Travel Day - Pender, Nebraska to Wichita, Kansas

Long, long day and short, short post. 

I rolled out of bed at 6:00 to get an early start but the weather had different ideas. That was quite a storm. There have been several times that I had to hook up in the middle of a storm but this morning I had choices and I chose to wait out.

The sun came out a few hours later and we hooked up the trailer, loaded up the car and hit the road.

Fast forward 400 miles through the absolutely beautiful scenery in Nebraska and Kansas and before we knew it we were pulling into Wichita. We dropped the trailer at New Horizon, parked the BoggsMobile at Bethany Revival Center, visited a few minutes with friends and then went for supper.

We had never been to this HuHot but Kelly Jo has been craving it for a few days and she was glad to see they had opened one in Wichita. They did not have an ounce of wasabi in the store (What's up with that?) but it was still very, very good.

Odie was smiling so it must have been good!

Good night. God bless you all.

Davy

Fickle Weather and Great Customer Service

Wow! What a toad strangler we had here this morning! In fact we had two nasty looking storm systems blow through Pender, Nebraska before 10:00. Didn't it rain, children, didn't it rain!

The water piled up on Odie's wheel chair cover. 

I was sitting outside early this morning waiting on the tech from Blue Ox to pick up my tow bar. I was reading and had not been paying attention to the sky. Well, the sky opened up and all the water fell out. 

I grabbed my chair and threw it in the car and I rode out that squall in the front seat. It was a wicked storm with lots of huge thunder claps. I took the picture above after that front passed. 

The sun came out, the sky cleared, the temperature went up and then it rained another bucket load all over again. 

Wow! You talk about fickle weather! That reminds me of something Kelly Jo and I have laughed about for years. 

We grew up in southern Ohio and heard people make some version of the following statement all our lives. 

They would say, "The weather in Ohio is different than any where else. If you don't like the weather here just stick around 15 minutes and it will change."

We started traveling soon after we were married and found that folks say that every where. After we heard the same exact statement in about 5 different states it was all we could do to keep from busting out laughing. 

After hearing the same thing in about 30 states from people that absolutely believe in only applies to their area we just chuckle and grin. The weather may be different but people are the same every where.  

This picture is a sample of the pretty weather we have had all afternoon. 

What, you don't like sunshine and blue skies? Well, hang around about 15 minutes. Here in Nebraska, it will probably change! Lol

We are staying in Pender another night. The tech was covered up today with tow bars to work on. On top of that, mine had some special problems they had to deal with. 

Because of that they did not get finished and get me cashed out until about 3:00 PM. We would have been 4:00 leaving so we decided to leave tomorrow. 

They really took care of my tow bar here at the Blue Ox factory. They believe in customer service enough to actually put it into practice. 

My tow bar is too old to be as good as new but it is as close as it has been in a long time. Plus it has a bunch of new parts! The cost? $25 + tax. 

Great service + Great attitude + Great price = A Great Deal. 

I have always liked the Blue Ox towing system and now I have even more reason to like them. I have been a loyal customer but they have cemented that loyalty with great service. 

That is a rarity in today's world. 

Davy

Bethlehem Revival Center

We had a wonderful day with Pastor Joe DiMinico, his family and congregation at Bethlehem Revival Center in Omaha, Nebraska. 

We had not been to Omaha in several years and we were thrilled to get to be there. Bro. Joe and his family have been so faithful to visit revival when we are in Wichita with Bro. DiZazzo. They have scheduled vacation and made that trip several times. 

Bro Joe came to Dryden Rd. Indoor fellowship meeting a few years ago. And in 2011 he came to tent revival in Richton, Mississippi. We have been blessed so much by their efforts to fellowship us. 

I hope we were able to return some of that blessing today. God spoke to us so clearly today and I am very thankful for that. 

We had two surprise visitors from Wichita. Bro. Jason DiMinico

And Bro. Keith Underhill. We should see them again Friday. 

We hope to come back soon for a longer visit. May God bless Bro. Joe, Sis. Alma and all their folks for their fine hospitality to our family. 

Here are a few pictures of the RV Park at the Blue Ox Factory in Pender, Nebraska. It is a beautiful evening. 

You can see the tent trailer parked in the Blue Ox parking lot in this picture below. 

God bless you all. 

Davy

Pender, Nebraska

Not much going on today besides preperation for service tomorrow in Omaha. We are excited about being with Bro. Joe and Sis. Alma DiMinico at Bethlehem Revival Center. 

