Camino Chronicles

Amid election-season division, false information, and broken campaign pledges, God’s promises remain firm and offer a better path. Through repentance, faith, and transformation in Christ, listeners are encouraged to follow Jesus rather than place their hope in political solutions.

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Good morning. This is Wednesday, October 28th, 28th, [laughs] 2026. Welcome to today's Camino Chronicle. As I'll try to take you down a road you may not want to walk, but you need to. Election Day isn't until November the 3rd, and yet I'm already so done with it. Politics is becoming almost unbearable, isn't it? On both sides a- and, and all sides in between. [laughs] God's Word lists dissension and division as sin. I- in Galatians 5, those two brothers are called sin. And we humans just don't know how to live without them. So what do we do? Who can we listen to and believe? E- especially with all of the lies, the fake news, all the AI stuff flooding over us. Oh, my goodness. What do we do? A- and to make it worse, if that's possible, our votes are usually cast based on the promises the candidates make us. And we like to think we take their promises seriously. I mean, that's why we vote for them. But we certainly know that these candidates can't possibly fulfill all their promises, [laughs] no matter what they tell us. But still, deep inside us, we are a people who really like promises, and we want them to be kept. We hope for them to be kept. And then when they aren't kept, we just move along to the next political platform offering more promises. I have five Bible verses for you to consider today, which I suggest point to what's much more important regarding the subject. I'll start with 2 Corinthians 1:20, and it says, "God's promises are the most important. We should consider them." Okay? Here's what it says in 2 Corinthians 1:20, and I quote, "For no matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' in Christ. And so, through him, the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of God." Close quote. Now, we can surely say that yes means yes, and amen means so be it. In other words, if God promises it, it's a done deal. Earlier, way back in 1 Kings in the older covenant, 1 Kings chapter 8, it says this, and I quote, "Praise the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel, just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises he gave." Now, some might say we no longer live in the old covenant, and we are not Israeli people. We're, we're Americans. Wait a minute. We may no longer be living in the Old Testament times, but we can certainly believe God and His promises. Moving into the new covenant, Hebrews 8:6, it says, and I quote, "But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood. For he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God based on better promises." Close quotes. Now, wait. I- if there are better promises, don't you want them? I mean, should we be listening just to the promises of man or to those of God Almighty? I mean, how can we even do this? 2 Peter 1:4, and I quote, "And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires." Close quotes. Yeah. Wait a minute. W- what? There are promises by God that will enable us to share in the divine nature? Ooh. And that will help us escape the world's corruption? [laughs] Listen, uh, I do confess that I find it all too easy to complain about our political system and all its shortcomings. I can too quickly jump on the bandwagon of whomever is promising me something because I think it's gonna make my life better. I've had the good fortune to travel to many foreign countries. And I see the news as well, and I see the dissension and the division all over the world. I mean, right now in France, in Spain, all over Europe, the Middle East, South Amer- Asia, I mean, all over the entire world, there is unrest. And the promises of man just aren't getting the job done for peace and welfare of the citizens. So go ahead, vote for your favorite candidate, but don't put your trust in him or her. Join a better movement than any of our political systems. Put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ. The entire history of mankind is a history of the results of the decisions we've made to follow the Lord or to reject Him. You and I, we don't need just a positive attitude or a political win by our favorite party or a reduction in the Federal Reserve interest rate or any such thing. We, you and I, need a transformation. We need to be changed. If the Lord Himself showed up to you today in a disguise such that you didn't recognize Him as Lord, and He simply asked you how things were going, and you told Him about all the problems you have and what's going on in the world and what you were gonna do about them, and He said to you, "How's that been working out for you?" How would you respond? Would you, would you blame the political party that's in power today? Uh, would you pass the blame somewhere else? Or would you admit that we humans are desperate for the Lord to come and transform us into His divine nature? Oh, man, it's not too late. It's never too late to repent and to change direction. God has promises that speak to every condition we are in, and He is available to anyone who will follow Him. He's available to transform, to forgive, to heal, to restore, to redeem, [laughs] because His promises are yes, and He will make it so. Return to God, and He will return to you. He has promised it. If you, if you already know the Lord, then check your map and make sure you're on the right path a- and be willing to make the changes that He points out in His Word, the Bible, okay? Stop making excuses and answer Jesus Christ, who is still saying to you, "Follow me." I'll close today's chronicle with a movie line that's hard to beat. "Everything will be all right in the end. If it's not all right, it's not the end." [laughs] Now, that's, that's a word of hope and faith for sure. However, it will only be all right in the end if you're with Jesus Christ at the end. Have a great week of being changed as you renew your walk with Jesus Christ. Oh, buen camino. [laughs] Pastor Skip out.

Pastor Skip reflects on receiving his ballot and the unsettling reality of democracy: voters constantly demanding more from government, as if government is a "giving tree" that can deliver infinite benefits. He connects this insatiable desire to biblical passages on human sin and notes the $47 trillion debt as evidence the system may be buckling. His call is for spiritual surrender to God's provision rather than endless political promises.

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Hey. Good morning, everyone. This is Tuesday, not Wednesday. Uh, I normally post my Camino Chronicles on Wednesday, which I will do tomorrow, so tay- stay tuned for tomorrow. But today, I just have to vent a little bit, okay? I just have to vent. I received my ballot in the, in the mail yesterday and began to fill the thing out, and it just stirred me up, so, uh, bear with me. Benjamin Franklin reportedly said this, and I quote, "When the people find they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic," end quote. But the idea is more closely tied to this guy named Alexander Fraser Tytler, a 19th century Scottish author who wrote, and I quote, "A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose financial policy, always followed by a dictatorship." Close quote. Oh my goodness. There's something more sinister at work here. It is the problem of insatiable desire. I- insatiable means incapable of being satisfied. We want better schools, better defense, better roads, better healthcare, better housing. I mean, where does the list end? We are insatiable wanters. We are now, in this generation, combining Genesis 3 to Romans 7. We are wanting not just the apple, but the whole tree. [laughs] We want it all. And we have discovered the giving tree of government ripening before our eyes with the taxes it collects all the way [laughs] to $47 trillion of debt. [laughs] How long can a democracy like this stand? How long can the tree branches deliver without just breaking off under the weight of the demanded fruit? Oh my goodness. If Alexander Tytler is correct, we are soon to get ourselves a dictator who won't, who won't give us what we want, but what he wants. Oh my goodness. Perhaps it's time to stop voting for more stuff and start trimming the tree. Doing more with less [laughs] requires an intervention by God into the affairs of man. Now, that's not a very popular way to get votes, but it's what we need. We need the Lord, and we need to learn how to surrender our wants to His provisions. Oh my. Come, Lord Jesus. Hmm. It's good to be with you today, and I'll see you tomorrow about 10:30. Pastor Skip out.

