Author: admin

Perley Brook

Just a quick 2 mile flat land trail around Perley Brook Reservoir. An easy 45minute trip with a lot of nice views of the lake. It’s the local hot spot for fisherman in Gardner. This is a great trail for the family, or a really trail to practice trail running.

 

Location: Perley Brook Reservoir – Loop Trail, 110 Clark Street, Gardner MA 01440

Directions & Parking: From Route 2 take Exit 22 to Route 68 N, toward the Center of Gardner along Main Street. From the Center of Gardner take a right on Central Street (Route 101 N) for 0.2 miles, then take a left onto Park Street at Monument Park (across from the Veteran’s Memorial Skating Rink). Follow Park Street for 0.8 miles. Take a left on Clark Street. The parking area will be 0.3 miles on your left hand side at the entrance to the West End Beagle Club.

Park in the unpaved public parking area on the left at the bottom of the hill. From the parking area cross Clark Street and follow the sidewalk west for 150 feet to the entrance of the Perley Brook Loop Trail.

 

Keystone

This was just one of the bridges

The Keystone Arches

Trail: keystone Arches trail

Date: Saturday 10/25/03

Attending: Simone, & John Chicoine

Miles:5-mile back and fourth Time: 3.5

Weather: Bright fall Sun. brisk clear New England air.

 

Location: Find Middlefield Rd. off of Rt. 20 in the center of Chester MA. The trail head begins at the start of Herbert Cross Rd. is an unmarked dirt road about 2 miles out of town and about a 1/4 mile before the town line. There is a small parking section at the mouth of the road large enough for 5 to 7 cars. The first bridge is visible to the left of the road about a hundred yards down the road just as the road comes close to the river.

Hello dudes and dudetts. This place is awesome! We loved it. The hike was on the old railroad bed (still passable by a 4-wheel drive vehicle). Aside from bushwhacking up and down the steep sides of the ravines that these bridges span, the hike is on a flat grade. The total hike is about 5miles round trip. There is a section of the trail that is marked by blue blazes where the trail branches to the right off from the road. An alternate route can be taken by following the road to the operating rail bed, then branching to the right back onto the trail (looks like a dirt road) several hundred yards after you hike along the rail bed. It took us about 3.5 hours to hike it.

It takes us about 2+ hours to drive out to the trailhead form Gardner. Unfortunately,,, The trail hear is not marked fir the Keystone Bridges, (It’s not marked at all!) We repeated to each other that “Gary and Gwenn (and Gabe) would love this”. We can think of lots of active couples that we would like to bring out there. It’s most likely not something I’ll drive 4 to 5 hours (out and back) lots of times for, but it’s definitely a “have-to-see” at least once or twice and we absolutely intend to do it a few more times while we’re bringing people out to see this. I must say these arches are best seen late fall through early spring (while the leaves are off the trees) for the best views of the bridges. (This is the perfect time to see these, (there still some color on the forest around but not enough leaves so as to block the views.) On another note! (But somewhat related because this would be a great X-country skiing trip but you would need Snowshoes to get to some of the best view spots)

Just a note about the picture above; just to the left of the base of the bridge, next to the the water is an almost indistinguishable image/speck. That’s Simone standing next to the bridge.

This is the text on the info board about the KeyStone Arches.

 

The Western Railroad of Massachusetts was surveyed and engineered by Maj. George Washington Whistler in the late 1830s. It was the first railroad to cross mountains and Editor Buckingham of the Boston Courier predicted in 1827 it “would be as useless as a railroad from Boston to the moon.” The route utilized small portions of the Pontusic Turnpike stage road to Albany. It was surveyed on horseback through what to this day is some of the most remote and forbidding territory in the state. When complete the Western was the highest (1458 ft.) and longest (150 mi.) railroad in the world. Whistler was the father of one of the most famous American painters, James Macneill Whistler. His second wife, Anna, has also become an icon by way of “Portrait of the Painter’s Mother” (1871). Only Maj. Whistler, whose accomplishments were nothing short of unprecedented, remains largely unknown. The completion of this railroad in 1841 was considered so extraordinary that Whistler was summoned to Russia by Czar Nicholas I to build a 400 mi. railroad from Moscow to St. Petersburg. Today, this is known as the Trans-Siberian Railroad.

Sub contractor Alexander Birnie was the artisan responsible for the Keystone Arches. A second-generation Scottish stonemason from Stockbridge, MA, he was hired to construct 27 bridges, culverts and walls for the mountain segment of the line. On this portion of abandoned railbed, we cross two spectacular stone arch bridges, 65 and 70 ft. high and pass a breathtaking stone retaining wall. Also on this section of the rail are two impressive hand-dug cuts through solid rock. The builders of 1840 had only black powder to loosen rocks and picks, shovels and horse carts to remove it. Stone taken from the cuts was used to construct secondary walls, but for the ‘ring stones’, or ‘ voussoirs’ of the arches themselves, Chester Blue granite was utilized. This had to be transported in wagons to the railhead and brought to the site on the primitive rail equipment of the day, a formidable task in itself. Across the valley from here, we see the present relocated line on the same gradient. If you can imagine that track turning from the left to where you stand, you’ll get a pretty good idea of why it was changed. The curve was very sharp, consequently wearing out rails very quickly. In order to relocate the line, the river course was also changed. It used to come straight toward the bridge, from where the track is now. Such earth moving simply was not possible in 1840. When one considers that only two miles of 150 total was relocated when technology allowed, the genius of Whistler becomes evident. The trains you see still cross other examples of these mortar-less bridges here, testimony to their integrity. The average locomotive in 1840 weighed about 12,000 lbs. The latest locomotives of 2002, which traverse arches still in use on this line, weigh in the neighborhood of 415,000 lbs., those bridges showing no ill effects from their crossing. The heaviest locomotives these abandoned arches would have carried are the Pacifics, built in 1903. They sported 75 in. drive wheels and weighed in at 215,000 lbs.

