RevKev's Day Off

"Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest." - Exodus 34:21a

Those Were the Days, My Friend(s)

When Union University moved to their new campus (1976 doesn't sound all that 'new' anymore) I was in that inaugural freshman class.

Usually the upperclassmen have the upper hand when it comes to knowing the location of every class, where to find the professors' offices, how to get to the cafeteria and .. most importantly .. where to find a restroom (the next stop immediately after leaving the cafeteria .. I wonder who thought boiled okra and stewed tomatoes would make a good combination???).

However, since this was a new school, the playing field (I suppose because Union is a Christian institution .. that should be 'praying field') was leveled and the seniors didn't know any more about the campus than I did.

Sweet!

I entered the school as a music major (with a double minor in 'goofing off' and 'prank pulling') and my four year scholarship entailed singing in an ensemble .. Proclamation (or the Proclamations .. as we were called by 95% of the preachers who introduced us).

We sang all over Tennessee and several surrounding states at revival services, youth rallies and church banquets to help promote Union University (there were no tornados back then and they had to rely on groups like ours to raise awareness of the school).

I traveled a lot of miles and ate my fair share of roast beef, mashed potatoes, and green beans (the God-ordained, banquet meal of choice) with these people and they were like my own family .. minus the sibling rivalry .. for four years.

Sadly, like in so many instances, I have not seen some of these "family members" since my graduation in 1979 (surprised, aren't you? .. I'm edumacated!).

This morning at 10 o'clock that will no longer be the case because I am attending an informal "Proc" reunion at Union.

That's right. Several from the "old gang" (all of us are old .. a few have possible gang ties) will be there to laugh and reminisce (since well over 30 years have passed .. maybe just the laughing part).

That's right.

The Proclamations are back, baby!

I just hope I can remember everyone's name.

"My kinsfolk have failed, and my familiar friends have forgotten me." - Job 19:14

Funny Foto Friday

I never plan to have another dog (when Shadow, my golden retriever of 13 years died I was heartbroken and decided that was it for me).

However, if I should change my mind ... I'm getting this breed.

"Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog." - Psalm 22:20

If You're Ever Down by the Lake ... Drop in

It is 19 degrees outside this morning and in just a few hours I am taking a group of YYs (Youth of Yesterday) to Reelfoot Lake to eat fish .. and see the eagles, if we have time.

This annual "trek to Tiptonville" has become a tradition (perhaps the term 'bad habit' is more suitable) with our senior adult group during the month of February or March and today is the day.

Baby, it's cold outside .. but at least there is no snow, sleet, ice or winds blowing at 80 miles per hour (last year we got a good tailwind and were home in record time) .. like almost every trip we have taken over the past ten years.

Thursdays are busy anyway for me (it's my hospital day, the order of worship has to be completed, all loose ends have to be tied up .. there's nothing worse than an untamed loose end .. just look at Charo .. if you're willing to risk it) and it is probably not the best day to be taking a "pleasure trip" (yeah, right .. 30 hungry senior citizens on a bus .. with no bathroom).

However, it is a nice diversion after several busy weeks of ministry (three funerals, a one night revival, the combined choir concert, etc.) and non-ministry (banquets .. three nights in a row) related activities.

Besides, it is certainly no chore.

I love my YYs .. and catfish.

"We remember the fish, which we did eat .."

- Numbers 11:5a

Kev's Klip of the Week

"But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes." - I Kings 10:7a

ABC ... As Easy As 1,2,3

click image to enlarge

Today's blog entry was inspired (the word inspired may not be entirely accurate .. perhaps concocted or fabricated would be a better choice) after reading a comment I received at the conclusion of yesterday's post.

One of my faithful readers .. which, by the way, I prefer over the unfaithful ones .. wrote: "you could post the alphabet and i would cackle!!!!!!" (yes there were actually six exclamation points .. five wouldn't quite 'cut it' and seven, although a perfect number, would be a little pretentious).

While I am flattered by the confidence of "Jennie <><" (when you are over fifty, nearsighted, big-nosed, balding and losing your hearing .. you take a compliment anywhere you can get one), I have to question the truth of that statement.

Granted, the use of TT or PP is funny (if you are in the third grade, junior high school, or male .. any age).

However, is it enough to evoke a smile, let alone a ... cackle?