Life can shift from sunny skies to stormy days in an instant, and so can our spiritual walk. Pastor Skip reflects on how quickly circumstances change and asks the probing question: who moved? He explores how we sometimes drift from God's presence and how taking every thought captive prepares us for what lies ahead. Ultimately, he turns our attention to the certainty of Christ's return—not just a flash of speed, but a sparkling, happiness-causing moment when we will be instantly transformed and with Him forever.

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Good morning. This is Wednesday, October fourteenth, twenty twenty s- six, and I welcome you to today's Camino Chronicle. It's, it's a record of news from walking the path of life. So last Thursday was October the eighth. It was eighty degrees outside, bright sunshine. I went for a walk and kinda celebrated God's creation on that autumn day. I, I prefer the word autumn to the word fall because I don't like the image of falling. But then the very next day, October the ninth, it was fifty-six degrees and raining. Yep, falling. How quickly things can change. I can go from happy-go-lucky one minute to facing something that robs my happiness, some tragedy perhaps, the next. And you can too, of course. I guess you could call it from calm to chaos, such is life. But this got me to thinking, of course, about all sorts of things. On our church sign outside, we, we have the words, "Where God is up to something," which has become a, a constant prayer of mine. I, I want to be where God is on the move. A- and sometimes it seems He's in another place, and I wonder what's going on. I, I wonder why things aren't happening, to use a term we all understand. Now, I know in my knower that God is good, and that He is omnipresent, and that He never leaves me. But then I look at things, and I wonder who moved. I know the Bible verse, "Christ in me, the hope of glory," but, but sometimes I wonder where the glory went. Who moved? Hmm. Well, okay. It was me. Somehow, for some set of circumstances, for some set of selfishness, all of which I can defend and justify, I was the one that moved. Jesus is still in me, but when I move out of His glory, out of His manifestation of good, then His presence dims, His voice quiets, His wonders seem forgotten to my eyes. Yes, how quickly things can change. The other day, I was pondering the mystery of miracle. I'm using the word miracle here for some amazing thing that the Lord does that we can't explain. You know, some really good thing usually that we rejoice about and hopefully give Him praise for. Maybe it's an answer to prayer, or maybe just a random act of God's kindness. The miracle of healing or a deliverance from some bad, or however you want to try to explain it, but you know what I mean. A miracle. A- another way to try and grasp mystery is to call it a move of God. [laughs] Something He just does for whatever reasons. And then this got me to thinking, "Wait, isn't it interesting how the mind can go from one thought to another completely unrelated thought?" Pew, pew, pew, pew. Do you suppose that the Lord God of heaven is trying to help us with our thought life? Yes, He is. Hallelujah. So then I got to thinking about Jesus coming back. You know, the, the Second Coming and all of that. It tells us in, uh, First Corinthians fifteen twenty-two, and I quote, "In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet, for the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed," close quotes. The word moment in the Greek is atomos, atomos, which means that which cannot be divided. In other words, it's indivisible. Okay. [laughs] So, so the Greeks didn't have such great microscopes to see inside of atoms, but you get the drift. The NIV translates it flash. A flash is indivisible, a- at least to our human eyes. But then comes this word twinkling. How long, I ask, is a twinkle? How much time does a twinkle take? And again, the Greek word doesn't help us much as it means a jerk or a beat, uh, you know, something to them that was pretty fast. If you google the word twinkle, y- they, they say it's one hundred to four hundred milliseconds for a human eye. And if... And when Google is talking about it in the sense of light, it says that a twinkle is one billionth of a second. [laughs] Hey, either way, whether we're talking about the human eye or the process of light waves, a twinkle is fast. Oh, and it gets better. Science now distinguishes [laughs] between a twinkle and a blink, whereas the Greeks did not. A blink, the dictionary says, is a regular rhythmic on and off sequence where a light completely turns off and on. That's a blink. A twinkle, however, in someone else's eye describes a bright, sparkling expression of happiness, mischief, or amusement. Oh, my. [laughs] So Paul was telling the folks in Corinth that Jesus would come so brightly, so sparklingly, so happiness causing, wow, that everything would immediately change. Can you see how God's Word, the Bible, is even so much clearer than science? Not just a flash of speed, not just a moment of time, but a completely life-changing atomic miracle, so bright, so happiness causing, that everything would change. At the beginning of this chronicle, I was talking about how my thought life could change even quickly from sunny to raining, from joy to sorrow, from thanksgiving to complaining, from calm to chaos. Okay, that's reality for now. We would all do better to take every thought captive, the Bible says, to the obedience of Christ. By submitting to Jesus Christ, which the word obedience means, we set ourselves up for that all too amazing twinkle when He catches us away to live with Him forever, and forever is a long time. Now, for those of you who don't like to think about end times stuff in this modern age, since it just hasn't happened yet, or those who don't want to consider or believe in the rapture and all that stuff, I mean, maybe it's all just metaphorical anyway. Okay. But for you, I ask you to consider that final breath you will take someday. It's going to happen. Whether your final breath is one you breathe in a passing away kind of time, or whether your final breath is when some horrible accident happens, you know, a war of some kind, and you're just immediately dead, as in he died instantly. Well, consider the word instantly, kind of like a flash, right? Perhaps Jesus will come to you in a twinkle. So how will you respond to Him? I want to be one who instantly, even twinkingly, if that's even a word, praise Him and go live with Him forever. Yeah. These Camino walks we take in life, sometimes they can seem way long. Sometimes they're short little bursts. Sometimes our minds are focused clearly, and sometimes our minds are rapid firing. But here's the message to us today, dear ones. Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, is coming again in the twinkle of an eye. We should be ready for that. We should be watching and waiting and even expecting. Because regardless of how we go to meet Him, whether it's in that rapture or whether it's just in our passing, when we meet Him, we will be with Him forever. Oh, hallelujah. God bless you today. I hope your weather report is better. [laughs] Pastor Skip out.

