Suicide is not your typical bulletin article material. It doesn’t get a lot of attention by the church most of the time. I assume that is mainly because it is an uncomfortable topic and one that has not been without controversy. Yet, suicide is not a new concept. It was around during Bible times. The most notable people in Scripture are Judas (Matthew 27:5), Saul, and Saul’s armor bearer (1 Samuel 31:3-6). There are other individuals who suicided: Zimri (1 Kings 16:18), Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23), and even Samson (it is not your typical story you think of, but by definition he did in the process of bringing down the Philistines according to Judges 16:29-31).

Paul admonishes the church in Philippi to “rejoice in the Lord always.” For good measure he adds, “...and again I will say, ‘Rejoice!’” (4:4). What makes his encouragement so much more interesting is knowing that he was writing this, and several other books, from imprisonment. Paul’s imprisonments ranged from shackles and chains inside an inner prison (Acts 16:24) to a more relaxed house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:1-31). However, even being under a relaxed house could have a miserable effect. I hate when I am sick for an extended period of time and I’m forced to stay in one room or only in the house. That can take a toll on your body and your mind. Yet, in Philippians, Paul writes more about joy than any other place. He also informs us of the things in which he rejoiced that we can all find joy in as well.

It’s been a lot of years. 26 of them to be exact. 26 years since my world as a young college student was turned upside down. 26 years since I was the most confused that a young person could be.

As the weather begins to cool I find myself looking forward to the days that I will be walking into the woods on a dark morning to watch the sun rise and the woods come to life. I love the outdoors but I’m not typically that far off the grid. We don’t really have as many places in our area to get off the grid as they do in Alaska, Montana, Wyoming, Canada, and other places across the globe. In some of those places, you can be hours or even days away from help if tragedy were to strike. In watching, reading, and listening to survival stories it always seems that way too often people find themselves without the essential tools and resources they need when tragedy does strike. They failed to pack enough water or food, forgot to let people know where they were going, and didn’t realize that they left their phone laying on seat of their car...hours away from where they currently find themselves.

I’m not sure why we even have to say it but…

I am opposed to hate filled violence…

It seems like the summer has just flown by. One minute Destin was graduating in May and the next, we are back at the daily grind of getting kids up and ready for school and doing extracurricular activities after school. Summer breaks are always good but they don't seem to last quite long enough.

It seemed like I blinked and the summer was halfway over. June came in like a blast and seemed to be gone as quickly as it got here. Kenya and the kids spent a little over a week helping with a VBS in Munford. I joined for part of a weekend.

As I drove through a town the other day a red light stopped me at an intersection where there was an old wooden light pole standing at the corner.

It had clearly been there a while based on the condition of the wood. It has undoubtedly weathered a lot of storms.

A few weeks ago I left home around 10:30 am on a Thursday morning and met Travis in Meridianville so that we could make a long drive to Myrtle Beach. Several months ago we were invited by Steven Guy to do a Mental Health workshop for the congregation he preaches for — Myrtle Beach Church of Christ. It was a long 11 or so hour drive through three states.

In the Thursday morning Ladies Class we have been studying through the book of Exodus for several months now. It has been a fantastic study, especially since it came on the heels of a verse by verse study of the story in Genesis. We may not move very fast through the text, but we look at the stories in great detail and it is such an encouraging time with some of the great spiritual leaders of this congregation.