Greetings again from Minnesota. We have less than 48 hours left before we return to Texas. It is a good trip so far. The weather is cooperating as the high today reached a blazing 81 degrees. Our last trip was during an authentic heat wave so we are taking full advantage of this weather. This is a beautiful state in the summer. Everywhere you look you see farms with crops getting close to harvest. The grass is still green due to the regular summer rains. We made one trip in winter years ago. That is one mistake that I will not make again.

Today we rode up to Wabasha where my father was working at the clinic. It is a wonderful drive if you are ever up this way. The glaciers cut out valleys and mountains way back yonder in the Ice Age. They are not huge mountains like the Rockies or Sandias but mountains nonetheless. We ate supper sitting outside looking at the Mississippi River. That isn't something you do everyday. The towns are all clean with an abundance of flower gardens along the streets. Minnesota also earned the name of "the land of lakes." We sat at the edge of an enormous lake where we could gaze across and see Wisconsin. It is hard to picture all of this summer glory covered in several feet of snow come winter.

We are ready to get home. No matter how beautiful it is here nothing replaces home. I miss the sound of my youngest banging away on his latest Xbox game. I even miss puttering around the house trying to keep the grass alive. Should I ever retire I cannot imagine being away from home for weeks or months at a time. I like my stuff. There is something to be said for the familiar. We too often take such things for granted. Take a look around you sometime and see how your surroundings are a reflection of you. It's a good thing. Let's learn to appreciate and be grateful for all our God gives us. Let's be glad we enjoy our place called home.

Bro. Trey

Welcome to day two of the Minnesota excursion for myself and my daughter. We are fairly beat after travel yesterday and going to the Twin Cities today. I have to admit that it is a pretty different trip so far. Last night I went to sleep with the sounds of people playing golf at night! It was a fund raiser for breast cancer which I hope was a huge success. The golf balls were glowing as the players made their way around the darkness. It was really amazing and heart warming to watch.

Today was our trip to the Cities. We started at the Mall of America which covers a few city blocks. It sits on the site of the old Vikings/Twins stadium which was vacated in the early 1980s. I got to meet and visit with a ballplayer from the old Negro Leagues baseball group. It is a huge historical part of our nation's history though not in a good way. There were so many gifted players in that league who could not play in the Major Leagues due to the restriction on African-American players. I was proud to make a donation to their cause.

While at the mall, my daughter met some friends of Josh Hamilton who plays for the Rangers. He is the athlete who shook Yankee Stadium to the core last week during the Home Run competition. It goes without saying that she was pumped. We ran into these friends later at the Metrodome where I got the chance to visit with one of them for awhile about Josh and his journey from drugs to baseball stardom. We also got to visit with one of the Ranger's TV announcers which was a blast. My daughter is one of the small group of teenage girls who would rather be a baseball groupie than an entertainment one. Tom Grieve is recovering from cancer surgery yet he was warmand friendly. We later learned the Ranger's broadcast a shot of the two of us watching the game. Did you see us?

The highlight was yet to come though. I leaned over the railing next to the field and spoke for a moment to Josh Hamilton himself! Emily nearly fainted. We spoke about his friends then I congratulated him on his season. I think that I grew abit in her eyes just in that one conversation. My mantra to her was, "if you don't ask or try then you never know." It was a special day and night with her. We met wonderful people and had a tremendous time even if the Rangers lost badly.

You just never know when a day begins what can unfold. I think as followers of Jesus we can always expect the unexpected in a very good way. Far too many churchgoers fail to ask or try to see what God might do on any given day. We may not meet a broadcaster or a ballplayer. Our day might even be better than that!

Bro. Trey

There is nothing like a vacation to send your stress level soaring. My idea was that taking a break was supposed to be relaxing or soothing. I sure hope the soothing part starts at some point. The last two days were anything but relaxing. Do most people do tons of housework leading up to the departure? Do normal folks end up packing and repacking at least three times before being satisfied? Would most people end up worn out from preparing to go rest? Or is it just me?

This is going to be only my second Sunday away in four years. That has to be some type of streak similar to Cal Ripken's in baseball. He played nearly 2300 games in a row. My best guess is that in about 200 Sundays that I will miss two. Do not consider that bragging. Reviewing my sermons for that time period shows there are definitely a few Sundays that a guest speaker would help. Some weeks just didn't contribute to very good messages being delivered. That is why we look to God to do far better than we can do ourselves.

Honestly, my emotions are very mixed about being away. Most of my summer is spent in one on one time with my autistic son. My daughter is still tired from three weeks in a row of being gone. I admit that there are moments that I become weary from always being on call with my youngest. He can occasionally demand lots of attention. But tonight I am not looking forward to being away from him. My source of hope is in getting time with my daughter while we are in Minnesota. She is a sophmore in high school this year so my days of getting that time is gradually drawing to a close. This will be good for me.

Rest is supposed to be good for us. God rested following His acts of creation. He instructed the Old Testament saints to keep one day of rest to be holy to Him. The writer of Hebrews tells of a rest for the New Testament saints. Rest was never intended to be simply an escape or a diversion. The real goal seems to be our focus on God while we take a different approach to daily life. Just traveling across the country is not always restful. The key is in remaining open to God while we are away. My hope is that while we take advantage of the summer months to change our schedule we will also allow God to change our hearts. We may forget to pack something for our trip. Let's not forget God while we are away.

Bro. Trey