This message tackles the tricky business of reading Scripture—exploring exegesis versus eisegesis, expository preaching versus proof-texting, and how our own biases inevitably shape how we understand God's Word. Pastor Skip confesses his own approach while acknowledging that no interpreter is truly neutral. He ends with a heartfelt call to stop sitting on the sidelines, get into a Bible-believing church, and be part of what God is doing.

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Good morning. This is Wednesday, October the 7th, 2026, and I welcome you to today's Camino Chronicle. And today we're gonna take a bit of a scholarly walk, [laughs] so I hope you can pay attention. A problem we all have when studying the Bible is what God says versus what God means versus what we think He says and means. The, the problem is not the Bible. [laughs] It is us. It is always only us. As always, scholars try to explain this conundrum with academic terms such as exegesis or eisegesis. Stay tuned. Exegesis is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially of the Bible, and in this definition, the word critical means true or correct. Well, thus, the exegete, that is, the person doing the exegesis, the study, obviously the exegete feels that he or she is correct. Oh, but then there's the eisegete. The eisegete practices eisegesis. [laughs] Now, this is the interpretation, especially of scripture, that expresses the interpreter's own ideas, maybe even some bias, rather than only the literal words of the text. What? [laughs] Of course, the eisegete thinks he or she is also correct. Now, to better understand how this plays out in real life, we have two more academic explanations of studying, preaching, and understanding the Word of God. Number one is called expository. The other is called thematic, or proof texting, whi- which is using the text to prove a point. In expository preaching, the text is everything, and the purpose of the sermon is to unpack the text as fully as possible. Just the text. It is what it is and means what it says. Or does it? The expositor is often left with trying to explain what doesn't fit with our way of understanding. Now, perhaps it's a cultural thing or a geographic thing or a thing buried in history, [laughs] or as often is the case, it's a translation thing from the Hebrew or the Greek. My point is that the exegete, the expository teaching of the Bible, is still full of the interpreter's understanding, the amount and the depth of learning they have, even, yes, their bias, no matter how skillfully hidden. Now, in proof text preaching, the text is used to illuminate a point, to examine motive and intent, even to attempt to apply the text to the listener's understanding of a life situation. The text is used to prove something, so usually more than one text is used, a- as several together better explain the thing. Now, if I can point to or, or draw upon several different scriptures that seem to speak to a certain subject, then that would seem to strengthen the understanding, perhaps make it even more broadly applicable to actual life situations. Now, one Sunday not long ago, I gave a completely expository sermon, actually just reading the actual text word for word with no explanation. I let the Holy Spirit do all the work of application to the listener's life. Now, the folks loved it, and I got lots of compliments. [laughs] But, but wait. All I did was read the Bible text with no commentary, no application, no connection to any modern trial [laughs] or tribulation or event in life. Afterwards, getting those comments, I thought, "If this is so good, why aren't all of you reading it all the time?" [laughs] Now, most Sundays I use a proof text kind of methodology, a thematic approach, using multiple scripture texts to identify a point I think the Lord wants us to understand. Biblical scholars would not appreciate my approach, probably due to my bias and my obviously limited understanding [laughs] of all the ways the text could be researched, understood, or speak to someone. I understand the danger of proof texting, especially if we misuse or abuse the Word of God for our own purposes. Like preaching about giving and being generous just to raise money to build a building. I mean, it's just manipulation. Or looping together several texts from the Old Testament and the New Testament that deal with some political situation we have now to justify a position that I happen to hold. This too is manipulation, and I dare say all preachers walk this tightrope. I do not ever mean to manipulate God's Word or you for any purpose of my own. But I do believe that several texts taken together begin to point and paint a brighter, clearer picture than just one. And I'm okay trusting that the Holy Spirit will work within you the truth. Now, let's face it, a problem all Bible scholars have is their own [laughs] understanding or application of truth. The, the Jewish rabbis are famous for devolving into shouting matches over understanding the law. It all begins with the 10 laws of God in, in Exodus and has now grown to over 10,000 subcategories of laws, all of which we mere men are supposed to know correctly and know how to implement into society. Well, how's that working out right now in the Holy Land? Hmm. Or, or anywhere. What we're trying to do, you see, is to take the Word of God, spoken by God, and give it to others for their benefit. I mean, of course we are. I, I find I am most comfortable sharing what I think the Lord is saying to us when I allow the hearer to have room to hear, allowing the Holy Spirit to make all of the necessary applications to real-life situations. Peter stated the Church. He started the Church. Then it became Catholic, meaning universal. Then Martin Luther objected to some abuses, and the Protestant Reformation happened. [laughs] Note that the Protestants called it a Reformation, uh, thus just a positive spin [laughs] on what was a huge church split. Then the Protestants kept protesting among themselves until now we have hundreds, maybe over a thousand denominations, all with their unique identity and, may I say, bias. And then the next reformation began with the now emerging growth of the non-denominational and so-called independent churches. The church where I serve as a pastor may be non-denominational in the sense of organization, but please, we are not independent. We [laughs] desperately need and rely upon the Lord Jesus to do whatever He wants within our assembly. We depend upon Him, and we do our best when we're following His lead. I read in the Bible that Jesus Christ is building His church, and that's the one I wanna be in. Of course I do. So all I can do is invite whosoever will to come and be a part of what God is doing among us. When Jesus said, "Come, follow me," He didn't give a bunch of explanation about where He was going or how He would feed them or whether His words would be [laughs] expository or thematically proof texted. Ha. He just said, "Come," and then He led them. The real issue then is the same back then as it is now. Who will follow? I pray that you listeners will be a part of a fellowship of believers in Jesus Christ, yes, a church, and that you will be hungry for the Word of God a- and for the ministries that are available there. If you've been hurt in the past, get over it and go back to church and risk it again. Perhaps the Lord has softened you and helped you to forgive those hurts. Or maybe it's you that is forgiven, and you can be set free from any feelings of the past, and you can join in again. [laughs] It's just not a good idea to try and be an on fire burning ember for the Lord off by yourself. The ember cools off. It's alone, and the fire that once ignited the ember is replaced by the world and what it offers. Folks, we need each other. Many hands make light work, and the hands of Jesus will be at work in His church as He makes His bride ready for the glorious wedding day that is approaching. Oh my. I don't care whether you exegete that scripture or eisegete it with opinion. It still speaks to each one of us to come together, laying down our lives for each other and for those who need to know Jesus Christ, the Savior. Hmm. [laughs] Okay. I'd better stop now or I might start preaching. God bless you today. Get into a Christ-believing church. Read your Bible, and do what it says. Hmm. Pastor Skip signing out. [laughs]

A challenge to reconsider what it means to be spiritually-minded, using Psalm 33:8 to reveal that awe is actually God dwelling within us. Rather than waiting for heaven to experience God, the pastor encourages listeners to recognize God's presence working through them right now, inviting Him to move in their daily lives and through them to others.

