Praises – Wake up call to take better care of our bodies; ability to still do detailed work, thanks to special eyeglass treatment; spiritual growth
Prayers – God continues to heal John’s eye; for us as we keep putting off truck repairs and tires; eCommerce web site up and running
“The heavens are telling the glory of God; they are a marvelous display of his craftsmanship. Day and night they keep on telling about God. Without a sound or word, silent in the skies, their message reaches out to all the world. The sun lives in the heavens where God placed it and moves out across the skies . . .” Psalm 19:1-5 The Living Bible
(When your life has unplanned complications, you may feel unrest in your mind and body; keeping your eyes on the eternal rather than the temporary keeps you grounded – God is still in control.)
Hello to our followers, family, and friends:
John had many music store stops this month. On the 1st we went to Kenosha to get his amp ‘repaired’ only to find it was working fine; the store gave us a free used cord (in case his was bad) and charged nothing for diagnosis. Guess bouncing an amp around traveling 650+ miles will realign anything. This store had a 3-shelf corner display of accordions and some interesting guitars. We continued to the second music store with nothing of interest but encouraged another shopper to purchase a dulcimer followed by Chinese buffet lunch, grocery shopping, and home for the day. We were invited to a maintenance department Birthday lunch our second volunteer day, enjoyed a Pizza Ranch lunch with a Beloit friend, ate out in Beloit twice, a grilled dinner with two couples we worked with in Florida, and were treated to dinner by our ‘boss’ at the end of our volunteer time. Another music store stop we saw a guitar body fitted with a stained-glass top, something similar was added to Connie’s list of things to do someday! We did plan a stop at Fleet Farm (bucket list check off) where John found some oriental snack mix. Gears shifted after arriving in Illinois, we went to two antique malls to look for lathe tools and actually found an old new set with a lot of rust. On checking prices, it was cheaper to order a new set.
The end of July we started reading through a book together as a daily devotion time, the title “Fit to Serve: Spiritually Suitable-Physically Able.” We had decided to lose 5 lbs. each by the end of August but did not know the physical and spiritual attacks that were coming. At the end of our first volunteer week John felt a bit dizzy and thought it was eye strain and being tired. That Friday Connie drove several hours for errands and visits while John dealt with seeing double, motion sickness, and he couldn’t ride bicycle over the weekend. We were able to get in early Monday morning at a nearby eye doctor who wisely sent us to the ER for some tests and an MRI. The news was not good, high blood pressure, slightly high blood sugar and cholesterol, and ocular nerve damage. The next afternoon we were back at the eye clinic where they added a prism lens (like a window cling stick-on) to his glasses bringing much better central focus. He is still having double vision and depth perception problems, especially peripherally, but was able to trim walls again. Some medications were started, a blood pressure monitor was purchased, and big changes in our eating as well. Lots of prayers, questions, and realization our lives and lifestyles are not guaranteed.
When we arrive in a new area John always checks the local churches to see “who, what, when, and where.” Then, we pray and choose which one to attend. Again, God in His faithfulness, led us to a small Methodist Church with wonderful people. We spent 4 Sunday mornings with this congregation (never did make it to their Wednesday evening study) and were blessed being there and able to help them as well. It was a tough month for them: the Pastor was gone for two weeks with some personal matters and the music leader was out all month with throat and vocal issues. We were able to provide our sound system, hymns, and a short concert for their ‘Sunday in the Park’ service and Connie played piano and we did a special for our last Sunday there.
What beautiful weather this month – after Mississippi it was so refreshing to have nights in the 60’s and breezy non-humid days! There were a few thunder storms and heavy rains, but we were not affected by any nearby flooding. A few over-nights and mornings we started our electric fireplace to warm it up a bit and there were many days that we didn’t need to use the a/c. Our friend meeting us in Elkhorn was delayed waiting for the hail and rain to let up for our lunch meeting. We had a few day trips bringing us home after dark – one evening we had a cat, deer, and geese crossing the road with a huge golden-red sunset and a pale reddish moon rising, dipping behind clouds, then returning slightly out-of-shape to become full again. Another evening coming around a bend behind a hill there was a big orange moon, actually the orange silo of Fleet Farm (which was on John’s bucket list to stop at).
While we were in Wisconsin Connie spent some extra time preparing for her sister’s Celebration of Life and was the emcee and speaker (with help from her niece). All our kids were able to be there, a wonderful blessing, and several of Connie’s aunts, uncles, and cousins as well. Extended family gatherings are a thing of the past it seems but there tends to be a least one in each generation that keeps everyone in contact. We left with some personal contact information, quail eggs from our daughter, and three wildflower bouquets (we could already smell them upstairs that night). The plan is to let the flowers dry, collect the seeds, and plant them in the spring with our other wildflowers.