Follow this link to the official web site for the Keystone Arches ……………. Don’t forget to come back!

Royalston

Royalston Falls 45Ft. water falls

Trail: Royalston Falls trail from the Rt. 32 trailhead. 
Date: Jan 31 2010
Attending: Olivia, Simone & john
Miles: 2.2 Time: 2hrs.
Weather: Sunny skies, but COLD!

 

We strongly debated whether or not to hike today or just sit next to the wood stove on this one. I’m glad we opted to give this a try. The trail is a moderate hike just under 1 mile from the parking lot to the falls, but today we ended up having to do 1/2 mile backtrack. The sure way to the falls branches to the left about 2 tenths of a mile from the parking lot, (following the white and yellow blazes.) This path offers a footbridge across the river. (It also passes by the new Falls Brook Shelter, well worth visiting.) The blue dot trail leads directly to the falls but it requires a tricky rock-hopping brook crossing just above the falls. We followed a couple that had successfully hiked this leg of the trail last week, only to find that the brook crossing wasn’t manageable this week because the log they crossed on was gone and there was ice on the rocks that you usually cross on. We had to backtrack back up to the Royalston falls trail split. (No big deal, about .6 round trip of nice moderate hiking.)

“Nature is full of genius, full of the divinity; so that not a snowflake escapes its fashioning hand.”
Henry David Thoreau

Livie loved the hike and climbing around in the shelter so we’re glad we ended up going this way. It was the first time she’d seen an Adirondack hut. (This one has a loft, and is a lot nicer than most.) The falls were just as spectacular as always in the winter and the hike along the river was absolutely beautiful with several small waterfalls along the way.

We’ve done this hike in the winter several times and it’s always the same, (not very heavily traveled and right on the cusp of needing crampons to add a little extra slip protection.) This time we bare booted it. (It was just too cold to mess with putting on the crampons.) The ledges at the falls are well protected with posts and steel cable and rightfully so because it’s always icy on the ledges.

I suspect the reason this trail isn’t very heavily used is because there is another path to the falls on Falls Road, off of Rt. 68 (by Jacobs hill / lookout) and the path is only 3 tenths of a mile to get to the falls,,,, but what fun is that?

On a completely different note! I managed to get my car stuck in a snow bank trying to get ourt of the parking lot at the trailhead. Of course there was no cell phone reception. I spent about 30 minutes trying to dig the car out with a windshield scraper while Simone walked 1/3 of a mile up the road to the nearest house to call AAA. The people on the farm graciously offered to come down with their tractor and pull us out. Thank God for nice people!.

Link to the Trustees of Lands Royalston Falls

Holy Spirit-1

I wish to express a few thoughts on the importance of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.

It is vitally critical, and biblically sound that every Christian should seek the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I personally do not assign the same requirements of the evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit being Speaking in Tongues as some do, but I do recognize that there is a difference between being saved (by accepting Jesus as your savoir), and being Baptized in the Holy Spirit. I consider this to be the true Born Again, or “Penticostal” experience. Do not underestimate the importance of every Christian moving beyond operating in ones own capacity to function in this world, into a greater state of living in the fullness of the Holy Spirit, and functioning in the Spiritual world.

It occurs to me that I should try to define what this term “Baptism of the Holy Spirit” means. (At least for me.)

==================

• It is not just, “Trying to be a better Christian”. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a power in your life that gives you strength to do God’s works beyond the natural will and motives of man.

Scripture says,,, Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.
If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God.
If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides…

Speaking Gifts Serving Gifts
Word of Wisdom Faith
Word of Knowledge Healing
Prophesy Miraculous powers
Tongues Service
Interpretation Discernment
Apostle Helps
Teacher Administration
Encouragement Giving
Leadership Mercy
Evangelist
Pastor-teacher

• It is not an event. It is a change of life focus that is a continual learning and evolving / transforming Christ centered force in a person’s life.
• It is not a possession (your skill, your talent or your intellect.) Although you may have these things, The Holy Spirit is a person; He is the person of God doing His will & work through your abilities, and beyond your abilities.
• The Holy Spirit does not “take control” of your life, but he does lead and direct people to constantly be open to doing God’s work in our lives.
• We do not receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit as a reward for having “Cleaned up the sin in our lives”. Rather we receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit when we open our hearts and minds to the Christ life, (Which by default rejects a life focused on sin, and genuinely seeks to please God. Through a righteous life.) Once we are on the right path,,, we then must be willing to surrender our own wicked nature, and intentionally choose to turn over the direction of our lives to the Holy Spirit.
• The Baptism of the Holy Spirit does not make us “So heavenly minded that we are no earthly good.” That’s just someone who wants worldly recognition for his or her appearance of holiness.
• The Baptism of the Holy Spirit does not just happen. We have to want him to come into our life! (Not for our own purposes). We have to be willing to put on God’s mantle of righteousness, and understand the consequences and responsibilities (good and bad) of our choice.
• Last but not least,,, many people do speak in tongues. At the very least,,, speaking in tongues is a sign that we are willing to release control over our lives, and allow God to take control. It is a voluntary choice on your part to intentionally say to God,,, Go ahead, I’m ready, Take me and use me supernaturally.
• The Holy Spirit will never lead you to stand on your front lawn twirling a dead cat above your head, and clucking like a chicken,,,, (I really felt foolish doing that.)

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I have known many great Christians, that are very truly Christian by every sense of the word; but by false teaching, or personal conviction, they do not accept and recognize the difference of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. I do not doubt or question their complete dedicated conviction to Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, and in many cases, I am easily put to shame by their Christian works and great faith. Nor do I imply any question as to their state of Salvation. In the natural world, this speaks only to their great credit and depth of their love for Jesus Christ, that they have been able to achieve so much of the Lords work in their own strength. But in the spiritual world of good and evil, flesh and bone cannot win or even fight the spiritual battles in the warfare that we Christians must overcome in our own personal trials, and in our society.