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Good morning. This is Wednesday, September the 30th, 2026, and I welcome you to today's Camino Chronicle. So let's go for a little walk today along this digital path. Just a few minutes ago, I read a post on a website called Slow Strollers on the Camino. [laughs] It's for pilgrims who choose to not go as fast as others, thus slow, [laughs] and the increased benefit that you get of meeting other people. Well, it read today, and I quote, [laughs] "Today I met some new friends, two paramedics, three nurses, and a cardiologist, [laughs] and I almost met Jesus." Close quote. [laughs] Now, I don't know the details, but I think this pilgrim had a bit of a reality check on his walk. Maybe today's Chronicle can offer that to you, but without the trauma. The phrase, "Some people are so heavenly-minded that they are of no earthly good," is widely attributed to Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., the 19th century American physician and poet. The idea is, of course, that folks who are spiritual are somehow not very practical or good. And this can only be supported by an atheistic system of unbelief because if one is a believer in God Almighty, that one knows that only God is good. So to do any good requires a move of God. That move is what any of us do when we do any good at all. Now, uh, just think about this for a minute. The next time you do a good thing, any good thing, that's a move of God in you, through you, probably for someone else, because He's everywhere. To, to believe in God requires one to be heavenly-minded because [laughs] that's the believer's identity and destiny, right? We're all thinking about our destiny someday of being with the Lord in heaven. Now, all of that to say, I was sitting in my hot tub the other night. It was after dark, and everything was nice and quiet, and the stars were lit up in full glory. I mean, I was, I was even able to track a few satellites as they passed high above. Like millions before me, I stared in pure awe of the heavens. The more you look at the stars, the more curiosity you seem to get, the, the more you imagine about how it all happened, [laughs] even though you, you know that God just spoke it all into being. The earliest human stargazers had no telescopes, so the eye was all they had. But to that vision, they surely added wonder and imagination and I'm sure some awe. A, a quick study of Psalm 33:8 reads this: "Let the whole world fear the Lord, and let everyone stand in awe of Him." Oh, boy. This particular Hebrew word for awe means to abide, to dwell with, or, or to inhabit. So when you feel awe in the spirit part of life, you are feeling the presence of God Almighty. And in that moment, you are so abiding with or being inhabited by the Lord God. Now, today we use the, the word awe too often to just describe a big feeling. You know, so often saying about something that it was awesome when it had nothing to do with the Lord. Well, but then again, [laughs] I suppose it could. The song Our God Is an Awesome God, it's one of my favorites because the songwriter is trying to put into words how we feel about God. He's awesome. He reigns with wisdom and power and love. [laughs] He is amazing. He is, as one old preacher says, indescribable. [laughs] I get that awesome feeling sitting in the hot tub, looking at the stars, because I realize only He could have made them. I also get the feeling when I walk in the forest, or I feel the sand beneath my toes walking along the beach because, again, I'm actually touching God's creation. I love to lose myself in worship because of the awesome closeness of God I feel as I sing, a-as if He were right there with me, even in my breath. I remember so clearly the awesomeness of God that I felt when I was standing practically at the top of Mount Hood, well, at least as far as the ski lift would take me, looking out over the lowlands below, pondering how foolish it is for anyone to think this all just happened. You know, primordial goo somehow turning into earth and us. I, I love to think about heaven, and not just because I'm getting closer, you know, because I'm getting older. I love to think about my future because I know it will be amazing and it will be awesome. Now, rather than being so caught up with tomorrow, though, uh, in such that I might be of no good to anyone today, I find that the idea that God can and does actually inhabit me now, dwell with me now, and move upon and through me now, well, it excites me. It excites me to let Him do it. I, I don't wanna hold God back in any way i- in the right now. The thought that He is using me, working not just in me, but through me to help someone else, well, people, that's just awesome. Yes. Love God with everything you've got, and then go love someone else. You know, what the Bible calls your neighbor. And I'm pretty sure you're gonna have a spiritual experience that'll get your attention, the kind of experience that'll be worth giving Him praise and thanksgiving. Oh, boy. Now, here's something you could try, even today, right, right after this podcast is over. Think about how awesome God is, and put that thought, that thought about how awesome God is, put that thought up against any other thought you might have been spending time on. You got some problems? Hmm. God is awesome. You have some pains or sickness? Okay. God is awesome. You have some emotional hurts, some offenses, uh, those time wasters we all have, right? Well, wait. God is awesome. Financial issues? God is awesome. Doubts? Even about God? Oh my goodness, people, God is awesome. That's right. Every negative that you can come up with has to surrender to the positive of God Almighty, because He is awesome, and because He is here in the now, as well as in the future heaven we look forward to. Make today an awesome day, because your awesome God wants to show you some awesome good works through you to a bunch of other people. Yeah. Today's the day, folks. Go be awesome. Go let God out to some others. Hallelujah. Pastor Skip signing out.

We resist waiting, but God calls us to wait on Him with active expectation. When we learn that waiting renews our spiritual strength and opens us to revelation, it transforms from frustration into anticipation of His promises. Imagine the wings of eagles lifting your spirit as you trust that the King is coming.

