Praises – Hey, it’s good to be back home again! (John Denver); renewing friendships; family visits; web page for songs online; John’s eye is healing; monthly and one-time gifts to our ministries; mower tire finally fixed, yard looked great when we got back.
Prayers – Continued eye healing; endocrinologist referral (found pituitary growth in John’s MRI); discipline to continue healthy diets and weight loss; truck repairs; new tires, decision on quotes and scheduling; web site visits, people finding our music.
“Furthermore, everyone to whom God has given riches and wealth, he has also allowed him to enjoy them, take his reward, and rejoice in his labor. This is a gift of God, for he does not often consider the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with the joy of his heart.” Ecclesiastes 5:19-20 CSB
Hello to our followers, family, and friends:
Illinois was beautiful in September. It was 52 degrees on the 1st with a high of 79, about perfect for Connie! Some rain, perhaps three days, which was much needed even though harvesting had begun by the end of the month. Typically it is very windy, but only a few days this visit. Connie had to drive home in some heavy rain after dark and will definitely avoid that if possible; her eyes are not as good as they used to be.
John’s eye slowly improved this month. The prayers of many have certainly been appreciated and answered. He made his first city drive on the 5th (about 45 minutes with a couple of stops) before some motion sickness started. He was able to drive two longer stretches on the 13th when we visited his sister in Macomb, IL with no motion sickness and again on the 19th when we went to Peru, IL. One of our evening walks mid-month he didn’t use his glasses and could see a reasonable distance clearly. Both of us have been more mindful of when and what we eat, and we treated ourselves to a congratulatory Steak N Shake happy hour half-price milkshake on the 12th. Our combined weight loss at that time was 15 lbs.!
We have some on-going water problems that started on the 7th – Connie heard a consistent drip sound that John found coming from the shower area, running through the pipe hole, and ending on the water heater shelf and floor of our storage area. The water was turned off and we were thankful that we caught it early. Most of the month was spent back and forth with the pressurized ‘city’ water connection or the pump using our fresh water tank. Settings seemed to work for a while, but our final diagnosis was the back flush valve was bad. Once that was disconnected, we were able to hookup to ‘city’ water again. In the meantime, our pump was getting very hot so we only used it for short periods, and that will have to be checked into after we get home. Camp showers are not fun and hauling drinking water gets old very fast – not complaining, we’re just not used to real camping!
Although frustrating, it was a good month for Connie. The decision was made in August to hire a professional to complete our music E-Commerce web page. A Christian gentleman replied to our inquiry and she started working with him on 9/2. After 16 days the task was done! WordPress had been our platform for several years but their host price for our needs was very expensive so we changed hosting services. Then came her part, selecting samples from the songs; getting uniform information for author, year, type, etc. (metadata); selecting photos; and adding these ‘products’ to the web site. Trial orders, downloads, decisions, decisions, decisions! September 22 this page became LIVE finally after two years of thinking about it. Sixteen songs from our CD’s along with Conductivity are available online for a donation. (www.SaltyStrings.com).
John did most of the volunteering this month – 16 days, starting 9/2 and finishing 9/25 working on outside painting. Two cement block dorms and their doors (Goodness and Kindness cabins), two boat dock piers, and one zip line landing pad. The dorms included pulling the wood chip mulch away from the bottom blocks, prepping the walls, trim and roller all four sides, and replacing the wood chips. The dock and landing surfaces received two coats, and all the edges were painted as well. Needless to say, he was very tired and stiff several evenings. He didn’t have any problems going up and down the ladder, no dizziness, but did have some heat stroke symptoms once or twice. He was a bit lonely so Connie did help one morning, finishing a short end of the Goodness dorm.
The first three Sundays in September found us at Lane Christian Church (our former home church) where guest speakers have been providing the messages for almost a year. We were blessed to hear two excellent speakers, one a previously retired pastor from this church (before our time). The other speaker gave two messages from Joshua 1:1-9 (be strong and courageous); from the incoming pastor’s perspective and from the congregation’s perspective – both excellent messages applicable to any church receiving a new pastor. The last Sunday we were with Memorial Christian Church (Carlinville, IL) our 2nd ‘home church’ where we shared some worship and special music as well as hearing an excellent message from their new pastor. We were blessed to attend Sunday School, evening studies, and renew friendships.
Salty Strings had two wonderful opportunities to share this month. We provided special music for our original church in Lane, IL one Sunday morning (and it fit well with the guest pastor’s message). We also prepared a special song and led the worship one Sunday in Carlinville, IL (our second ‘home’ church) and their new pastor tied his message into the songs. It is wonderful how God works all this out!!