The church MUST accept, as it’s number one objective, to operate in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, the church is no more than any other well meaning, benevolent organization. (When I say “the church”, I mean God’s people (individual and corporate). When I say “fullness of the Holy Spirit”, I mean a true Pentecostal Baptism of the Holy Spirit of the members of the body of Christ.) Most modern churches in America today (Christians, individuals and corporately) are little more than “bless-me clubs” of gatherings of individuals that have had a real revelation of Christ Jesus as their Savior (enough to effect a positive influence on their lives,) but fall far short of operating in the fullness of the Holy Spirit.

Without question I am absolutely convinced that the increasingly depraved condition of western civilization is in direct correlation to decline of the number of members of the church that have never experienced and do not operate in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. And I am even more convinced that in that lack, every day that Jesus delays in His triumphant return, Christian moral influence on our society (even Christianity itself) looses ground to the ravages of evil and worldliness. If the church today does not recognize it’s lack of, and need for the real Holy Spirit filled life in it’s individual members, I am certain that there is very little left to restrain the evil one from gaining un-bridled reign over our land. Wickedness, deceitfulness, selfishness, hate and corruption are the curse that rules our land and plagues all mankind, (Christian and Non-Christian alike.)

It is the single most important purpose of the church, to shine the light of Jesus into the world through the witness of the Holy Spirit. And how will the true followers of Christ Jesus be known??? Through the fruit of the Holy Spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness. Without the baptism of the Holy Spirit the witness of the church, (however well meaning it might be) is nothing more than the wickedness of man trying to be the best it can be. A terribly flawed and week substitute for the real power of the living God flowing through God’s people, and His church. The bible reveals very clearly, the differentiator between Christians and non- Christians is not our good works, not our good intentions, not our devotion to our church, or our dedication to it’s programs, not even our proclamation of Jesus Christ as savior, … But it is the Fruit of the Holy Spirit shown through his believers to the world.

No man can judge another’s motives and actions, but God is not fooled. The measure of the success of a church is not it’s growth rate, not the volume and polish of it’s worship service, not the attendance of it’s various programs, and not even the professionalism of it’s leadership. The true measure of the success of a church is the evidence of the Fruit of the Holy Spirit in the members, exhibited to it’s mission field. Brothers and sisters, let’s not be fooled by and settle for the appearance of Holiness in our church and our lives. God isn’t! Well-intentioned men and women following proven techniques and achieving a full and enjoyable church experience can easily accomplish the business of the church. Even though the result of such a venture does and will benefit those who participate in this experience,,, so it is for many secular organizations. Look inside any Rotary club, 4H, Knights of Columbus, Lions, Veterans, and endless other organizations and you will find people united in work, cause, and purpose; people respecting and befriending and caring for each other, and people genuinely enjoying time spent with each other. And there is no doubt that these organizations greatly benefit their members and the community they serve, but the true church of God has no place among these organizations.

Ben, Jared & Chris,,, All of you are at a place in your lives where you realize that there has got to be more than what you personally have today,,, and, Unfortunately! You are all living in a church period where the church body as a whole,,, has nothing more to offer you than what you already have. This is so disappointing! You know it in your spirit; there is more to the Christian walk than what you see exhibited in the church today. Anybody that reads the bible knows the evidence and power of the Holy Spirit in the life of Paul. Everything that Paul had through the Holy Spirit should be available to us to day. You desire the deeper experience of life in the Holy Spirit, but there is no place in your world where that is the normal, accepted, Christian experience! Right now, you want a genuine Spirit Filled, Holy Ghost relationship with and for Jesus, and there few examples in the church body that can set the standard for you to model yourselves after. For that matter,,, I’m sad to say that if any of you could be magically transported to a time and place where and the church was operating in the fullness of the Holy Spirit, it would be a strange, unfamiliar and uncomfortable experience for you.

The sad reality of the normal Pentecostal Christian church today is that the power of the Holy Spirit is taught, desired, and even mimicked, but the truth is, the true experience of the evidence of the Holy Spirit is rare and unfamiliar in the Western Pentecostal body.

The good news for you is that you don’t have to settle for a life that is limited by the limitations of operating under the power and strength of the human will and understanding. You already have half the battle won!!! YOU WANT MORE!
The main reason people don’t have more Holy Spirit power in their lives is because they really DON’T want more. They’re happy with things just the way they are. It’s comfortable! It’s normal! It’s expected! It’s manageable! They’re still in control! They really don’t want to throw themselves into the real river of living waters and let themselves be swept away in the flood of God’s power, in God’s direction, in God’s absolute will and control of their lives. That’s scary! God just might not want the same things for you that you want!

You don’t have to look to the person sitting next to you in the church pew and settle for the same mediocre Christian walk as them… You can, and should, and by faith expect God to respond, (Like Elisha did with Elijah) look at the most spiritual person you have ever known,,, and ask God for a double portion of His Holy Spirit and Power than that person has. ASK FOR THAT!!! GOD! I WANT TWICE AS MUCH AS THEM! IF YOU”LL DO THAT FOR ME,,, I”LL DO ANYTHING FOR YOU!

Your futures are bright and full of potential, but with the fullness of God’s Holy Spirit in your lives there is no limit to the wonders you will be part of, and no limit to the joy of knowing that you will be part of working God’s will on earth as it is in Heaven.

Easter Sunrise 2014

Another wonderful Easter sunrise on top of Mt. Wachusett!

My Sunrise service message:

Who do you say I am?

John 11:25–26, “Jesus said … ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die'”.

I’ve prepared this card with the three crosses of Calvary on it for you. I’d like for each of you to have one this morning.

Please forgive me if this Easter Sun-rise Service message sounds more like a Good Friday message than a Resurrection morning message. Believe me, I have struggled with this morning’s message for several weeks but every attempt to compose any other message than the one I will be sharing this morning just turned into a train wreck.

