Christmas is marked with an asterisk in many people’s story. Such was the case with Dad. Life on an Aircraft Carrier in WW II saw harrowing moments. The worst was October 24th, 1944. In the intense battles of Leyte Gulf, Dad and his fellow ordinance men had been busy loading bombs and ammunition onto planes. With enemy planes over head, strafing and dropping bombs, it had already been tough when a Japanese bomb went through their flight deck, exploding in the galley below. The resultant fire grew rapidly just below the bomb bay. The initial explosion also crippled the fire–fighting lines. As her own bombs began exploding, CVL-23 Princeton was doomed. Huge sections of the flight deck hurled through the air and the ship turned into a floating inferno. As smoke billowed; men were crying, screaming and dying. At edge of the deck, Dad’s best friend, Little Bill Tanner, was…
2021 December
In 11 years of writing this Sunday morning article I have never been inspired for a message by a picture. But when my brother (Ed Chinn) posted this picture he took of a Tennessee sunrise this week, it did a lot for me. I love sunrises and don’t miss watching very many. One day last week I stood on my deck with coffee when the temperature was 3 degrees, and watched the whole thing. I know, long before it comes up, precisely where the sun will appear on the horizon. There is a weathered old fencepost on my property, with scratches in the top that define the furthest northeast (summer solstice) and southeast (winter solstice) that the sun will rise. Through the year I watch it rise at all points between. As I viewed Ed’s picture it reminded me of Christ’s words in Matthew 16:2-3… When evening comes, you say,…
Hodges Boulevard Presbyterian Church in Jacksonville, FL started like many. A group from the big 1st Presbyterian Church in Jacksonville wanted to start a church in a quickly growing area of Jacksonville. They held their first service in that developing area on November 4, 1990, renting space in a local building called Captain’s Club (a property designed to host weddings, reunions and meetings). By February of 1991, 32 people became Charter Members of the new church. A land grant enabled them to start a building program in 1992. They held their 1st service in their new building in 1995. By 2002 the growing church had built a larger sanctuary and opened a school on their campus. Fun times and successful growth continued for the church family. Until this week. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander (Matthew 15:19). How could he? That’s often the…