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Good morning. This is Wednesday, September the 23rd, 2026, and I welcome you to today's edition of Camino Chronicles. Join me in this, this little saunter [laughs] along the path of life. You and I probably share in the experience of an uncomfortable thing called waiting. Mm-hmm. Our real-world lives move at such a pace that we just don't like to wait. We don't like to wait in lines for anything. We, we don't like to be put on hold when calling someone. We don't like traffic and endless stoplights. Now, the list goes on, and I'm sure you have your, your favorite disliked waits. As Paul says in the Book of Romans, "I want what I want when I want it." [laughs] Well, now, that's my paraphrase, but it speaks well about how I feel about waiting for what I want. Th- this business of waiting runs smack into another wall I have to climb over called patience. I don't want patience. I want what I want, [laughs] and I'd prefer it to be soon. It's interesting that the words wait, waiting, and waited are used at least 149 times in the Bible, with lots of different applications to various situations. And the words patient, patiently, and patience, they're used at least 49 times. So it- it's pretty clear there is something to pay attention to here since God's Word addresses it some 200 times. Something to wait for with even a bit of patience to, to discover something important, something that would benefit us, emphasis on that which would benefit us, which is very much something I want. So digging into God's Word provides for us an amazing discovery, th- this thing called revelation, if we hunt for it and are open to it. You see, I find that when the Lord talks to me about waiting, He isn't asking me to be passive, you know, just hanging around with no purpose. God's kind of waiting is based on us waiting on Him so that He can arrange the things of life. "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up as with wings of eagles," the Bible tells us. Spiritual renewal isn't passive. It's strength building, which means it's a very active thing. Just try to imagine all the ways the metaphor wings of eagles can be applied to your life. To get places, to find food, to escape something, or just to soar. Hmm. But there's another very important thing about waiting that we need to learn and live. It's in Psalm 1:30, verses one through six, where the pilgrims who would climb the hill ascending to Jerusalem would be all the while singing songs with melodies and harmonies, with stringed instruments or horns, and surely with united voices saying, and I quote, "I wait for the Lord. I have put my hope in His word," close quotes. This is not a passive waiting. It is very proactive. This isn't hanging around half asleep waiting for stuff to change. It's almost an infantry march of your spirit. Hope is the declaration of faith, which means hope is a war word. When I realize that Jesus Christ is coming again with an incredible and, and most wonderful agenda that includes me, [laughs] that connects to my soul. It invigorates my spirit. It, it makes me want to know more about it, and it causes me to be so much more expectant a- and full of awe and even fuller of hope as my faith activates, and I begin to believe that more is possible. [laughs] Because with Jesus, all things are possible. Can I get an amen? [laughs] Oh. So for a real-life application of this, next time you're in that line waiting, remember that Jesus is at work and start thinking about His coming a- and see if the time doesn't pass more easily, hmm? The Psalm said, "I wait for the Lord," and I'm learning by experience that sometimes the waiting I have to do in traffic, for example, works out for my benefit. It keeps me from having an accident had I not waited. Okay. There are many such preventions that the Lord's guardian angels have worked out on your behalf. So I, I hope you'll be able to be a better waiter as I'm trying to learn as well, and maybe renew your spirit by being much more expectant of what lies ahead. Because, folks, the King is coming. Believe it. Be patient. But wait with holy expectation, and the time will pass by better. Wow. God bless you today as you walk through this day expecting the best. Pastor Skip out.

Pastor Skip shares a personal epiphany about hearing God's voice, drawn from a four-mile walk where he waited on the Lord. Using Matthew 5:41, he encourages listeners not to quit too soon when seeking God—going the extra mile personally and spiritually to receive what He wants to say. An invitation to try the practice of taking your own quiet walk to listen.

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Good morning, everyone. This is Wednesday, September the 16th, 2026, and I welcome you to today's Camino Chronicle. That's a, a record of some thoughts I've had, you know, walking along the path of life. Sometimes words connect with other words in a unique way, like the word discovery and the word epiphany. So discovery means, of course, something that is found or found out or noticed or, or realized. I think that most of us, when making a discovery of some kind, w- we pay attention to it based upon how notable or, or how valuable the discovery is. I mean, it's just common sense that the more valuable a discovery, the more we will hunt for more of it. And then this word epiphany. It means a, a sudden intuitive perception or, or insight into the reality or the essential meaning of something, and it often includes a, a spiritual connection. Now, you and I have had lots of discoveries in our lives, and with each one, we assess the value of the thing to see if we want to find more of it. Sometimes these discoveries lead to an epiphany, that sudden knowing in our soul. For today's chronicle, I want to share with you a recent epiphany I've experienced, [laughs] and it, it's about God. I think the Lord wants us to know more about Him. I think in our inner self, He is working to draw us closer. A- and if we can shut out the noise of the world, you know, long enough to listen, then we may begin to hear what He is saying to us. When reading the Bible, we frequently come to words like this: "And the Lord said," or, "The Lord spoke to so-and-so," or in the King James, "Thus sayeth the Lord." Well, in the New Testament, as early as Matthew 3:15, Jesus is responding to John the Baptist, and it begins, and I quote, "But Jesus said such and such." Matthew 4:4, "Jesus told him." Matthew 4:7, "Jesus responded." Matthew 4:10, "Jesus told him." Matthew 4:17, "Jesus began to preach." Matthew 4:19, "Jesus called out to them." Matthew 5:2, "And he began to teach them." And by the end of Matthew 7:28, it says, "When Jesus had finished saying these things." Just consider that all these statements made by Father God means He is actually talking to people out loud. [laughs] And please discover that in the Bible, the Lord is trying to talk to you. And, and now for the consideration of epiphany, that He is trying to talk to you even when you're not reading the Bible. Y- you see, I've discovered that the Lord talks to me when I'm ready to listen. Now, He may be trying to talk to me a lot more of the time, [laughs] but when I actually make it my purpose to listen to Him, well, He speaks. Last Sunday, I began a very short mini Camino. It's just a walk down a path, and I only went a little over four miles. It w- it was a walk along a trail near my home with the purpose of having some time with Jesus, just Him and me. I had some things on my mind that I wanted to say to Him, and that didn't take very long. We'll call that a prayer. Of course, I could have prayed anywhere, anytime, but let's face it, we usually don't. Our spiritual connections seem to do better when we fine-tune the frequencies, right? When we tune into God with our full attention. Now, again, we could probably do this a lot more than we do, but, but living life a- and, and being in the world, it just, it just clogs up our senses. So I'm learning to take short Caminos where I can isolate my soul to the Spirit of God. So last Sunday, I was on the trail, alone, of course, and I got through my list of things which I had to say, and then I waited upon the Lord for Him to speak to me, and He did a bunch. So I began to make some notes so I could reflect later. And this next one is, is the one that I have for you today. I didn't get the scriptural text during my walk, so I looked it up later because I was pretty sure what he was speaking to me kind of was sourced in or came from the scriptures. Turns out it was from Matthew five, verse forty-one, which says, and I quote, "And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two." Close quotes. So when I got home and I looked it up, I realized it was a teaching that Jesus was giving about several things, about revenge, about turning the other cheek, about going to court. But after those things, he said, quote, "And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two." Close quotes. One of my Bible commentaries explains that this is a reference to the custom of forced service in transport by a king's courier who could demand the service of others to carry out the king's business, which could not be refused. Hmm. Okay, that's for you Bible geeks who try to connect everything to the customs of the day. All right. But what I heard the Lord saying to me was that this little camino I was on was not a small thing, and that I would benefit more from two miles than I would from only one. In other words, "Skip, don't quit too soon. Don't stop before you hear from God. Don't let the inconvenience of walking or, or the interruption of your day, [laughs] or the cares of this world choke out the Word of God to your very own soul." But part of the epiphany was that I was being compelled, not forced, but compelled. Do you see the difference? Can you think of a time when you were compelled to, to do a thing, not forced to do it? I suppose our flesh cries out and tries to compel us to do lots of things we shouldn't do. But here I am talking about being moved upon by God's Spirit. Hang on one sec. Okay, I'm back. I can control a lot of things, but not when the door knocks. I was saying that I suppose our flesh cries out and tries to compel us to do lots of things we shouldn't do. But here I'm talking about being moved upon by God's Spirit, which in itself is an epiphany. I made a total of eight notes of specific things the Lord was offering me on that short four-mile saunter. [laughs] The purpose of today's chronicle is to encourage you to try this. It's, it's a kind of a spiritual fasting from the day's events by taking a walk alone, long enough to hear from the Lord, and then making some notes as to what he says. [laughs] And if you do, I'd love to hear from you what you heard from him. The Bible tells us that we overcome, in part, by sharing our testimony, and there's a lot to overcome in these days. Oh, boy. May the Lord bless you as you follow Him. Pastor Skip out.