This simple little ideogram, so common to the Christian faith represents the fundamental question of Christ to all of mankind.

Lets look at this icon from the perspective of the scriptures.

We find the account in Luke 23:39-44
One of the criminals hanging beside Jesus scoffed, “So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!” But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”
And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

This morning I want to impress upon you the thought that, the three crosses on the hill of Calvary are the most important icon known to modern man:

• The question presented by this image divided all mankind into one of two camps from that moment forward, into eternity.

I love this image because of the way its simplicity asks the one true question Christ asks of every man.
— It cannot be polluted with our own interpretations. —– It denies religious dogma. ——– It rejects any hint of salvation through self-righteousness.

And more importantly! Everyone that has ever lived or ever will live will have to answer the question it asks. It won’t be denied an answer!

The scripture that supports this is found in Philippians 2: at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
(For some this proclamation will be a shout of rejoicing in a confession of faith, but for others, it will be a hopeless utterance of ultimate condemnation.)

I want to take a moment and look at what the scripture regarding the two men that died that day with Christ is telling us.

Two men hanging on crosses along side of Jesus. Both men exactly in the same situation: Rightfully convicted of their sins, & condemned to die. (In reality,,,, that is exactly where each of us have either have been, or currently are right now. Rightfully convicted of our sins, & condemned to die.)

(We have to ask ourselves,,, If God wanted us to only focus on the Sacrifice of His son on the cross for the sins of the world,,, Why then did He orchestrate this distraction of having these two sinners on the scene at that day?) Surely they’re not there to comfort Jesus! They’re there for us! Two actors on God’s Stage fulfilling one last act in their lives to teach us something of vital importance.

The Scripture tells us that, one man openly rejects Jesus; boldly scoffing and mocking the Son of God.
The other man rightly admits and publicly confesses his condition of guilt and sin. He understands the verse, “For the wages of sin is death.” And he makes no justification for his life. His heart and his spirit recognize that Jesus is the sinless Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world.

He says no sinner’s prayer,
He makes no reparations for his sins,
He meets no condition of sanctification,
He satisfies no criteria of salvation save this:

A conviction of his condition of sin.
An acceptance of his being deserving of punishment.
A repentant heart.
A confession of faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God.
And a humble request of Jesus to save his soul.

The Question that this symbol asks every man, is asked by Jesus of the disciples in Luke 9:
” One day Jesus left the crowds to pray alone. Only his disciples were with him, and he asked them, “Who do people say I am?” “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say you are one of the other ancient prophets risen from the dead.”
Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”
Peter replied, “You are the Messiah, sent from God!” ”

“At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light, And the burden of my heart rolled away,_It was there by faith I received my sight, And now I am happy all the day!”

I want you to encourage you to slow down for just a moment and really think about this next paragraph:

Can you imagine the pain and suffering, the hopelessness and despair of being nailed to a cross? To be hanging on the cross, convicted and condemned for your sins; with the memory of your life before you as you see all the opportunities you had to make different choices than you had, to do something different than you did, to have been someone else than you were…
With death only moments away ……

And for nothing more than the final utterance of a dying man asking for mercy,,,,, Can you imagine the relief, the peace, the overwhelming Joy of total forgiveness and unconditional grace.

To hear the words of this savior, of this God, of Christ Jesus himself, saying, to YOU….
“I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

If you have never experienced this truth of total forgiveness and unconditional grace for yourself; Or if through the riggers of life and time you have forgotten how wonderful it was the moment the burdens of your heart were rolled away; I want to offer you the opportunity to begin your life anew, here and now. I want to offer you a chance to begin living a different life than you’re living now, to make different choices than you are making now, to be someone other than who you are now. To start a new life living in Paradise with Jesus walking with and talking with you, every moment of every day; (As God always intended it to be.)

Who do you say Jesus is?

Forget your sins.
Set aside your pride.
There is nothing we can do to earn even one ounce of God’s grace in the gift of salvation. The work of our salvation was begun and completed that day 2000 years ago on the cross upon which our savior died.

Father:
With a repentant heart we accept that Jesus is your Son, sent to earth to live and die for us. We ask you now to wash us of all our sins and set us free to live our life with you in paradise, starting from this day forward, for all eternity.

I want to offer a challenge to each of us. At some point, by the Holy Spirit’s leading, pass on to someone the card I gave you with this simple image of the three crosses of Calvary.

*** May God Bless ***
John & Simone Chicoine

Christmas 2013

A Christmas Message from us to you;

The greatest miracle of Christmas Day is not that God gave us his only begotten son, the Lamb of God which takes away the sins of the world; God had planned to do so from the beginning of mankind. It’ not that this child was born of a virgin, or that God hung a star in the heavens to point the way to him, nor the heavenly choir of angles that proclaimed his arrival.

The greatest miracle of Christmas Day is that this very child born 2000 years ago is still alive today and he extends to all of us the greatest gift ever given to any man. The gift of Himself to us, that we might know Him as our friend, our comforter and our savior. That through His Holy Bible he speaks to every-one that has ears to listen, and with the filling of His Holy Spirit we are made alive in Him.

The great mystery of the ages is not that over the last 2000 years so many have accepted him as their Lord and savior, or that so many have been born again to live a new life full of love, purpose, and hope. It’s not that even to this day men give their hearts to Him, and commit to sharing their life with Him and living their life for Him: it’s that so many still only know Him as an ancient religious figure to be debated, or rejected.

Our prayer is that we will all make the time this busy Christmas season to throw open the door of our hearts that we may be personally swept away by the wonderful touch of Jesus’ love, and that His Holy Spirit would make us ALIVE in HIM.

*** May God Bless ***
John & Simone

Just Walk

Just walk.