Let us C.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Well? .. RU LOL? .. ROFL?

If UR disappointed with today's M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E post, perhaps IOU an apology.

It's hard to believe a man with a BM from UU (Union University) and a MCM from NOBTS (New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary) would write stuff like this.

Many of UR thinking right now, "RU on LSD or PCP?"

Well, let me say this on the QT ...

FYI, IM not!

My question to U has to B .. YRU still reading this?

Get back with me on that .. ASAP.

"And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter." - II Samuel 11:14a

What? It's Monday .. Where's the Snow?

If everything goes as planned, we will have SonShiners choir today.

Of course after being off three Mondays in a row, my senior adults may be out of the routine of coming and forget to show up.

We are such creatures of habit.

Most of us do the same thing day in and day out.

Take me (Cheryl often wishes someone would), for instance. I start my morning .. in mourning .. at 5:30 AM .. or 4:30 .. or 3 o'clock (okay that was a bad example) by stumbling to the coffeemaker (not just any coffeemaker .. the Tassimo TAS1000, by Bosch .. man's best friend) and quickly brew a single cup (sometimes a double .. like this morning) of Starbucks coffee (I'm on a House Blend Mélange Maison kick these days).

After I've been sufficiently caffeinated, I sit down at the old MacBook Pro and begin the blogging process.

Sometimes the words flow freely.

However, often I am in need of some "mental Metamucil" to help get things started.

This inspiration might come from an email, news story, cereal box, or just by looking out the kitchen window .. squirrel!!

Obviously, today is "one of those days" and no amount of fiber is going to get me .. going.

I left the house for church at 6:30 yesterday morning and did not leave there until well after 8 o'clock last night, so my brain is still on autopilot (I know this is so because I typed 'brian' and 'bran' before finally settling on 'brain' .. yep, still in a fog) and my body? .. let's just say science has rejected it.

Speaking of bran .. those of you who are regulars probably come here for a smile or perhaps a chuckle or two (okay, that's pushing it .. a smile).

I am aware that today's post has been "weighed in the balance and found wanting."

For this I am deeply sorry. I hate disappointing you, the reader.

Tomorrow will be better .. yeah, that's gonna happen.

I may often lack humor. However, lying and sarcasm? .. I nail those every time.

"I said of laughter, It is mad: and of mirth, What doeth it?" - Ecclesiastes 2:2

RevKev's Day Off

"Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest." - Exodus 34:21a

Let the Sun Shine

This makes two days in a row with sunshine here in West Tennessee and the high for today is supposed to reach 58°.

Of course there is still some snow on my back patio, but it appears Spring might be just around the corner (I peeked just around the corner and saw no snow, whatsoever).

The last three Mondays we have had snow in the forecast .. and on the ground .. forcing me to cancel rehearsal for .. ironically .. the SonShiners (FBC Humboldt's choir for seasoned singers).

Unless something unforeseen occurs, maybe .. just maybe .. we will be able to practice on Monday, February 22nd .. of course, anything can happen between now and then .. but I've got high hopes (♪♫ high apple pie in the ... sky hopes ♪♫).

They are calling for rain on Sunday (great .. it's not like some people need yet another excuse to roll over and sleep in on the Lord's Day), but the good news is temperatures should reach 60 degrees.

That's approaching flip flop and tank top weather.

Sunshine. It does the body good.

Moonshine, on the other hand ...

"I went mourning without the sun: I stood up, and I cried in the congregation." - Job 30:28

Funny Foto Friday

"And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee."

- Deuteronomy 28:66a

A Remote Chance of Harmony

click on photo to enlarge

I'm a gadget guy (isn't that an oxymoron? .. all guys love gadgets .. or is it all guys are morons??).

Always have been. Always will be.

Cheryl saves her hard earned money each year so she can take a vacation (evidently a week away from me every twelve months is essential for a good, healthy marriage .. I can see it).

Me?

If I'm able to save any extra money at all .. and that's a big IF .. it is used to buy the latest (well, maybe not the latest .. I wait until the prices drop) and greatest ________ (fill in the blank with anything electronic or computer related).

The biggest problem with this addiction (admitting you have a problem is the first step toward recovery .. I believe you can purchase a piece of equipment that helps curb these impulses .. I'm getting one as soon as I save the money) is the number of remote controllers you acquire along the way.