Using country clubs and exclusive restaurants as analogies, this message explores what it really means to be part of Christ's church. Jesus paid the ultimate entry fee, but there are conditions—faith, repentance, and baptism—that open the door to incredible benefits. The speaker invites listeners to stop merely observing and start participating in this exclusive fellowship, where a deep sense of awe awaits.

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Good morning, pilgrims. This is Wednesday, September the 9th, 2026, and I welcome you to today's edition of Camino Chronicles. As we saunter along. [laughs] What a great word, saunter. It, it's just so much better than hiking, huh? [laughs] Oh my goodness. John Muir, he w- he was that famous naturalist and noted backpacker in the Sierra Mountains. He once said, and I quote, "Back in the Middle Ages, people used to go on pilgrimages to the Holy Land. And when people in the villages through which they passed asked where they were going, they would say, 'A la Sainte Terre,' which in French means to the Holy Land. And so they became known as Sainte Terrerers or Saunterers." My French isn't very good. A la Sainte Terre became Sainte Terrerers, which became in English Saunterers. [laughs] Hey, I hope you appreciate the international insights I bring to this podcast. My sauntering along recently got me to thinking about a time growing up when my dad did something I had no way to appreciate, at least not at the time. He joined a country club. Now, kids, uh, yeah, kids, teenagers even, have little understanding of what the parents [laughs] really go through, and they often have no idea of how blessed they are if, as in my case, you now have the privilege of a private golf course to play on. Now, a bit later in life, I began playing racquetball, which I just loved, and I discovered that finding a, a, a racquetball court to play on, that could be very difficult. Well, I found out that the local Elks lodge had their own private courts, which I could play on as often as I liked if I joined the Elks lodge. Hmm. I began to learn the truth of that old saying, "Membership has its privileges." Hmm. A, a couple of years ago, my oldest son took me to dinner in downtown Portland to a very exclusive restaurant to which his company had a membership. Now, this particular membership costs the company something like $800 a year, something like that, I think, for which they get the privilege of making a reservation. And then you got to pay about $200 for a single meal. Yes, membership has its privileges and its costs. Something pretty amazing happened after Jesus was raised from the dead, after he breathed the Holy Spirit upon his followers, and after he left them again via the ascension into heaven. What happened is he set up his church, a pretty exclusive membership-only group for which he paid a hefty price to establish. The account in the book of Acts chapter two speaks of how this new church began to grow, telling us a little bit about the cost of membership. To get into this group, one had to, one, believe what Peter said about Jesus. Number two, repent of your sins. Number three, turn to God. And number four, be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Well then, as they joined this church, the Bible tells us that they devoted themselves to four things. Number one, the apostles' teaching. Number two, fellowship. Number three, the sharing of meals together, in- including things like communion. And number four, prayer. It then says, and I quote, "A deep sense of awe came over them all," close quotes. And what follows is almost too much to comprehend. Look it up, Acts two, 43 to 46, and you'll see how truly awesome it was. The benefits of membership, you see, they're only enjoyed by the members who participate. I never would have enjoyed the benefit of playing golf at my dad's club if he didn't pay for it and I didn't go. I never would have benefited from the easily accessible racquetball courts offered by the Elks lodge if I didn't join, you know, pay the dues, and then go. I never would have experienced the wonder of a fancy meal at an exclusive membership restaurant someone else paid for if I didn't go order a meal. Hmm I hope you are sauntering along with me here and understand the analogies. Jesus Christ [laughs] has paid for us to be able to join a very exclusive club, which He wants everyone to join, and for whom He will pay the entry fee. But there are some conditions. Uh, I wonder today how many Christians actually have a deep sense of awe, have read the membership handbook, and would rather go to church with other members versus hanging out with the pagan worldlies. Hmm. I mean, I can promise you from personal experience that private golf clubs are more fun to play, [laughs] especially after the round. I can promise you that private sports clubs are more fun than open gyms and locker rooms, huh? And I can certainly tell you that a private dining, you know, with, with all the special attention one gets, it's much better than fast food restaurants. [laughs] What the Lord Jesus is offering us is way better than what we can muster up ourselves, and He paid the bill in advance. Oh my goodness. [laughs] Yes, the Church is an exclusive membership organization with an awesome here and now experience, hmm, but an even more awesome future rollout coming, coming soon to a location near you. But it ain't free to join, and there are some conditions. The cost of admission has been paid, but you still have to meet the conditions of membership. To have faith is to believe that Jesus is Lord. One cannot deny Him and claim to be a believer. A denier is what the Bible calls an antichrist. To repent, of course, is to turn away from sin and intentionally turn to God. Well, it is by grace that God gives you the power to repent. So, so even this so-called condition is, is one the Lord walks with you and provides, if you let Him and if you're obedient. That leaves having a sense of awe, reading the Bible, and going to church. Or not. You pick. He will provide if you let Him. [laughs] Hallelujah. Let's go on a saunter today with Jesus Christ. I hope you do. Pastor Skip out.