Lately I’ve been obsessed with the thought of living life with a purpose. I don’t feel like I’ve done a bad job with the purpose and ministry of my life so far, but I want more. I want to look forward to waking up every morning knowing I have a purpose, (more than just sustaining my own life.). And I want to lay my head on the pillow at night feeling like my life meant something measurable to the people I touched. So, when Pastor Risto mentioned that our church would be manning a prayer tent at the Relay For Life,,, I thought, ”I can do that”. I didn’t (I never do) sign up for any specific detail. I don’t like to commit to anything I might not be able to fulfill.

All day Friday I thought about what and how to pray for people at the Relay for Life. I tried to consider what any individual might need. Late Friday afternoon I printed up ten copied of Horatio Spafford’s It is Well With My Soul : (I’ll copy it here because although many people sing this old Hymn and it’s fairly well known, it’s seldom read as a message, as a prayer.

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to know,a
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Refrain:
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life,
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
But Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul.
And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
A song in the night, oh my soul!

I sealed each copy in a plastic baggie to keep them safe from the rain and tucked them away for the night. My plan was to give all ten copies to someone.

I figured I’d join the late night crew, suspecting that if an extra body was needed, it might be then. Of course,,, a hurricane had to be passing through New England on Friday Night. I got to the field a little after 9:00 at night and started wandering around looking for the prayer tent. I noticed nobody was walking! I thought maybe there was a lightening warning or something. (Turns out everybody was attending a special ceremony.) I eventually found my way to the prayer tent next to the track and joined the small handful of people manning the 9:00 to 10:00 shift. After a short while of introductions and acquaintance pleasantries, a Bagpipe marching procession passed by the tent followed by the Relay for Life participants. We all stood by, watching the people pass by, ready to pounce on anybody that might wish to wander into the prayer tent. (This has no reflection on anybody there, but “I” kinda felt like a used car salesman on Saturday afternoon.) Fortunately for me, nobody was scheduled to man the tent between 10PM Friday night and 9AM Saturday.

As the last person in the procession passed by the tent, I grabbed my bottle of water and stepped in behind the crowd. I started to walk. As the crowd stretched out over the 1/4mile track I began to get swept up into the process of walking. Silently I began to pray and I was content just to walk. It felt good, just to support those people in unity and solidarity, people that were there for a reason. Maybe it was because they were personally connected to the disease through their own affliction, or the affliction of a loved one or friend. They belonged there. I didn’t. But I wanted to belong. I could at least support them in their cause. After a lap or two I settled into my pace.

After a while I noticed that my pace began to match a couple of middle aged women that were walking alongside of me, so after a moment or two I said hello. “How you doing on this fine night for ducks?” After a few short exchanges related to the weather and the rain, I asked, “How long are you walking for?” again more pleasant banter, and the details of this years and past year’s commitments (All the while keeping pace with the walking.) Eventually I asked, “Are you walking for anyone in particular?” By this time I probably had walked in sync with them for at least a lap or more. When asked why I was walking I had very little to offer except that I was responding to an offer by my Pastor to come out pray with and for the people walking in this Relay For Life. I just wanted to support the people that were making this effort with a little company, conversation and prayer. I wanted to walk with them.

Inevitably every person I spent time with that evening had a story they wanted to share. I walked, I listened, and in the silent moments, I prayed silently. ONCE AGAIN, WHAT A FOOL I WAS. To think I was going there to bless them! In their own unique way, every one of them showed the character and strength of the army of God. The first lady I walked with was walking for her 27 year old daughter who had been struggling with cancer for several years. Her daughter is doing very well right now, and as it turns out,,, she is joining Cornerstone Church on their Mission trip to Hattie this summer. Small World.

Over the course of Friday night and Saturday I walked with several of the cancer survivors. (wearing a Survivors tee shirt.) People that were walking for themselves, and for their friends, the people they met along the process of their treatments that were either still in the trenches of the fight and those they knew that didn’t make it. One remarkable 75 year old lady from Athol that was grateful for chance to walk this year. It was her first time participating in the opening Survivors ceremony,,, after surviving her third cancer struggle over the last 15 years, the last of which was just last year. Time and time again walkers were happy to share their time, their stories and their faith with me. She challenged me to come out and watch her walk the survivors walk next year. She challenged me to much more than that.

At one point I joined up with an elderly gentlemen that was walking with a pronounced and obviously painful limp as he was clearly struggling to take every step. I reached out to help him along the way and opened my introduction with. “It looks like the miles are beginning to take their toll on you.” He looked at me and replied. “I Just started! I’m walking for my son that passed away from cancer 7 years ago. He was 37 years old. My wife and I used to walk every year for the last 7 years. She passed away last year and I promised her I’d walk for our son this year. It’s gona hurt for a week or so, but I figure I have at least 4 laps in me.” I don’t think it ever occurred to him that he wasn’t going to do it. After our first lap together he dismissed himself and headed for a bench on the side of the track. Over the next hour or so I’d see him along the way or taking a break on the bench at each completion of another lap.

Just a few tents down from the prayer tent there was a tent labeled, “Fueled by Faith”. On Friday night when I was looking for the Prayer tent, I thought their tent might be the one I was looking for. On Friday night I walked a few laps with a man about my age wearing a Fueled by Faith tee shirt. He told me that he had been doing this since the first Relay for Life 20 years ago. His extended family does this event as an annual family re-union. They rent a large canvas tent and brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews all get together to raise money and walk for the cause. 20 years ago their aunt (long since passed away) was diagnosed with cancer so the family did the only thing they knew they could do for her; They walked. Since then several other members of the family has struggled through their own battles of the disease. Some won, some not. I caught up with him again on Saturday. The last time I saw him he was on mile eleven of his intended fifteen.

Just before the rain began to soak us down on Friday night I walked with a lady that brought her smart phone along to walk and shop. She was surfing the net and playing games as she walked her miles. (A definite 30 something.) In an effort to raise as much money as she could, she committed to her donors that she would walk for a dollar a mile and that she was going to walk as much as she could over the entire 24 hours. She was walking alone for her 59 year old cousin, just up the street at Heywood Hospital; coping with very aggressive chemo treatments attempting to halt the progression of stage-4 cancer. The chemo was working well to attack the cancer, but the doctors were going to have to back off on the treatments because the intensive level of chemo was killing him. She was walking for the long-hall having started at the opening ceremony and intending to walk as many miles a she could possibly take through to the closing bell. At one point she mentioned she was hoping to walk 18 miles.