Our August ‘project’ in Wisconsin included 104 volunteer hours under maintenance direction. We started painting two large walls in the office building and continued with two classrooms. There were a few things to move out of the way in the office (a large oak cubby cabinet and some window shades), and the last classroom we took several pictures so we could put things back the way they were when we finished. Cover plates, TVs off their wall stands, white boards, etc. along with some spackling and a hole to patch before starting and everything put back in place when we finished a room. It was great inside work and we were finishing up as the first-year students arrived and teachers organized their rooms.
We moved outside our last volunteer week, much warmer and a few rainy days, but we scraped, primed, and completed the final coat of a 3-sided fence around the main electrical panel. In our down time John started organizing the shop garden tool storage area, putting up beveled 1×12” boards then adding pegs and hanging rakes and shovels. We enjoyed our tour on our first day and know those that work here have a heart for the ministry they provide.
August was a good month for us to start working on our diets and exercise habits. There were great roads to ride our bicycles with a few very slight hills, and we did most of our own cooking this month. Once we arrived in Illinois the hills were tougher, Family Camp weekend there were 5-6 trips each day, and we are still riding several times a week. We are also trying to walk in the evening if we haven’t been very active that day.
Connie tried a few new kitchen recipes that did not go well – baking brownies in microwave pods (burned most of them leaving a brownie fragrance every time the microwave door was opened for several weeks) and chicken and dumplings that were a bit mushy (leaving them sit for over an hour before eating didn’t help). We were doing good with bicycle riding almost every day until Connie’s tire went flat (the 7th) and John’s vision/balance was off (the 9th). John was able to get the bike tire off and back on and we were good to go again on the 17th! Our humming bird feeder was put out and the little guys showed up the next day. With all the commotion our monthly newsletter update was a bit behind, but the mail copies were finally sent from Kansasville, WI which we found amusing. John also replaced his bicycle gear guard (broken for over a year) when Connie found the part while setting up the office area. We did get the oil changed and new wiper blades finally for the truck, but the low gas warning light is still reminding us that we have some issues and need to have service soon (which we’ve known for several months).
Salty Strings was busy with an annual program in Illinois and the church in Wisconsin. We were to provide music for worship in the park that was expanded to include a message time concert. Although John’s eyes were not working and we forgot two microphones (thankfully our RV was almost next door to the park), everyone enjoyed our songs and God was present! We were almost finished eating when a thunderstorm rolled in, had to leave in a hurry, and we were given large catering pans of Italian beef and mostaccioli to take to our fellow maintenance workers. Our last Sunday at the church we shared a special song for those who didn’t make it to the park, and Connie played the piano for the service. We began practicing and organizing songs before traveling to Illinois for our annual Jolly Seniors program. The weather this year was great (usually it rains), and even though we were not at our best, everyone enjoyed our songs.
We had one short trip (5 hours) to make in August. Everything got packed up and we headed out at 9:30 Monday morning (8/25). This was a different trip with Connie driving all the way (with a few prayers and several stops). It was great travel weather, partly cloudy, and we noticed some interesting fence post decorations we had never seen before – ladies blue jeans likely stuffed with something ‘hanging’ from the top wire, and another field with Tonka trucks on the posts! How cute and innovative. We arrived in Illinois around 2:30, John backed the trailer into our site (with great difficulty), got mostly set up, and headed into town for a Mexican dinner.
We made reservations for Family Camp at Little Galilee this year for the speakers and a place to park before and after Labor Day weekend. The sessions were about Joseph (of the many-colored coat) and family dynamics, the morning devotions were from John 1:1-18, and the mission presentation was from their summer camp missionary and her family’s ministry in Pakistan. Part of the weekend was a celebration for the 70 years this camp has been operating, including a hot air balloon filling and “race car” carrying the camp logo. The weather was fantastic and the tables were dry (no dew) two of the three mornings for devotions!
DEVOTION THOUGHTS THIS MONTH:
Your attitude is always a choice. When you have God’s perspective you understand that everything you see is transient; it is temporary. In this life, you walk by faith – obedient to the words of Scripture, the words of the Creator God. When you experience the troubles of this life take comfort in the Lord’s promises.
What is happening when the Lord appears to be quiet? When your soul aches from the stress of life and you are breathless, hoping to hear from Heaven, don’t misunderstand God’s silence. Far from ignoring you, He is likely saying, “Hold on, loved one… and wait.” Many times God uses ‘wait’ to train His heavy lifters.
“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. . .” James 4:8a ESV
Thanks for traveling with us and being part of our family too!
John and Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry
Contact Information:
Mail: John & Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry
30A Hwy 367
Burnsville, MS 38833
Phone – John 909-336-8910 or Connie 909-336-8912
Email – SaltyStrings@hotmail.com
Facebook – Salty Strings Music Ministry
Web site – SaltyStrings.com
ONLINE DONATIONS via PayPal through our web site
TRAVEL PLANS AND UPCOMING LOCATIONS
<> August 25-September 24 – Clinton, Illinois area; volunteer work, music
<> September – Visits with friends in the area and family in Macomb, IL
<> September 28 – Memorial Christian Church, Carlinville, IL, Special Music
<> September 29 – Travel back home, Burnsville, MS