Tracing a line from the Tower of Babel to modern artificial intelligence, this message explores how human ambition to be like God echoes through history. Pastor Skip shares that we are living in the "last hour" and challenges believers to be spiritually ready—not complacent—for the sudden return of Jesus Christ.

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Good morning, everyone. Welcome to today's edition of Camino Chronicles. [laughs] And may I ask you to tighten your seat belts because, well, here we go. In the book of Genesis 11:4, it says, and I quote, "Then they said, 'Come, let's build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.'" End quote. Now, wait a minute. How'd they know that God would scatter them? Let, let me know when you find that answer. Then in verse five it says, "And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men had built." Now, this tower is called the Tower of Babel, and that comes from chapter 11, verse 9. And it's that great story about how man thought he could build a city on their own, reaching to heaven, making themselves famous. [laughs] That's what they say, they wanna become famous. I mean, it's kinda all about them, isn't it? Sorta like today. The word Babel means confusion, and it was probably referring to Babylonia on the Euphrates River. But the guy named Babel was the son of Nimrod, and he came out of Noah's line. And the word Nimrod means rebellion. [laughs] Confusion and rebellion. I mean, history surely is, is repeating itself today. I, I think we should caution parents, do not name your kids Nimrod. [laughs] Okay, let's fast-forward to when the Apostle John was about to write the book we call Revelation. It was about a king who's coming. Oh, hallelujah. John tells us right from the beginning, listen to this, I quote this, "This is a revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show his servants the events that must soon take place." Close quotes. Wow. Now, this word soon is in the New Living Translation. In the King James Version, it says these things that must shortly take place. Okay, so take a pencil and cross that out in your Bible. Cross out the word soon or quickly and write, uh, uh, not... [laughs] In the King James it doesn't say quickly. In the King James it says, "Must shortly take place." Okay, sorry. So you're gonna cross that out and you're gonna write in quickly or suddenly. A- and that's a much better translation of the Greek. It... And in fact, in both my New Living and King James translations, there's a footnote by the word soon and it says quickly or suddenly. Now, this book, this book we call Revelation, it's from an encounter that John had with an angel of God. Oh my gosh, that'll get your attention. It happened or it was written in about 96 AD on the island of Patmos. Now, this same John was in the city of Ephesus six years earlier, about 90 AD when he wrote 1 John. Listen to this, 1 John 2:18, and I quote, "Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come." Close quotes. Well, what is this last hour? Well, it, it's the time, the period of time leading up to the second coming of Jesus. It, it's the time that we're in now. So here's the timeline. And although we don't know the, the dates, we do know the seasons. First, there will be a falling away, an apostasy the Bible calls it. Huh. Do you think that's happening yet? Second, then comes the catching away of, the catching away of the believers, the, the what we call the rapture of the church spoken of in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. Then the Antichrist assumes power and sits in the temple trying to be God. And there's lots of discussion here as to whether it's a literal temp- temple or a symbolic or a figurative temp- uh, figurative one. That's all okay. The fourth thing happens though, this ushers in the seven-year period of time we call the Great Tribulation. Very sad times for those who are here. Number five, then the second coming of Jesus Christ when he establishes his rule and his reign for, number six, the millennial reign, his thousand years of... of rule on Earth. And then number seven, a perfect number, come a new heaven, a new earth, new people, new conditions, new Jerusalem, new temple, new light, and new paradise. Oh, glory. Hallelujah. Praise the name of the Lord. [laughs] Back in 1 John 22, he asks, "And who is a liar?" It gives the answer. Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ, anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. And that word antichrist means a adversary. John says that every spirit that does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world, and indeed is already here. In, in 2 John, he goes on and he says, "I say this," he was speaking about that we should love one another. He says, "I say this because many deceivers have gone out into the world. They deny that Jesus Christ came in a real body." Such a person is a deceiver and an antichrist, adversary. Okay, hold that thought for a minute. There was a movie a few years back about a kid playing a game on his computer, where he took one side and the computer took the other, and they tried to conquer one another. It was a war game, right? Well, in this story, in this movie, the computer went nuts and actually took over America's nuclear missile capability, and was about to launch attacks, nuclear rockets and missiles all over the world. There was also, uh, that movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey, it was called, where a computer named Hal went [laughs] nuts and caused a lot of trouble. Right now, there's a movie in the theaters called A House of Dynamite. Wow. It's about a nuclear missile that's been launched, and it's, it's gone rogue, and it's about to wipe out Chicago. Oh, my. And all the computers are trying to talk to each other and figure out what to do. Our current fascination with artificial intelligence, AI, is stirring up all kinds of concerns, a- and rightly so, I think. [laughs] I asked a friend the other day what he thought about computers being the Antichrist, and he gave me a very scholarly re- answer. He said, "Hmm." [laughs] I said, "Maybe they," meaning computers, "will become sentient." What a great word. Sentient means having the power of perception by the senses. In, in other words, conscious. It's characterized by sensation and consciousness. Well, my friend went on to call this the singularity. What great words, sentience and singularity. [laughs] Here are the three attempts to understand singularity. You ready? Number one, a singularity is a point where normal physical mathematical rules break down, or singularity refers to a boundary where existing models fail. They fail to describe what happens next. Hmm. Or number three, and according to that all-knowing truth called Wikipedia, [laughs] singularity refers to a boundary where existing models fail to describe what happens next. I guess you can see that when computers become sentient, they will not only have the power to perceive senses and to be conscious, whatever that means, but they will also reach this thing called singularity. Oh, boy. [laughs] Okay, let me try to connect all these dots. I love this. Number one, mankind is so selfish that he will attempt anything to become like God, like building a tower to heaven or a computer system that can do anything. Number two, our technology is advancing so rapidly that we, we're even beginning to fear our own technology. Our experts don't even know if they can control it once it [laughs] reaches a certain point. And number three, dear ones, we are in the last hour. Hopefully, we're preparing for the sudden and very quick return of Jesus Christ. So the Bible tells us that we should be ready, not be asleep, not be complacent, or in Bible-ese, not be fallen away. In 2 Peter 3:8, it tells us that to the Lord, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. [laughs] In other words, time is not something that controls God, but God controls and is beyond time. The Bible words, "The day of the Lord," refer to something absolutely [laughs] fantastic, something beyond amazing, something almost beyond our ability to comprehend. Words telling us that Jesus Christ is coming back a second time to rule and to reign as a king, and that just before He arrives on Earth, He will catch away those who believe in Him, and then He'll set up His earthly kingdom. Oh, I suggest you reread the Book of Revelation, and especially pay, pay close attention to chapter one, verse three, and I quote this, "God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the Church, and He blesses all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near." End quote. In verse 17, He then says, "Don't be afraid." Folks, a king is coming, and it's gonna be terrific for us who believe. So get ready. Fill your lamps. Trim your wicks. Don't bury your treasures. Confess your sins. Pray in the Spirit, and then listen as Jesus tells you how much He loves you. [laughs] Wow. This is Pastor Skip signing out for now. If I don't see you next Wednesday, well, either Jesus came and got me, and quickly, [laughs] and we visit together in glory. Hmm. Or hey, maybe I just get out early to meet Him. It's all good. God bless you today. Bye-bye.