I walked with several men (each walking alone.) in their late seventies who had lost their wives to cancer. One lost his wife last fall and the other just two months ago. Again, both of these men walked with their wives in the Relay of Life throughout the years. This was their first year walking alone. It seems a common theme for the elderly men who I met that were walking. Walking through life Alone. The man that had lost his wife last fall had come down from Canada a lifetime ago to work in the furniture boom of Gardner Mass. They adopted two sons and made their home in town. Now, with both sons living far away, and all his extended family in Canada, he spends a lot of time alone. The one that had just lost his wife, talked about being alone a lot. For 51 years he always had his wife to talk to, and goes to her grave every day to continue the conversation. He was still really busy processing all the paperwork and trying to adjust his finances to just one Social Security check. His wife’s passing from brain cancer was difficult for both of them, and although he had a good relationship with his neighbors, he seemed grateful to just have someone to walk and talk to for a while. I intentionally stayed with him for 4 laps but by the end of the 4’th lap I was feeling really sore. (I’d been walking for three hours without a break.) I have no idea how many times I walked the loop. Both men came to this event to this event alone, they walked alone, and all they really wanted was not to be alone.

One couple I walked with on Friday night, Rick and Joy, two friends walking in the rain in memory of Risk’s wife. Rick had recently lost his wife to cancer within the last six months. If I had to guess, Rick was very close to my age. His wife was diagnosed with a very aggressive cancer that took her life in just 4 months time. At one point when his wife was first diagnosed they discussed walking at the Relay for Life together, but they had no idea she would pass so fast. I made the mistake of expressing sympathy that his wife could not be there to share this effort with them, without hesitation Rick corrected me that his wife was absolutely there with them sharing every moment of this experience. Rick shared with me a lot about how he processed through his wife’s passing, and his emotional struggles since her passing. When I handed Joy and Rick the copy of, “It is well with my Soul” I took a moment to share Horatio Spafford’s story about writing this Hymn.. He glanced through the first stanza of the song and looked at me and said, I think Sweet Adeline used to sing this song, she loved to sing and play piano.

I never did hand out all ten copies of Horatio Spaford’s Hymn, but I believe the ones I did hand out are in the hands that God wanted them in.

I guess in the strict definition of Pentecostal prayer, I failed the traditional model.

I gave up my agenda and got into theirs.

Royal Ranger, Grasping at Straws…

I am not ashamed of how I feel.

Future of Royal Rangers, (Actually,,, the current Royal Rangers.)

Here I go again on one of my rants about the changes in the Royal Ranger program.

Every time I learn about the latest plans of Royal Rangers lowering the bar in the name of keeping up with the times and competing with the enticements of the world on today’s kids, my stomach turns with disgust. And what’s worse!!! I seem to be learning new things at every Wednesday night meeting. It’s like we can’t dumb this program down fast enough to stop the bleeding of boys migrating away from this Royal Rangers, so we’re desperately throwing the baby out with the bath water. The problem isn’t the boys!!! It’s the men!

We tell everybody, (And ourselves) we stopped challenging the boys to high adventure scouting because; “It’s just not what the boys are into anymore”. Bull-sh@#! The truth is we stopped challenging the boys to high adventure scouting because the men in the program just don’t have the interest, the time, gear, and the skills to deliver it to the boys on a regular schedule at the outpost level! We abandoned real scouting! In the name of “Spiritual Mentoring”, (As if you can’t accomplish both through developing a person’s character in a scouting based program!) High Adventure used to mean things like, spelunking, multi-day backpacking trips, 100 mile bike rides, White-water adventures, and other activities that required real knowledge, and challenged a group of people to work together to reach their outer limits. Something that stood out from the normal, that a boy / man, could feel real pride of accomplishment in knowing only a few good men could do what they did. I’m talking about real pride for real accomplishment. Not all this empty accolade for half baked efforts, and sub-par results.

(I can’t wait to listen to this next generation of Royal Rangers 15 years from now; Reminiscing on Facebook, “Remember how we used to spend all those weekends sleeping the basement of the church, learning how get in touch with our feelings and playing “I’m OK, You’re OK” games? That was really cool!!!!” ) Wanna see a picture of my Gold medal???

We stopped challenging the boys to step up their game and deliver a real effort, on their own time, in the form of home-work, with their parents involvement, because the men in the program just don’t have the interest, the time, the knowledge, and the skills to motivate the boys on a regular schedule at the individual level! Now,,,, we’re happy if we can get the boys to write down the answers to the questions WE WRITE OUT ON THE WHITE BOARD FOR THEM! It’s like it’s our hardest part of our nightly activity just to manage to break through that glazed over “I’m bored” dumb, emotionless, stare, because we don’t present our program feature on a 2” X 4” screen. God Forbid we ask the boys to actually bring anything to the table, (other than their cell phones!) Once again!!!! The problem is US! Like it’s some big deal for a Royal Ranger Commanders just to show up and do something!!! We can’t really expect Royal Ranger Commanders to invest a couple of hours before each Wednesday night meeting preparing something really challenging, and engaging for the boys to participate in! REMEMBER when we ran the canoe merit at the camp several years ago! Huge effort, Huge commitment on the part of three commanders…. Did we have any complaints from the boys that “We’re Bored!!!” Did we have kids dropping out then! I have a novel idea!!! If a boy is too dam lazy, or can’t be bothered to invest some kind of effort into any real scouting types of activities, into any real character building challenges,,, MAYBE HE’S NOT GMA MATERIAL!