A busy month, but filled with some much-enjoyed relaxation. Connie was able to get her sister’s memorial flowers laid out to dry and de-headed. John picked up a beautiful flamed maple electric guitar, amp, and another acoustic amp from his cousin which he enjoyed playing around with in the RV (with loud volume) when Connie was gone for the day. (Later in the month he got another guitar that needs some repairs!). We enjoyed the Wednesday volunteer day lunches at the camp (including cornbread and dipped cookies), and a few TV movie nights. Connie spent a morning struggling with our new printer and some extra time trying to get the formatting for our web blog photos to look good again. She also researched our back flush RV leak and pieced together photos to trace the plumbing lines (what a tangled web). John purchased new guitar strings for his Taylor guitar and had his patience tested when a new string broke because of his limited eyesight. Connie’s sense of adventure caused us to take a short-cut home from a visit on a dark, moonless night across a ‘dry creek crossing’ – at the top of the very eroded gully our headlights showed it was neither dry or crossable. She was able to back up a quite a way to a farm field access, get turned around on the narrow road, and proceeded home on the safe highways. So much for adventure.
We enjoyed (mostly) our consistent exercise this month. Lots of bike riding (with and without purpose) around the camp. Connie’s knee was a bit stressed with all the trips during Family Camp but she really enjoyed riding up and down the hills. There were mini-rides to get water from the RV leak or take the trash and longer rides just for the exercise. Almost every evening we would take a walk, sometimes down the RV driveway and other times more purposeful trips (around the pool or to see the logs from the 20×28 cabin kit). It is hard to get up after supper and move, but it feels so good after walking around a bit, enjoying the fresh air, and seeing the always changing moon.
Connie enjoyed a day alone galivanting through the countryside. She picked up lunch and visited a church friend (and Max, their new dog). Then back to our home town of Weldon for another visit with a wonderful lady that helped her serve ‘Peace Meal’ for the seniors when we lived there. She proceeded to drive around this little village past our old home, said ‘Hi’ to the neighbor on that corner, and chatted with another town friend before leaving. We’ve been gone for 10 years and it is such a blessing to reconnect.
September fellowship was great, a bit rushed, but great to connect with family and friends. The month started with our last day of Family Camp followed by the local Men’s Fellowship gathering that raises funds for the camp. Mid-month we traveled to visit John’s sister and niece in Macomb, IL where we enjoyed the Farmer’s Market, helped his niece pack up her booth, had lunch with his sister, and conversation at her apartment before heading back to camp. We enjoyed an evening pizza meal with a couple we see each year, had another evening meal at Texas Road House with a church couple, and enjoyed an after-church meal with another church couple – that’s a lot of catching up with great friends we look forward to being with on our annual trip to this area. We had another visit with John’s sister and niece when they drove to meet us at a nearby town for lunch, and were excited to get to see some of John’s cousins this trip, meeting at Olive Garden in Peru, IL with lively conversation. Once we arrived in Litchfield towards the end of the month we had supper with our friends at Steak N Shake, without water, coffee, and soft drinks (boil order). Carlinville church friends, retired translators in Columbia, invited us over for a grilled chicken lunch and we met their new pastor; a great meal, garden produce to take home, and wonderful conversation. We were treated to a Mexican lunch after church the next day. That’s a lot of relationships, encouragement (for us and them), and wonderful stories to treasure!
Our renter took over the mowing and weeds for August and September. We had fixed a flat tire before we left, however it continued to be a problem. It had three strikes (and considerable frustration) before the final fix and the property looked great when we arrived home! Our thanks to those who took care of the repairs while we were away.
Our last week in September was fairly relaxed even though we were on the ‘pack up–hook up–travel–set up’ cycle. Friday 9/26 we had a short uneventful trip from Clinton to Litchfield, IL where we stayed three nights visiting with friends, eating out, and sharing our music. Just after leaving we received a notice that the RV park was under a boil order – no drinking water at camp or in town with our supper meal! We boiled water that evening for drinking and the boil order was lifted early Saturday.
We started home Monday 9/29 with an overnight stop at the RV park next to Lambert’s in Sikeston, MO. Although we had an early stop (forgot to tighten the instrument shelf straps) and another ‘shoulder of the road’ stop before crossing the Mississippi (personal necessities), John drove part way and we were set up with most of the afternoon free. We unhooked and were able to tour the Flea Market, get our end-of-the-quarter free medical supplies, and refuel before returning to the RV for supper in bed (so we didn’t have to unpack our living room). Tuesday morning was leisurely and hooking up to the RV went smoothly after John got the truck backed up at the right angle (Connie couldn’t get it this time). This was our first time seeing green and white cotton fields and realizing the old manual labor picking would have been very hard work. We arrived back to our peaceful surroundings early afternoon, got mostly set up, and took a walk up the road thanking God for safe travels, a beautiful place to live, and a wonderful evening for a walk.
DEVOTION THOUGHTS THIS MONTH:
God’s promises are not always immediately visible, but they are always trustworthy. God calls us to trust him, not our outward circumstances or feelings: those things change, but God is constant.
We do well to remember that God takes care of all our needs. Be content with the blessings God provides and give thanks for the physical and spiritual gifts he gives to us.
“For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.” 1 Timothy 6:7-8 NIV
Please keep us in your prayers . . . and THANKS for catching up with our adventures!
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
- Now through Thanksgiving – Home in Mississippi
- November 29ish-January 9ish – SOWER Volunteer Project, French Camp, MS
- January 9ish-March? – SOWER Volunteer Project, DeFuniak Springs, FL
