuna in about five weeks. I will live on a 100-foot boat with 20 other fishermen for the ten days, and we will leave from San Diego. I have been watching YouTube videos of previous trips on this boat that I will be on, along with others, for about an hour every day. I have also been watching seminars on how to catch the tuna and what gear to use. They fish with big reels that hold over 500 yards of line, so you don’t run out of line when the fish go on a run. On the reels, they have braided line, which they then tie onto with monofilament line and then fluorocarbon line. I won’t go into the reason for the different kinds of lines here, but they fasten these lines together with knots, not with barrel swivels, which I have done all of my life. The knots must be at least as strong as the line, which can be up to 100 lb test, and they must be small enough or streamlined enough to pass easily through the eyes of the rod when cast. I have been watching instructional YouTube videos on how to tie these various knots. There are about a dozen different knots used. Each instructor claims that his particular knot is the best and is the only one you need to learn to tie. So I have been tying the various knots, trying to decide which one I will use. I am rating them on strength and ease of tying. I don’t want to go with a knot that takes forever to tie or is so complicated I can’t remember how to tie it. And I don’t want to go with one that will come apart with a hard pull from a 200-pound tuna. I have tied every one of the knots numerous times and have tested them by tying one end to our back porch rail and the other end to a one-inch diameter dowel that I can pull on with two hands. In between the porch rail and the dowel I have an inline scale that I can read while pulling on the line so I can see at what poundage the knot fails. I have decided which knot is going to be mine, and now I am practicing tying it every day. I want to be able to tie it in well and quickly.

When Patty and I got married, the pastor said, “ We want to  tie this knot good so it doesn’t come undone.” I have forgotten most of the details of our wedding, as it was 56 years ago, but today, while watching a YouTube video, I remembered the statement by the pastor. I thought, yep, he must have used a good knot, no signs of slippage. Thank You, Lord, for binding us together for all these years.

I saw where there is a website that will give you the names of people who put something on Facebook or one of the other public sites that was negative toward Charlie Kirk and information about them, so that people could work at causing them to be fired from their jobs or lose business in their businesses. My goal with every person in my life who is not a believer in Jesus is to influence them towards faith in Christ. I don’t think making them pay for saying negative things about Charlie Kirk would do that. It doesn’t seem like a method that Jesus would approve of in my life. It would certainly feel good, because my flesh is drawn to vengeance, but I don’t want my flesh to control my life or my behavior. In Romans 12:2, the Apostle Paul says, “don’t be conformed to this world.” That means that the world’s way of doing things should not be the standard I follow. My flesh will pull me into the ditch if I allow it to, the world will try to influence me to live the way they do, and the devil will continually tempt me to be unloving to people. I desire to do only what Jesus would be pleased with. I fail at that, but I am getting better at following Jesus’ will.

The word fool is used 37 times in the book of Proverbs. Proverbs is the book about wisdom, what it is, how to get it, and the blessings of being wise. You can’t write about wisdom without writing about the opposite, a fool. None of us is considered a total fool or a person as wise as Solomon; we are all somewhere in between. We want to be moving towards wisdom and away from being a fool. We tend to think that the primary definition of wisdom is being smart, but in the book of Proverbs, a wise person knows how to act around and with other people. A fool does not know the right way to act, the godly way, the way God blesses. God blesses the wise person, but fools have nothing but trouble in life. I read one chapter daily in Proverbs, and I take special note of verses describing how a wise person acts and the blessings they receive. I also take note of verses that describe a fool and how he acts. I highlight those verses and have memorized many of them. I think about my life, behavior, way of talking, and things I do, asking myself, Am I becoming wiser and less foolish? Becoming wise is a journey of choices and habits.

Proverbs 10:18  he who spreads slander is a fool.

Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel.

Proverbs 14:16 A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is arrogant and careless.

Proverbs 17:10 A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding then a hundred blows into a fool.

Proverbs 18:2 A fool does not delight in understanding, but only in revealing his own mind.

Proverbs 20:3 Keeping away from strife is an honor for a man, but any fool will quarrel.

Proverbs 26:11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit Is a fool who repeats his folly.

Proverbs 29:11 A fool always loses his temper, but a wise man holds it back.

Years ago, I was listening to a pastor speak who pastored a church in Romania during the Soviet years. He described his life as a pastor in a country where Christians were terribly persecuted. He said that there were many Christian martyrs in the country because of their bold testimony. The Communist government did everything it could to silence them. Many were tortured, some were in prison because of their faith in Jesus, and some were killed. He made a statement that grabbed my attention, he said that every time someone was martyred for their faith, there was a fresh ingathering of new believers, and he quoted John 12:24, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” I have been asked numerous times what I thought would happen due to Charlie Kirk’s assassination, and my answer is “revival.” I am not a prophet, and I am not dogmatic about it, but that is what I truly believe will happen. We will see. Jesus was crucified at 33 years of age, and millions of people will live in heaven because of His death. Charlie Kirk was not Jesus, but he was a godly man who was not ashamed of his savior.