I get sick when I keep hearing commanders extolling the virtues of a Royal Ranger Program that hands out Gold Medal of Achievements like Happy Meal prizes, and boasts (as the Great New Vision) how a boy can earn his GMA and never leave the classroom. THAT”S NOT SCOUTTING, (But that’s not what we are, We’re not a scouting organization! Are we?); And that’s not how we’re going to raise up a new generation of real leaders! That’s how we’re going to raise up another generation of men that can’t be asked to invest anything of their time, talent (that they never developed), and money to the next generation, because they’ve never experienced it for themselves. How the helllll can we ever expect these young boys to take a Godley position in their own families?
( Here’s a telling statistic,,, In 2013, 73% of all graduates of higher education were women! God knows there is no other voice in our Pentecostal world that shouts louder “You Go Girl!” than mine… But! What’s happening to the men in our 2013 world??? That statistic is a direct reflection of the dumbing down of our society’s men and lowering of expectation of our young boys. AND ROYAL RANGERS IS PLAYING DIRECTLY INTO THAT MENTALITY! ) Girls aren’t just easily excelling! They are simply stepping into the void left behind by week boys, failing to rise up and fulfill God’s calling and place in this world for them. And we won’t even tell them about their roll, let alone require it of them.

In the company of most commanders, I’m beginning to feel as though I have to hide the fact that I am now or ever was a Scouting focused, Royal Ranger Commander that used the fundamental principles and scouting activities to weave into a person’s character such arcane concepts of Self Respect, (In light of God’s value on one’s life.) Self Confidence, (in light of accomplishing God’s plan for one’s life.) and Self Awareness (in light of Gods living Holy Spirit working out His plan for this world through us.) Scouting has become a dirty word, and real scouting skills and experiences, pornography. God help us all when we manage to extinguish the spirit of Johnny Barns, for the spirit of Angry Birds.

I like the material in Leadership merits! It’s great stuff and it has its place, (As a complete merit, or integrated into each of the other merits.) But none of that material “requires” Royal Rangers to gut the scouting aspect of the program, and none of that material “requires” dumbing down the program to the lowest intellectual level of the average inner-city boy; And the laziest academic level of any boy that might attend. If a boy has special needs or has real difficulty completing the academic riggers of the GMA, then by all means,,, “exceptions” should be made. But designing the entire program so that any/every 12 year old boy can complete a GMA, takes the “Achievement” part of the award out of it. I can’t accept that any but the most exceptional, spiritually mature 12 year old boy earning the GMA will even know what the acronym stands for; Let alone even be mature enough to comprehend the mental, physical and spiritual intent of what the GMA used to, and should continue to represent.

The one good thing the new program required was the Capstone project. A spiritually and mentally challenging 8 week Christian maturity focused journey that put the spiritual and Christian habits and even the best Royal Ranger Commander’s to shame. The intensity of the 8 week Capstone program required the participants to literally refocus their lives from the ground up for 8 weeks. The Capstone project was not humanly possible to complete. It required Super Human effort, It REQUIRED the Holy Spirit. And that was it’s death nail. It required something hard, from its mentors, and from the boys. Boys and Girls all over the world are using the Fire Bible Capstone Project 8 week program to ignite a real spiritual awakening. But not Royal Rangers; They backed away from, and scuttled the program completely before day one! I know why! It was too much to “require” it was too much to expect, it was too much to ask,,, from the commanders to properly mentor the boys for 8 weeks.

Now we’re “re-vamping PowWow. Well it’s about time. PowWow has been losing ground and interest for ten+ years. Ever since we’ve stopped expecting the supernatural manifestations of the Living God to move over the crowd and take control. No wonder the commanders have been complaining about the weekend being nothing more than running from disappointing event after disappointing event. Waiting in line for 45 minutes at the archery event for one completely frazzled commander to have the boys shoot $5 toy bows with broken arrows at plywood targets. Or maybe the event where we have the boys run a stick from one end of the field to another… Real top notch events to inspire and challenge the boys. It’s ten years and more since we’ve needed to change PowWow, But of course what else can we expect… Instead of asking commanders to step up to the challenge and upgrade the events to activities like real Seneca runs, Ropes courses, real guns on the gun range, or real bows in the archery course; Were turning PowWow into a rip roaring “Play Date”. Just another custom made event for fat old commanders huddled around each other, bloviating about all the high adventure activities they used to have when they were 14 years old in Boy Scouts 50 years ago..
Needless to say,,, I have no idea how much longer I can force myself to stomach this castration of the program, in the name of whatever it is we are trying to accomplish. Once these 4 GMA boys fade away from the program, I’m just not sure I’m much of a good fit for the New Royal Rangers. I don’t even have the “Gold Medal requirements” to use as leverage to develop a mentoring relationship with a small handful of boys with their eyes on real Gold. At some point I can see myself just gravitating to people, young or old, male or female of like mind and spirit that value the same values of Excellence, Holiness and caring for God’s gift of Life and all that sustains it.

Pink Hair

John Chicoine published a note.
February 17, 2012

Pink Hair!

I overheard a conversation between two people discussing a young girl that had colored her hair bright pink.  This girl with the bright pink hair was working at the mall as a cashier and when asked by a patron “Why” she colored her hair bright pink, she quickly replied, “I did it so you would remember me”.  She then followed her response with, “when you go home tonight, you probably won’t remember anybody else you saw here today, but you’ll remember me! I color my hair like this because I’m not one of these cookie cutter girls that just came off the assembly line just like all the rest of the other girls.”

 

At first, you might think, “That’s pretty cool! This kid’s really got it going on.” But let’s examine this event just a little bit closer, in light of this thought:          It’s not important that someone remembers you. What’s really important is what someone remembers you for.

 

Standing out from the crowd, being different, being ones own self, and all of these similarly admirable ideals are unquestionably worthy goals. But! Unfortunately, so many boys and girls these days are under the ridiculous belief that such superficial attempts to be a unique and valuable individual as the color of ones hair, the cut of ones clothes, the group of friends they associate with, the movies they watch, the music they listen to, and the number of Facebook friends they have, is of real consequence!