When fear creeps in, it's often a sign we've forgotten who God is. A devotional about the fear of the Lord leads to a powerful reflection on how cynicism poisons our souls and why choosing optimism through Scripture is the antidote. Deuteronomy and Philippians offer practical steps to guard your thought life.

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Good morning, everyone. This is Wednesday. It's August the 26th, 2026, and I welcome you to today's edition of Camino Chronicles, as I tell you a little bit about the path that I'm on. [laughs] First, today, I wanna share, share something fr- from just last night. It was almost midnight when I was reading in my daily devotion titled New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp. And I usually read this devotional [laughs] after midnight, in the very early morning, when God's mercies are completely new for me. He was talking about the emotion of fear, which caused me to remember the famous Churchill saying, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." [laughs] But Tripp said that fear in a believer is a function of forgetfulness to the degree that you forget who God is. Hmm. A- and then he offered what he called the solution to fear, which really made me pay attention b- because I certainly want my fears to be not only relieved, but just gone. He said, "The only solution to fear is fear." What? He went on to say, "When the fear of God overwhelms and controls your heart, it protects you from the paralyzing and debilitating fear of other things," close quotes. Oh, boy. So much to ponder there. Co- could this be true? Could it be that our fears would melt away if we really feared the Lord? Even trying to understand what that means. So then he directed me to Psalm 111, and the famous text found there, and I quote, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." The fear of the Lord, the awesome respect one has for God Almighty, is the beginning of wisdom. Wow. I mean, there's a whole Camino for you right there because you really do want wisdom. You do. [laughs] You crave wisdom because every day reveals to you how much you need the wisdom of God. I mean, sometimes just to get through the day. Hallelujah. God provides. May we begin to fear the Lord and thus be recipients of His wisdom. Wow. That all came upon me last night. So now, for today's previously pondered Camino Chronicle, we'll see how the two connect. We are, all of us, emotional creatures. Uh, some of us maybe more so than others [laughs] but that's probably just that some of us are more willing to display our emotions. Hmm. I don't like some of my emotions. I found myself, the other day, not just feeling but actually being cynical, and I got sort of Jesus smacked, you know, such that I had to go home a- a- and dig a bit deeper into my own soul. I looked it up bec- because I was un-- I wanted to make sure that I was, uh, understanding something correct, what, what it means to be cynical. It means distrusting or, or, or disparaging the m- the motives of some other people. The dictionary says it's showing contempt and bitterly or sneeringly distrustful, contemptuous, or pessimistic. Oh, boy. I daresay there's no shortage of stuff happening in this modern age contributing to these feelings. I m- i- i- it's, it's like a poison, and a deadly one. So we need an antidote to this poi- poison. So here comes your vaccine shot, the antidote for being cynical. You ready? The antonym for being cynical is to be optimistic. Optimistic. Of course, we all know what optimistic means. Here are some of the synonyms of optimistic: believing positively, assured, bright, buoyant, cheerful, confident, encouraged, expectant, happy, high, hopeful, hoping, idealistic, keeping the faith, merry, on cloud nine, on top of the world, positive, promising, ray of sunshine, rose-colored, sunny, trusting, ha, even to utopia. [laughs] Optimistic. Now, listen, these are all more than just words of emotion. Because they lead, follow with me here, this is so cool. These words lead to actual behaviors, not just thoughts we have from time to time, but the issue here is what we do with these thoughts. Now, I may not know where all the thoughts in my head come from, but I am surely responsible for what I do with them, you know, whether I entertain them or dismiss them. Now, other people may contribute to the thoughts in my head. So it's kind of important that I surround myself with the right kind of people. And I'm sure you've noticed that the news today, you know, whether it's radio, TV, or in print, even online, it's a big contributor to what you think about. So think about this for a minute, okay? Think about what you think about and why. Let me repeat that. I want you to spend some time today thinking about what you think about and ask yourself why you're thinking those thoughts. Ask yourself, is it doing your soul any good? And if not, why keep entertaining it? It may not be possible to tune out all the voices that are causing you to think about stuff, but you can certainly be proactive in this. You can add in some positive voices. Now, you probably already know this, but I'll give you two really good proof texts from God that speak directly to this whole business. The first comes from Deuteronomy 30, verse 19, and it says, Oh, that you would choose life. And the second proof text is Philippians 4, 8, and it says, Think on these things. Now, I recommend that you look each of these Bible verses up. Look them up and, well, think about them. Take some notes and see if your choices in life, your behaviors, line up with what God says would be beneficial to you. Deuteronomy 30, 19, Philippians 4, 8, and read the list. And then ask yourself if your behaviors are lining up with what God's Word says would be beneficial to you. In fact, you could even make a list and put it on the dashboard of your car. Other people may even see it. Look, I'm not kidding. I typed up the list from Philippians and I put a copy on my fridge. And then I made another copy and I taped it to the dashboard of my car. I'm looking forward to a better thought life as I learn to obey the words of God recorded in Deuteronomy, choosing life. I pray that the fear of the Lord would dominate your emotions today and begin opening His wisdom to your soul, even as it has been working on mine. Wow. God bless you today, Pilgrim. Pastor Skip out.