I have a call in to the vet.  Squigg has been throwing up for two weeks off and on.  Never missing more than one day.  They have given him two different medications, changed his diet and, x-rayed, and ultra sounded him.  No clear reason.  He eats what I give him--which is according to the vet’s instructions.  Sometimes it stays down, sometimes it doesn’t.  There doesn’t seem to be a clear pattern. 

I know he is growing old--he’s never done this before. I don’t want him to suffer; he seems to feel okay otherwise--just diet.  I can’t find anything for him to eat that agrees with him.  This is a big problem with an older dog--with any dog.  They can’t talk.  It makes me sad.

My neighbor just called and said she was making beans.  I’m going to make cornbread.  Yesterday, I made tabouli--which I love.  So that is supper tonight.  On Mother’s day, Becky and Craig had T-bones; I brought some home and have been eating beef sandwiches.  Food seems to be a big problem for us old folks.  I gave Squig a tiny piece of filet.  He kept that down.  

My fellowship class ate out yesterday.  Ruben sandwiches.  That was delicious.  Yesterday I wrote about churches.  Today about food.  Feed the body; feed the soul.

Some people are fearful of an organized church, parish, whatever--because they think that particular church holds the key to their acceptance into Christ’s kingdom.  I grew up going to church 6 hours a week.  Nothing wrong with that; I learned a lot. Luckily, it was about Scripture.

But if those six hours a week had been about the church denomination itself, it would have been wasted.  The only thing that matters is that you know what the Bible says.  Not the church.  Not the preacher.  Not the priest.  Every church denomination came along after the disciples scattered.  Up to then they met in homes, small groups.  But they began to have differences of opinions about what rules they should have when all you need is Jesus.  The Bible says Jesus is the only way to reach God.  The disciples warn us about going back to the old way of temples and buildings and regulations and holds up Jesus as our savior and intercessor.  His Spirit rules in our hearts.  He alone deserves our worship and faith. 

The disciples wrote things down.  They wrote to each other. They wrote about Jesus and what he had said.  They wrote encouragement.  That’s what we have now.  We have their letters to each other and to the small groups they had met as they spread the gospel. They did not set up an organized church with rules and with headquarters.  They had the old testament, and they had their memories that they wrote down.

Be careful when someone comes along and tells you what rules you have to follow to go to heaven.  Read the Bible.  Every thing you need is there.  But find a local group that follows those teachings so that you have fellowship with those who also follow the Bible. Where you can worship.

Organized religions are in conflict with each other over details.  All of them are slightly different from each other.  They emphasize different things.  Binding you to the organization.  And of course, the Bible has much to say about this: “Do not forsake the gathering of yourselves together as the manner of some is...”  We need to gather together as Christians.  

We get  things from the organization.  Fellowship.  And information.  Group worship of our creator.  But in the information department, there is danger.  Remember Jones and the Koolade?  Sometimes your organized church denomination gives you wrong information.

That is where the Bible comes in.  We should never, never put our trust in a church, a pastor, a priest, or TV personality.  Our faith must be in the words of the ones who knew Jesus.  They wrote it down.  Their words are the ultimate truth, not an organization.  A “Church” doesn’t hold the truth.  The Bible holds the truth.  Religion just picked up on what the disciples said and added stuff.  Much stuff that isn’t even true.  Rituals.  

Paul came to Jerusalem and found that James wanted new Christians to become Jews before they would be accepted.  And finally narrowed his demands down to three or four requirements.  I wouldn’t have been accepted because I like my steak rare.  Read your Bible if you want to find truth.

Chrissy Phillips...I sent the booklet on Genesis to Scott.  You are free to get it from him.  Glad to share...I will send it to anyone who sends me an email address.  I am glad you enjoy reading what I write.  I just need a little bit of encouragement to keep it up!!!  I hope I can meet you some day. 

And thank you for your kind words on Squig’s behalf.  He is somewhat better on the meds the Vet gave him.  But he has quit eating, so I am fixing him chicken breast and rice until he settles down.