 

Never would they consider such old fashioned values like hard work, exemplary character, Godly living, civility, humility, self confidence, and distinguishing themselves by dedicating themselves to a worthy cause, or excelling an any particular discipline, as a means of separating themselves from the herd.

 

Maybe if that pink haired girl had tried to distinguish herself by being an extraordinarily pleasant, or helpful, or efficient, or competent cashier. Maybe if she was a little more concerned about representing the store in a positive light and reflecting the store-owner’s values a little more. Maybe if she spent a bit more time making sure her employer was more profitable, or had more repeat customers because they had such a positive shopping experience because of this girls effort! Maybe then, our society might not have to settle for and be so impressed by her superficial, meaningless, self-centered attempt to be remembered.

 

jdc

Wake

John Chicoine published a note.
January 29, 2010 ·

“ You are responsible for your wake.” (River Trip Lesson 2007)

Last year while I was vacationing in a small ocean harbor town on the coast of Maine. I noticed a sign that the harbormaster posted on a pylon at the opening of the harbor. It simply read, “ You are responsible for your wake.” Just as I read that, the Spirit of the Lord began to reveal the Biblical Truths of that warning.

This principle applies to everyone whether they are Christian‘s or not! Sometimes people go through life as though they’ll never have to answer for their actions. They carelessly and recklessly barge through the harbor of life leaving chaos and destruction wherever they’ve been. They don’t care who they hurt. They only weigh the consequences of what they do in light of how it benefits them.

Let me give you a few quick examples of this, and pray that the Holy Spirit shine His light in the darkened rooms of our hearts.

People make promises, and break them for almost no substantial reason….

People lie and cheat to get ahead…

People think only about what best for themselves… (As long as I get mine first!)

People manipulate other people and hurt other peoples feeling and emotions.

People build themselves up, by tearing down others.

The list goes on forever….

“The sad truth is”… that we all have done many of these things at one time or another,,, Regardless of how young or old we are!!! And we’re all likely to continue to do it. It’s part of the curse,,, It’s part of that sin nature that is in all of us, and all around us. Eve did it to Adam the moment she sinned, Cane did it to Able trying to please God. It’s part of the foolishness of Human nature…

“The bad news is,,,,”

As Christians it’s simply not acceptable in the eyes of God. The Bible is full of warnings against actions that hurt other people. Strong Warnings against actions that could be so subtle that they might almost go completely unnoticed but for the person we have offended. At one point the Bible even says that it would be better to have a mill stone tied around our neck and be thrown into the sea if we even cause one “child of God to stumble in his faith.”

This weekend, it’s probably already happened to almost every body here. You’ve either been the receiver, or the perpetrator. Someone’s laughed at another’s person’s mistake, making them feel small or stupid. Someone has snubbed someone else for not being cool, for not dressing “right” for not acting like them. Someone knows more about something than another person and considers themselves “better” then the other people. Sometimes it’s SO SUBTLE!!! No one “snickers” by accident, no one gossips about somebody without intent, “rolling your eyes” at or about someone isn’t an uncontrolled response. It goes on so often that I can’t speak or even imagine how often it’s happened just today, just between us.

What are we to do then? The human spirit is so fragile that even at this very moment, by delivering this message I could be offending someone here.

The answer to our predicament is not a simple one… It’s impossible for anyone to go through life measuring every action and trying to calculate what effect we might be having on another person.

No,,, The answer to our predicament is not a simple one at all; BUT THAT”S NOT AN EXCUSE TO KEEP ON DOING IT! We are not caught against our will in a hopeless trap of continually carelessly crashing through life leaving sinking and drowning people strewn in our wake…

First! We gotta, wanna,,,, We gotta wanna let the Holy Spirit open our eyes to this sin and let the Holy Spirit show us the truth about ourselves. We Gotta wanna begin to care about how our actions effect other people, and we gotta wanna be willing to make the sacrifices it will take to consider other people first, before we act. It has to become a desire of our heart regardless of what it may cost us to follow Christ’s example… It’s requires a fundamental change of character. If we only knew… If we could see what Jesus sees,,, The Bible says about Jesus: Isaiah 42:3 He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. He will bring justice to all who have been wronged. Jesus was very aware of his wake!

Next! It take awareness, We have help here,,, The Bible tells us that if we become “aware” of the Holy Spirit in out lives, He will convict us of our sins, past, present, and future! We have to begin to see ourselves in light of a connected web of people and people’s feelings. Everywhere we go we are connected to a complex web of people. Sometimes all we need to do is talk to one another to avoid hurting each other.

In our families ….
With our friends ….
At school ….
At work ….
At church ….

Lastly, It’s about our motives. It’s about truthfully examining our inner motives. It’s about understanding why we are we doing what we do? Sometimes we do both good and bad things for all the wrong reasons.

Sometimes, we are shaped by pride! : I’ve see boys actually earn their Gold Medal of achievement, not for inner rewards, but for the outward accolade it got them.

Sometimes we are driven by greed! : I know men and women who rally behind a humanitarian cause, only to try to line their pockets with favors and gold.

Sometimes we are consumed by lust! : I’ve watched men ride to the top of their church, leading millions to follow Christ, and leading millions more away from Him, all for the lust for power, wealth, fame, and flesh.

Sometimes we are tickled by arrogance! : I’ve known men so vain that the light that they thought shown through them to the world, blinded their own eyes to their selfish motives never seeing the pain and suffering they brought upon those around them.

The Bible tells us that no one can see the motives of another’s heart, but it’s very clear that the Holy Spirit can, and that all will be revealed in the fullness of time. That which is hidden shall be seen and that our deeds, large or small, good or bad will be revealed to us in the end.

Yes indeed,,,, We are responsible for our wakes.

It’s time we all begin to become aware of them.