Photos from NTC

Hey everyone!

I know it's been a while since I posted any deep thoughts here and it's going to be a while longer...maybe.

I wanted to share some pics of me here at the National Training Center (NTC) and let you know that I'm doing swell. I've been here about 2 weeks now and just this morning caught my cold! Woo Hoo! Two whole weeks of 7 days a week, 12-16 hours a day and I just now get sick. See, Army training does make you tougher because I used to get sick after just 1 week of that when I was working in a church.

To the left here is a shot of me and the deadliest thing known to mankind--a powdered donut, wrapped in cellophane, from an Army chow point. Ahh, I can just hear myself telling the stories to my grandchildren: "So there I was, no joke, in the middle of the Mojave desert eating a powdered donut..." I can't wait!

Here to the right are some of the unsung heroes of the war working well past sundown. These are mostly "Eighty-eight Mikes," truckdrivers who haul the supplies that trigger-pullers need. An M1A1 Abrams tank is nothing more than a $45 million paperweight if it doesn't have fuel and these guys bring the fuel. Because they are a softer target, driving nothing but regular trucks and a few up-armored HMWWV's, these guys will more likely be targeted by IED's when we get to the Middle East. Also, you'll notice the beautiful sunset in the background as well. The dusk really plays beautifully off the mountains and the dust around here. It's been really inspirational.

When Jeff and I drove out for my vicarage in California, many was the time that we would just pull over, get out of the car, and admire God's creation in the Rockies and Sierra Nevadas. I find myself doing that here, too. Not morning goes by that I don't just marvel at the way light and shadow plays across some of the hills here at NTC. I've been running the words of Psalm 121 through my mind the whole time, most notably: "I lift my eyes up to the hills, where does my help come from? It comes from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth." Some of you may not have hills but, when life gets you down, look up and know that the Maker of heaven and earth is there to help.

Unfortunately, my internet connection is really slow here, so I don't have time to post any more photos. But I have a lot more to share so stop back in the next day or so and I'll post more pictures and descriptions.

God bless!