I just finished an hour of weight lifting and am totally wiped out. I have been lifting for an hour every other day. I am using a program that keeps track of everything on my phone and automatically increases the weight on the bar by five pounds if I successfully lift today’s designated weight. Back when I started, it was easy, but now it is getting harder and harder for an old wimpy guy like me.  There are six different lifts, and I alternate three on one day and the other on the next day. You might wonder why I am doing this self-torture. I am going on a ten-day fishing trip out of San Diego at the end of October.

We will live on the boat and travel a fair distance to catch bluefin tuna. I have been watching YouTube videos of previous trips, getting all excited about going. I have noticed on the videos that several overweight guys and older guys struggle reeling in those hundred-pound-plus fish and often have to get help from one of the deckhands. I am determined that I am going to reel in all of my own fish. I have also noticed several guys quit and enter the lounge after catching a fish or two; they are all tuckered out. That won’t be me; I will fish as long as anybody else is fishing. I have 43 more days before we leave for the trip, so with a five-pound increase each time I lift, I should be ready for those monster tuna. The boat has a record of a tuna weighing over 400 pounds. I don’t expect I will catch anything that big, but I will be ready if I do. The basic principle in weight training is just a little bit more. That is the same principle the Bible discusses in our spiritual growth, just a little more every day. The key is faithfulness; don’t miss a day, or you will miss another, and then more and more, and then you are plateaued in your spiritual growth, and someone will have to reel in your fish for you. How sad!

1. I will read 12 chapters in my Bible every day.

2. I will write in my prayer journal every day.

3. I will pray 30 hours in each of JBC’s four “Five Days of Prayer.”

4. I will pray for Jefferson Evangelical Church’s weekly prayer letter.

5. I will pray for Jefferson Baptist Church’s weekly prayer letter.

6. I will pray for every person at JEC every week.

7. I will pray for my kids and grandkids daily.

8. I will pray my personal commitment prayer every day.

9. I will pray for my “Seven for Heaven” list daily.

10. I will pray with Patty at least three times each week.

11. I will be an active member of the Men’s Ministry and help with the Sportsman Show. 

12. I will read fifty pages each week in a good book.

13. I will rewrite my 22 Leadership II lessons and then preach them at the Wednesday night service. I will also have them videoed and encourage other pastors and churches to use them.

14. I will be active and faithful to help with the house being built for the Hatfields on our place. 

15. I will put a new roof on the pump house.

16. I will paint all the trim on the house or hire it done.

17. I will buy a camper for my pick-up.

18. I will work hard and do my part to grow Jefferson Evangelical Church to an average Sunday attendance of 100 by the end of 2026.

19. I will review 100 memorized Bible verses daily, get up to 200th place on my Bible Memory App, and have 850 verses memorized well.

20. I will climb Mt Adams on July 11th.

21. I plan to walk/run my half-marathon starting from my house on November 29th.

22. I will send 365 of my best blogs to Gary and Toni to be made into a book.

23. I will attend a church growth seminar with at least one other pastor.

24. I will write my Blog five days each week and pray hard for God to anoint me as I write and for the number of subscribers to reach 900.

25. If my schedule allows, I will respond positively to every invitation to speak in other churches.

26. I will meet with pastors Preston, Nick, Jason, Shawn, and Sam every other month for mentoring and mutual encouragement.

27. I will take Patty on a date at least twice a month.

28. I will total five hours of exercise each week with weightlifting, stationary bike riding, bicycling, and walking on the treadmill and outside.

29. I will actively participate in the “Seniors Ministry,” help Tom when needed, and teach a devotional when he asks me to.

30. I will plan and ride at least a twenty-day bicycle trip.

31. I will remodel my dory boat in Alaska and put a fish box in it.

32. I will be disciplined in my eating and keep my weight under 180 pounds.

33. I will teach a parenting seminar at JEC as a tool to attract young families to the church.

34. I will start on a project to build a 28-foot fishing boat.

35. I will go catfish fishing with Dave Maroon on the John Day River.

36. Patty and I will fly to Fairbanks during Christmas to visit our kids and grandkids.

37. I will be faithful to my two online accountability groups and schedule a Zoom meeting with the Pastor group at least four times a year.

