2nd Ammendment training

During our Spring Co-op at CWW, we had an elective class in the afternoon for the young men. Whilst the ladies made cookies & crafts, we men learned all about fire arms & safety. It all culminated with a trip to camp for an afternoon of shooting & demonstration. The guys loved it!The Arsenal

Most of the firearms belonged to my buddy Ken Goings.

He is an avid hunter, Vietnam vet, & Grandpa to Drew.

No one knows firearms like Ken.Drew moves up to the big boy firearms!Sam being Sam

Andrew "Crack Shot" McCorroll

This 8 year old 'man' was nailing the quarter sized spinner target at 30 yards!

My 30 yard shot with a 45 caliber black powder rifle. That 250 grain bullet was travelling so fast that the cup never moved!

Garrett shoots the 44/40

Me & the collector's gun

Jr. & the brass beast

Zack nailed the water bottle in one shot. I couldn't hit it with 5 shots

A Sneek Peek at Emma Grace

Well, here she is in all her ultrasound glory! I usually can't see a thing in these pics but that first one is a head on shot & even I could see that little face.
My cousin Angela says that little face looks like Samuel. The pattern is Paul Jr., Anna, & Sam - now Emma. They all have very similar traits from their hair (eventually lighter in color), build (slight, or trim - not a tank like Zack), & personality.
We had agreed on Emma Grace before Ben was born. Had he been a girl, that would be his name. Emma is a family name on both sides. Beth's Great Grandma & Aunt & my Great, great, great Grandma - Emma Kate Smith - who lived in England. Thanks to my cousin for cluing me in on that.
Well, she will make her grand appearance somewhere close to Elizabeth's birthday on July the 5th. She'll have a birthday buddy like I do with Sam who was born the day after my birthday.
We don't have ANY girl stuff as it has been 11 years since we had a baby girl. Actually we do have a cammo & lace outfit from Elizabeth's Aunt Donna. She will wear that a lot.
Beth ran into a neighborhood friend at the store & caught her up with our news. She told Beth that they had a baby girl a couple of years ago & had lots of clothes to share. What a blessing.
My Mother in Law told Beth to remind me that I'm the Father & not the Grandfather. Not sure what to make of that...

The First Commantment Quandry

I preached a sermon entitled "No Other Gods: 21st Century Idolatry" out of Exodus 20:3 this pas Sunday. You can check it out for yourself at the above link. It was a straight forward exposition of the grammar of the verse & the history of the time. Two words were interesting to me in the grammar: 'have' - means to own or be in possession of. And the word 'before' - literally means 'in my face' or presence. As I explained in the teaching: "This is not about PRIORITY but PRESENCE" It's NOT OK to have gods as long as they are less loved & served than GOD. There was also an interesting polemic on the plurality of gods. I let you check that out for yourself.
As is our custom at CWW, we engage in a Q&A after we eat lunch together every week. This week's Q&A was probably the best we've ever had. It went well over an hour & nearly everyone had something to say. One young man in our fellowship, Art, asked the best question of the day. "How do you know when something has become an idol?" That question gave birth to 45 minutes of dialogue. I don't really know how many people read this blog but I'd be interested in your answer to Art's excellent question.
I find we tend to list things in a priority list but remember that this is not what God was commanding in the 1st commandment. It is about presence not priority. No other gods in my face! That is his clear command.
I believe the starting point to answer this question is understanding God's Lordship, His ownership of our lives - "Lock, Stock, & Barrel" as they used to say. If we can embrace a biblical paradigm of God's ownership of all that we ARE & HAVE...then from that starting point, it becomes a matter of management of blessings that are not mine but His.
I'm studying it further for myself this week. I believe we'll have a part 2 on Idolatry in the 21st century this next week. Then on the following Sunday, my brother Jim will address the congregation regarding 'carving on God'.
By the way...I love our Church! We have some of the saltiest believers that I've ever met.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Grace & Peace...

Emma Grace

Elizabeth & I went covert today with a secret ultrasound. She didn't want to say anything in case the baby was modest again & we were unable to tell the gender.
Two minutes into the ultrasound & the tech said, "This one's a girl". I had to choke back my tears. Glad it was dark in there. I wanted a girl for my old age. So did Beth but she had convinced herself it was a boy. Now we won't have to argue about a boy's name as we couldn't agree. Emma Grace was agreed on from the outset.
I'm just a little blown away that our God would so bless us with a baby & a girl to boot! He has given us a great reason to praise HIM passionately! I Praise YOU - El Roi - the God who sees. You saw Emma long before we did. In you book all her members were written when as yet there were none of them. I Praise YOU YHWHY Jirah - The God who provides. You will provide for Emma all her days. I praise you Yeshua - my rescuer, my Lord, my King. You will provide the only way for Emma to be set right with our Father...through your precious blood. Oh blessed Spirit, draw her heart to our Messiah at a young age. Reveal Christ to her that she may spend her life serving our risen Yeshua. I Praise the Triune God for blessing this foolish servant with much more than I'll ever deserve or thank you for properly. Take this feeble attempt & know that my life is yours & the real praise will come from my Spirit empowered actions.
Thank you God!

First Fruits Sunday

Mr. GQ! He was so funny. Sam had it going on!


Ben informed His Momma that he did not want to wear 'baby shoes' & that he wanted a suit like Sam! Too funny! That kid walks like John Wayne...with swagger.

My younger two thirds.

I asked the Lord to give me ugly daughters or sons who could shoot straight. I got the latter. Those girls are scary pretty.

The four younger children got all dressed up for First Fruits Sunday as we celebrate the defigning difference between our faith and all others...Our Redeemer LIVES!

Vintage Dziaduls

Sam going for a ride with Uncle Andy's 'Car'

Andy loves his wheels! He rides all over our community. I never know where I'll run into him. He loves his new found freedom!
"Schnitzel" His name is short for wiener schnitzel. He is a cool little dog & we all are crazy about him.

Queen "Sheba" - the best natural cammo I've ever not seen. Too bad she's dumb as a brick!
We're trying to figure out how to contain her. She climbs the fence like a person would - putting her paws in the chain links & jumping over the top. My big boys are installing an invisible fence. Training of our brainiac brindle bull dog begins next week...to be continued

Singing Men

This is for my friend Charlie. I haven't posted in forever as most of my daily posts have been on facebook. Thanks for the friendly reminder of my lack of updating.
The above pic is of Zack & Paul at our family new years celebration. The karaoke became a big competition & it actually coaxed them into performing. We had a video of it but it mysteriously was deleted. It doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure out who did that.
If you want to hear Zack sing then go to www.CWWMacon.com & listen to him sing the second section of Psalm 119 entitled "Beth" (the 2nd letter in the Hebrew Alphabet. Zack wrote the music & played the guitar on that recording. It is right on the front page.
He also wrote the music for the section "He". That debuted this past Sunday & it was FANTASTIC! That will be on the web site soon.
Paul Jr. has decided to answer the call to ministry. At least he's heading in that direction. He hopes to attend a Bible College this fall. Finances are a hurdle so please pray for him as he is still attending Macon State & working two jobs.
If you get a chance to check out my last two sermons entitled "A Holy Dress Rehearsal" & "Jesus our First Fruits". Here's my question, "Are gentile believers required to celebrate the feasts?" Before you say no, answer this question by scripture, "Did the gentile believers in the 1st century celebrate the feasts?" - There are numerous references in acts & one stark reference in 1 Cor. 5:8.
We did observe Passover & celebrated Jesus as the fulfillment of First Fruits through his resurrection.
It's a great discussion & study.
Thanks again Chuck! I can't wait to see you in person & have some great fellowship in Christ.