Currently we have at least six at various locations in our den, also known as the Bermuda Triangle.

When I got home from church last night (we had an awesome service with powerful music by our choir and college praise band and a challenging message from Ken Whitten, pastor of Idlewild Baptist Church in Tampa, Florida .. Soli Deo Gloria!), I spent some time setting up my new Harmony One (that's a musical term, so I believe this latest purchase was 'meant to be' and part of a greater plan for my life) remote.

This little jewel will now do the work of every remote we own!

Of course, it can only control up to fifteen devices.

Maybe that can last me for another 12 or 18 months.

"Moreover, David fought Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah, when he went to restore his control."

- II Samuel 8:3a

Kev's Klip of the Week

This is for everyone ... especially all my Humboldt Music Club readers. There are some sync issues with the video/audio toward the end, but I thought it was worth posting.

By the way, thanks "Darla" for being such a good sport ... and a babe.

"Some time later, he fell in love with a woman ..."

- Judges 16:4a

How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?

You've all heard the story about the New Yorker who was approached on the street near the great concert venue and asked, "Pardon me sir, how do I get to Carnegie Hall?"

His reply? ... "Practice, practice, practice."

Sadly, I won't be "headlining" at Carnegie Hall anytime in the near future because I missed a very important practice (rehearsal) last night.

This coming Sunday evening (February 21 @ 6 PM) our Adult Choir will be joined by the Adult Choir from First Baptist Church in Huntingdon to present a concert of ten musical selections .. it means songs (I learned that in college).

The program will be at Huntingdon the next week.

We will be accompanied by members of the Bartlett Community Concert Band (the group that plays for our Christmas program each year) .. if we are lucky.

Let me explain (I wish I had a dollar for every time I've uttered that phrase).

When I lived in Memphis, I developed a "working relationship" with this group (they played for several of our programs when I was Minister of Music at Whitten Memorial).

I distributed the music ahead of time to the players and they rehearsed .. on their own .. for a couple of weeks after their regular Monday night practice time (7:00 until 9:00 PM).

On the Monday before our program, I would come in .. along with our church's accompanists (piano, keyboard strings and drummer) and go over all the music (from 9 o'clock until ...).

The day of our presentation, the choir would join the instrumentalists (for the very first time) and pretty much go straight through (if everything went as planned and the moon and stars were in perfect alignment) the program one time before presenting it to the general public.

Scary, huh?

When I moved to Humboldt, I asked the band if they would be interested in continuing the "tradition."

Their response?

ROAD TRIP!!!!

That was ten years ago and (with only one exception) they have played every Christmas since 1999.

When Henry Simpson suggested this cooperative effort between our respective choirs .. and one, not so respected choir director .. I immediately checked to see if the BCCB could work this project in to their busy schedule .. and they have.

Unfortunately, the weather was "sketchy" .. at best .. yesterday (the Monday before our program) and I made the difficult decision not to risk "life and limb" by driving to Memphis and back (we wouldn't get home until around midnight .. plus Dinah doesn't have a DVR and would miss 24).

So .. this coming Sunday afternoon at 3:30 will be the first time all of us will be under one roof (our two choirs have never rehearsed together either .. oh brother!!!) to go through the music.

You are all invited to attend this fiasco .. I mean .. presentation.

It may not be good .. but it should be interesting.

Now, where did I put those blood pressure pills ... ?

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." - Romans 8:28

Trouble Comes in Threes

According to superstition (♪♫ Very superstitious .. writing's on the wall ♪♫ very superstitious .. ladders bout' to fall ♪♫), bad luck or trouble comes in threes.

I'm not quite sure of the origin of this myth. In fact, I'm not quite sure it is a myth.

Since I spoke at Valentine's banquets on Friday (Nashville), Saturday (Greenfield) and Sunday (Bethel Springs), and because when people see me coming the usual response is "here comes trouble" .. well, you can see my point.

It is still a mystery why people would actually invite me to come to their gathering .. and ruin a perfectly good evening.

On top of that, they pay me money (most of the time) to do it.

Is this a great country, or what?

I don't really remember how I got into the "banquet business." However, I believe my first speaking engagement was a deacons and wives Valentine's banquet at First Baptist Church in Huntingdon (maybe in 1980?).

I was on staff at the church (beware of that little anything deemed necessary part of your job description) and had a reputation for having a good sense of humor (translated: a nut). So, they asked me to do something for this annual event.