Although they have been to revival in Wichita several times, it has been a few years since we have been to Omaha. We are expecting great things from God in the service tomorrow. Will you pray for us?

One exciting thing today was the great meal Kelly Jo prepared for supper. It was so good and I am so happily miserable! Sorry, forgot about pictures. 

This is gorgeous country around Pender, Nebraska. The farms are on rolling hills and they go on and on. It is beautiful! I will leave you with a few pictures that KJ took on the way in. 

Davy

Travel Days

These neighbors pulled in to the RV Park this week in North Dakota. I thought the smart care looked pretty cool behind the huge motorhome. The smart car sure was pushing hard.



Tuesday we spent another evening around the campfire. Kelly Jo read a chapter from Robert Hardy's Seven Days and then we roasted hot dogs and Mexican S'mores.

I know you want to see a few pictures of the Mexican S'mores!

Have I said how much I have enjoyed Kelly Jo's cooking this week?

The Green Machine suffered a small injury this week. We were not driving at all. I got in Wednesday morning to run to town and  right in front of my face the windshield was cracked. I could not believe my eyes. It started on the very edge so we must have had a rock hit it on our Canada trip Monday and cracked later. We had not driven on the road at all on Tuesday.

We tried counting how many windshields we have replaced in just the last 15 years but we quickly lost count. I guess we will add one more to the count. I will call ahead to Wichita and see if we can get it replaced there.

Thursday we left Graham's Island State Park about 10:45 and made our way toward Fargo, North Dakota. We had dropped the trailer on our way through Fargo a week ago and we were relieved to find it safe and sound Thursday afternoon.

We hooked up to the trailer and then pulled into the Flying J at Fargo and called it a day. We only traveled 200 miles but it seemed about right. Kelly Jo and the girls needed to do laundry really bad and there was a laundromat about 3 miles away. They were back about 6:00 and we threw the laundry inside and went to get a bite or two to eat.

They spent the evening putting all the clothes away and we read the fifth chapter of Robert Hardy's Seven Days before going to bed.

I know we only traveled 200 miles but what a difference those miles made in our scenery. We went from this...

To this in just 200 miles.



Wow! What a change! But we have spent so much time in truck stops the last 28 years they almost feel like home. Odie says she needs to hear "Shower number 7 is now ready" over the parking lot speaker to be able to sleep good. Poor girl was raised in a car.

We fueled up at Flying J in Fargo this morning (Friday) and pointed south about mid morning. I was planning to drive to Soiux City, Iowa and spend another night in our second home (Flying J).

We were making good time so I decided to see if our stopping place for Saturday night had room for us Friday, and they did. It was only about 125 more miles so we came on in. 

We are near Pender, Nebraska at the Blue Ox Factory RV Park. We have an appointment to have our Blue Ox tow bar serviced first thing Monday morning and they have a campground right here. 

It is a very nice park with 50 amp electric for $15 per night. The even have a few concrete pad sites and they put us in one of those. 

The tow bar is what I use to pull the Green Machine behind the BoggsMobile. I have used it five years and it is in pretty sad shape. 

We are supposed to be in Omaha Sunday and Pender is almost right on the way. They offer factory service for $25 so I thought it was worth a try to see if they can help it. We will remain parked here and drive the car to Omaha Sunday. 

This is absolutely beautiful farm country. Kelly Jo took some pictures on the way in but we have very little phone service. I am not even sure if I will be able to post what I have written. I guess we will all know soon enough. 

Thanks for reading. 

Davy

OK, Davy, How Are You Really Doing?

OK, Davy, How are you really doing?

Please indulge me a little personal time to answer that question.

I sure appreciate all of the genuine inquiries as to how we are coping with our forced exile in North Dakota. Several folks have taxt (past tense for text), called and some have emailed.

If you do not know what I am talking about you can catch up HERE?

They have read the blog, heard me say all the right things and are glad to know we are in a safe place and that we doing OK.

But friends want to know, Davy, how are you really doing? Do you have diesel? Do you have money for food? How big of a hole is this going to put you in?

First of all, thank you very much. I appreciate your concern. It is very nice to be loved. I have had friends and family offer to send us money right away. In fact, at least two friends have called without even knowing about the cancellation and have immediately offered to help if we needed it.

You do not know how much your offers mean to me even though I have not accepted them. God bless you for it. God knows there have been times when it was different.

There have been literally dozens of times that we have traveled a long distance to preach revival and arrived without enough money in our pockets or in the bank to buy Happy Meals for the three of us. We made it just fine in those times and I trust we will make it just fine this time by God’s grace.