Sally Casey asked for the book I wrote on my brother.  She is so fired up about it that she is on the phone helping me look for a publisher.  She cut my brother’s hair every time he and Janet came home from China, so she knows him well.  It’s hard to get an Okie’ haircut in China.

I am going to go get some high calorie fried chicken this evening.  I don’t  seem to gain weight no matter what I eat.  Which is good.  My friends say I worry the calories off.  They say I take everyone’s problems on myself--and feel like I have to solve them.  True.  I seem to feel like I should be able to help in some way---when it is obvious to everyone else that I can’t.  I turn problems over to God and when I finish praying, I take them back.  I need to work on this.

Today is the exterminator recheck day on the bathtub bugs.  The little dandelion mites are gone, but the fruit fly kind of critters won’t completely give in.  If an exterminator can’t kill them, I don’t know what I will do.  Brand new tub.  Brand new footings.  Brand new pipes. And a tub that is seldom used.  Go figure.  The cleaning ladies scour it out every two weeks whether it has been used or not.  

The exterminator said the brick on that side of the house had broken mortar, probably from one of those four or five point earthquakes we had a couple of years ago.  So maybe they are coming in there.  That one tub is the only place they are.  Tony is coming to repoint the mortar soon.

This house is air tight.  More-so than any house I’ve ever lived in.  When the girls come to dust, there isn’t any dust on the surfaces of furniture.  Even they have said it is unusual. I redid everything when I moved in.  New tile in bathrooms, all new fixtures.  All new sinks, counters, granite countertops in kitchen, two bathrooms, utility room.  But I have critters in the bathtub.  You would think I was dirty.  I swear I am not.

This should have happened to someone who was lazy.  Or sloppy.  Or a neglectful housekeeper.  If there is something I am supposed to be learning from this, it’s lost on me.  It does reassure me, however, that the devil is the prince of this world and these critters are Satan’s spawn. 

I woke up this morning to rain.  It is pouring.  This is such a delight after a year of drought.  They have even had to evacuate a number of small cities west of here this last few months for fear they couldn’t control the fire.  It is dry, dry, dry...as evidenced by all the acres burning further west.  

It is so flat once you get west of Oklahoma City that the wind has nothing to stop it when it starts “sweeping down the plain.”  Of course, we don’t like the wind that twists.  We had a “twisty” warning night before last.  

I gathered everything up I couldn’t live without--including Squig of course--and went across the street to Jeaninne’s house.  She has a shelter.  We didn’t need it, but if I wait for the whistle to blow, I’ll get my hair wet!!  So I wait until one is actually on the ground west of us headed this way.  

It sure is different than it used to be.  My mom would head us all to the cellar the minute it looked bad.  We don’t have to worry about all that now because we have such accurate warnings ahead of time.

Squig crawled up on a pillow Jeannine gave him and went to sleep.  This is the dog that used to be terrified of rain.  Now, he just checks out and sleeps.  We watched it cross over us and then went home.  The only problem was that we got our feet soaking wet.  There was a downpour.

I am getting worse and worse about what I am supposed to be doing.  Ann called me last night and asked if I was going to post.  I forgot.  I got busy watching the weather--which looked ominous.  And editing something else I had written--and the day slipped away.

I was editing something I had written about the first book of Genesis being the story of God’s restoration of earth--after the dinosaurs were killed, after the sun was blocked by smoke from sulfur fires--when an asteroid hit the Gulf of Mexico in the Yucatan sixty-six million years ago.  Plants died from lack of sunlight and the entire food chain collapsed.  Nothing much on land survived.  The Bible says the earth was dark, void, and without form.  I guess an asteroid that was six miles wide would do that.  

I got interested in all of that and got side-tracked.  I find that getting side tracked happens to me more and more these days.  Sally had asked me to send the Genesis thing to her. She wants to give it to her grandson who is a senior in college.  I’ll give it to anyone who wants it.  Just give me an E-mail address and I will PDF it.