38. I will pray at least twice weekly at a corporate prayer time.

39. I will start a monthly “Matthew Party” outreach event each month at JEC.

40. I will pray for fifteen minutes at least twice weekly on my kneeling bench.

41. I will get a list of new move-ins monthly and write to them, inviting them to JEC.

42. Patty and I will drive to Idaho to see Seth and his family at least twice a year.

43. Patty and I will drive to Washington to see Hanna and her family at least twice yearly.

44. Patty and I will visit Aaron, Sally, and the kids on Oahu. 

45. I will write 50 handwritten notes to people in JEC and JBC each month.

46. I will work diligently to successfully mentor Josiah, Shawn, and Stephen so that they are successful pastors.

47. I will finish the 1969 Mustang.

48. I will plan, organize, and lead a “History Dinner” at JBC.

49. I will plan and teach a Saturday seminar at JBC on “Spiritual Gifts.”

50. I will plan, organize, and lead a “Wild Game Feed” at JBC, and have a presentation at it encouraging men to participate in “Men’s Ministry.”

 

Jefferson Baptist’s “Five Days of Prayer” started today. The time I spent in the prayer room today was spiritually renewing. If I were to write a biography of my life, my growth in the discipline of prayer and my level of faith in the power of prayer would be the foundation of all that has happened to me as a Christian. God has blessed me in every area of my life, and I am sure that most of those blessings, especially in my ministry accomplishments and my family, are a result of prayer. I didn’t do many extraordinary things to accomplish what I have in ministry or in my family, no more than most others have done. However, I have prayed a lot, and the amount of praying I have done over the years has increased steadily. My faith that God hears and answers my prayers has also steadily grown. My devotion to prayer started in February 1989 at the first Pastor’s Prayer summit at Cannon Beach. I prayed before that, almost everyone prays, but that event jump-started a whole new level of devotion to prayer in my life. After the Prayer Summit, I wrote out seven clear goals regarding prayer. Even though I didn’t have a lot of faith in prayer at that time, I prayed faithfully, privately, corporately with my church family, with other pastors, and with my wife. I kept up the commitment to praying because I made the goal and was faithful to what I wrote down that I would do. As I continued faithfully in prayer, my faith in the power of prayer grew. As my faith grew, prayer became less and less a duty because I knew God would work in me, through me, and around me the more I prayed. I began to pray more and more because I was greedy for more blessings, fruit, and growth, and I knew that the more I prayed, the more God would bless. Praying became a “no-brainer.” Praying seemed a small price to pay for success in life, my family, and my ministry.

It is September, and everything starts up. My leadership classes, Wednesday night service, and meetings for various ministries, the younger kids in our house are starting school, and the older ones are starting college.  Many things have changed over the years of my life, but when I was six, school began in September, and now that I am 76, school still starts in September. Many things have changed, but September is still the month of “starting.” I enjoy the summer with reduced responsibilities, increased fishing, and enjoyable activities, often with friends and family. But by September, I am getting bored and ready for some meaningful activity. My personal goals go from October to October, so I am getting several new goals set in motion. I have some new challenges, new learning situations, and new experiences planned for this next year, and I look forward to them all. I only wrote 50 goals this year instead of my normal 77 because I will be 77 on October 27th. I don’t know if it is old age or just the number of goals, but 76 was too many for me last year. Instead of motivating me, they demotivated me. I am hoping that 50 is the perfect number for me this year. I have only two B-HAGs this year instead of the usual six. The hardest one is to climb Mt Adams. I have tried three times in the last eight years and have failed to reach the top each time. I want to climb it to the top before I quit. Another is to walk two half-marathons. I am planning one of my own that will start at my house. It will take place November 29th.

How are your goals coming? If you start pursuing them on January 1st, now is a good time to start thinking and writing them. Those who thoughtfully write out their goals and read them regularly will accomplish more than those who do not, learn more than those who do not, and grow more than those who do not. Let me know if you want to climb Mt Adams with me, July 11th. Plan on walking my half-marathon with me November 29th. There you go, two goals.

Today is one of my favorite days of the year, the opening day of the NFL. I enjoy watching football very much, keeping track of my favorite teams, reading the various sports writers, and watching the multiple sports experts discuss the teams and players on YouTube. I used to be in a Fantasy Football league, but it took too much time as I got very involved in trying to win, so I dropped out. I limit my watching of games to Monday night Football with many friends and snacks at the church. It appears that the Apostle Paul was a sports enthusiast by the number of sports illustrations he used in his writings. He didn’t have to contend with cell phones, iPads, computers, and television in managing his time with the addiction to sports. I have a greater struggle with this now than I used to because sitting and doing nothing but watching an iPad screen is so much more attractive than it used to be with my reduced energy level as an old man. I am still very much committed to bearing much fruit and managing my time well, but it is a much greater struggle than it used to be. I have to set goals and keep track of my time accurately. The primary key is the desire to bear fruit, the passion, the want to. In Revelation 3, Jesus says He wants us hot, not lukewarm. I can keep my fire hot by reading my Bible daily, spending time with God in prayer daily, memorizing and meditating on scripture, attending church regularly, fellowshipping with other hot Christians, worshipping Him, and reading good books and listening to motivational podcasts. Watching Monday night football and watching YouTube videos is a reward I give myself when I finish my Spiritual Disciplines.