We planned this trip as a mission endeavor from the beginning. We had no specific money given for this trip but we have saved for it. We wanted to help the Martin’s with some of their expenses and we wanted to have an offering for the local church as well. We wanted to have enough fuel money to get us from Washington, Illinois to North Dakota and then down to Wichita, Kansas. Even though we were not fully funded in all of these things, we were close enough that we will survive, barring any big surprises.

It overwhelms me that so many have asked and offered to help. I know that many were not offering help out of excess funds but you were willing to do without in order to bail us out. God bless you for that. As I have told several, “I am sure that you or somebody you know can use it worse than we can right now. I will call you when I need it.” (Although they know I probably will not call if that day ever comes.)

The real problem is what to do with the time and how do I process all of this emotionally? I am not allergic to vacations and time off as some in ministry seem to be. I cherish time with my family away from the pulpit and the pull of the formal ministry. I need it. I must have it. Thank God for friends and mentors that have taught me that I must have rest to survive and thrive long term.

However, I must prepare for it. Give me a stretch of five days off and 3-6 months to get ready for it and those five days will be wonderful. I will be in a campground, or cabin or motel; it does not really matter. I will sleep, eat, read, write, pray, visit with my girls and do as little of anything else that I can get by with legally.

I will not plan breakfast, lunch or supper. I will not make plans to meet anybody or talk to anybody on the phone. I want no appointments. I will eat lunch when the mood strikes. I will eat whatever sounds good at the moment. I will make a call or answer a call and talk 2 minutes or an hour, when I feel like it. I will send calls to voicemail if I would rather read, sleep or eat.

I will hold hands and walk with Kelly Jo. We will go to Waffle House at midnight or eat fried chicken for breakfast. We will live on no schedule at all until the very last moment of the very last day of our time away. Kelly Jo and Odie will notice me slipping back into my normal routine about 36 hours before we need to hit the road but I will resist it with everything in me.

As I said, those are scheduled days off. I have prepared for those days. I am in the right state mentally and physically in those times. I have built those days off into the system months or even years ahead of time. Right now we are planning 5 days off in October and anticipating small breaks next year and the year after.

But to have those days thrust on me when I am prepared to preach, itching to minister, ready to set up the tent or carry in the sound system, is a completely different story. It throws me for a loop when I am prepared to do what I do in the ministry and then to have 5 idle days cast upon me. Especially when it happened in North Dakota.

In other unexpected times off, I am going some where else to preach. I am taking advantage of an invitation in the area that I had previously turned down because of lack of time. I am preaching another revival or preaching there Sunday, here Tuesday and over there on Wednesday.

But I know NOBODY in North Dakota. I know NOBODY between here and Omaha over 600 miles away. There was no place to sing, no place to preach, no place to attend service and hear preaching beyond the blessing of Sunday morning service in Ft. Totten.

Can you say “Forced Rest?” I quickly came to the conclusion that is what was being spoken to me. Use this time, Davy, to rest. Yes, I have looked for and found opportunities this week to witness. Yes, I have taken time to listen to people in this campground and in this community as they pour their heart out to a stranger. Yes, I have had some real special times of prayer and study.

But I have shifted gears and tried to enjoy the rest. I know it seems easy but it really has not been easy for me. I love to preach, I love to sing and I love to evangelize. But I thought things over. I am a list person. Here is my list…

1. How often will I ever be parked in a beautiful state park in North Dakota on a lake with 50 amp electric for $20-25 per night? I am setting inside typing while looking at a lake. Come on, Davy, use your noggin for something besides a hat rack.

2. How often will I have a gorgeous lake as my chapel each morning for several days in a row and have time to enjoy God’s presence with no pressure to preach that night? I could get used to this one even during revival.

3. How often will I spend the last several days of July with brilliant sunshine but temps in the upper 60s during the day and upper 40s at night? Can you believe that we have not had the AC on in days?

4. How often will I have my family with me, with no obligations or appointments, with no mechanical breakdowns and no rush to leave… in North Dakota? I mean it took me 46 years to get here the first time.

5. How often will I get the opportunity to turn a conversation about Walleye, Northern Pike, Perch, lake levels, water temperature and boats into a conversation about eternal life and Christ? That has been fun.

How often will all of these things converge into one totally “unplanned” week? The answer; probably never again in my whole life?

But if all of these things do happen at one time again, I hope I will be quicker to see the hand of God and sit back and enjoy the show!

Today we travel.

God bless you all.

Davy

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