If memory serves me correctly (and these days, it often doesn't), I did a few song parodies.

Like ...

Put Your Hand in the Fan

(Put Your Hand in the Hand)

Put your hand in the fan and you'll probably lose a finger,

Put your foot in the fan and you'll probably lose a toe,

Put your face in the fan and you will look at others .. differently

Put your body in the fan and change your anatomy.

and ...

Elsie Died

(El Shaddai)

Elsie died, Elsie died,

No more milk since Elsie died

To close the program, I tried to be serious (I have a serious side .. seriously) and have the couples renew their vows to one another.

Well, they thought it was all a big joke and the guys laughed all the way through this very "sacred" time.

After the program, everyone told me how hilarious it was .. especially the "wacky vow part."

I suppose the rest is history.

Oh well. I tried .. seriously.

"It was right that we should make merry and be glad."

- Luke 15:32a

RevKev's Day Off

Happy Valentine's Day to my sweetheart!

"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it." - Ephesians 5:25

May the Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose

In honor of Valentine's Day, much of this week's blog has been on the theme of love.

Today's post includes some country (no one can turn a phrase quite like a redneck) songs that say "I love you" .. and some other stuff, too.

• Come out of the Wheatfield Nellie, You’re Going Against the Grain
• Hand me the Pool Cue and Call Yourself an Ambulance
• He’s got a Way with Women…and He’s Just got Away with Mine
• How Can I Miss You if You Won’t Go Away?
• I Bought the Shoes that Just Walked Out on Me
• I Gave Her the Ring, and She Gave Me the Finger
• I Only Miss You On The Days That End In "Y"
• I Still Miss You Baby… But My Aim is Getting Better
• I Would Have Wrote You A Letter, But I Couldn’t Spell Yuck!
• If The Phone Doesn’t Ring, It’s Me
• I’m So Miserable Without You, it’s Almost like Having you Here
• You’re The Reason Our Kids Are So Ugly
• I Kissed Her On the Lips, and Left Her Behind for You
• I’d Rather Pass a Kidney Stone than Another Night With You
• If My Nose Was Running Money, I’d Blow It All On You
• One Day When You Swing That Skillet (My Face Ain’t Gonna Be There)
• I Went Back to My Fourth Wife for the Third Time and Gave Her a Second Chance to Make a First Class Fool Out of Me
• Thank God and Greyhound She’s Gone
• Mama Get A Hammer (There's A Fly On Daddy's Head)
• I Wouldn't Take Her To A Dog Fight, Cause I'm Afraid She'd Win
• If I Had Shot You When I Wanted To, I'd Be Out By Now
• My Wife Ran Off With My Best Friend and I Sure Do Miss Him

Happy Valentine's Day Eve, everyone!

"So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself." - Ephesians 5:28

Funny Foto Friday

2 carat engagement ring

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes." - I Peter 3:3

Wind Beneath My Wings

Today's post is going to be "short and sweet" .. like the lovely Mrs. RevKev.. because I must be out the door by 7:00 o'clock this morning.

Valentine's Day is quickly approaching (it is Sunday guys .. a word to the wise is sufficient), so here are a few love-related quotes for your reading pleasure.

• Women marry men hoping they will change. Men marry women hoping they will not. So each is inevitably disappointed - Albert Einstein
• The four most important words in any marriage..."I'll do the dishes." - Anonymous
• An archeologist is the best husband any woman can have; the older she gets, the more interested he is in her. - Agatha Christie
• No man is truly married until he understands every word his wife is NOT saying. - Anonymous
• The trouble with some women is that they get all excited about nothing -- and then marry him. - Cher
• Marriage has no guarantees. If that's what you're looking for, go live with a car battery. - Erma Bombeck
• Remember, beneath every cynic there lies a romantic, and probably an injured one. - Glenn Beck
• I was married by a judge. I should have asked for a jury. - Groucho Marx
• To be happy with a man you must understand him a lot and love him a little. To be happy with a woman you must love her a lot and not try to understand her at all. - Helen Rowland
• No matter how love-sick a woman is, she shouldn't take the first pill that comes along. - Joyce Brothers
• Forget love, I'd rather fall in chocolate. - Sandra J. Dykes

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal." - I Corinthians 13:1