Yesterday was a beautiful South Louisiana fall day. Morgan and Christian went to Bethel Presbyterian Church and Lisa, the little boys and I went to Trinity Lutheran Church. Lisa and I meet with the Pastor (Rev. Duke) during the Sunday school hour.

We had a good visit. We learned some things about him, his family and his time in the ministry. He also gave Lisa and me a couple of copies of Luther’s Small Catechism and a small work book titled “I Have Good News For You” by Rev. Donald Ginkel.

The Pastor wanted us to read the section on the Sacraments (especially on the Lutheran view of the Eucharist). I have some knowledge of Lutheran teaching on this subject and I’m interested in reading what these to sources have to say on the matter.

Yesterday evening Christian was at work (Outback Steakhouse) and Morgan, Lisa, the little boys and I were all home. The boys have been wanting to light a fire in the fireplace, and last night I lit a fire in my first ever fireplace. All the family gathered around. Lisa sat crocheting, the little boys drew or watched the fire. Morgan read to us from The Magician’s Nephew, which is the first book in C.S. Lewis’ wonderful series the Chronicles of Narnia.

Morgan read the first four chapters aloud. I had not heard them since I read the series to Morgan and Christian when they were no older than the little boys are now. After the third chapter, Lisa announced that it was time for the little boys to take their baths. They asked if Morgan could read more if they took quick baths. Lisa consented and the boys quickly bathed, including washing their hair, and Morgan read one more chapter.

C.S. Lewis is a great writer, and this series is one of the greatest fantasy epics ever written. I have read a good bit of his stuff and all of it has been quite good. My favourite Lewis book is his small novel titled The Great Divorce.

After our reading and prayers, the boys went to bed, as did Lisa. Christian returned home from work about 9:30, and MK came over not long after that. Mike had a bottle of Jacob’s Creek Shiraz with him. I poured us each a glass and we sat and talked while drinking wine and eating cheese and Chex Cereal.

The big topic for us last night was about the similarities and differences between Reformed and Lutheran theologies. We did go for a walk after finishing the wine, but we did not get to pray, because our topic of discussion ran into overtime.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Kenith

I spent most of today at home with the children. Lisa worked until about noon and then went to see a friend who is going through a divorce. She got with the friend again this evening and they went to supper together. The lady is a good friend. Divorce is a terrible thing, so it is good that Lisa can be there for her friend.

I got two new DVDs today. The first one I purchased at Walmart when the little boy’s and I went grocery shopping this afternoon. The movie is Frank Capra’s classic It’s a Wonderful Life. The other DVD I received today was ordered for me by my friend Butch Ellis. He was ordering Warriors of Honor and I asked him to order me a copy also. He called this morning and told me that they had arrived, so I went and picked up my copy and visited with he and Judy for a little while.

I watched both these DVDs today and love both. I have seen It’s a Wonderful Life many times. It is one of those timeless stories that you can watch over and over again.

Warriors of Honor is a very good documentary of Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson. I can not recommend this documentary to highly. It is a must have. It is a breath of fresh air in the fact that it gives a far more Southern slant to the War Between the States and not the usual Northen version that we Southrons have been force fed in textbooks for almost 150 years.

Lee and Jackson were both great military leaders and more importantly they were great men of God. They were both devout Christian men. The Scotch/Irish Jackson was Presbyterian and Lee, who was of English descent, was an Episcopalian. Of course, in that day, both these Southern Denominations were solidly Bible believing and theologically orthodox.

Robert E. Lee is my greatest American hero. I love history, especially early American history, and I have found very few Americans who come close to Lee in being worth of admiration and deserving of imitation as does Robert E. Lee.

We will be worshipping at Trinity Lutheran Church here in Sulphur again tomorrow. We are supposed to meet with the Pastor tomorrow.

Dominus Vobiscum,
Kenith

It’s very late and I should be in bed, but if worked the graveyard shift (6pm to 6am) for the past four days and though I am off tonight I am still very much awake even at this late hour. I just finished reading an essay from I’ll Take My Stand: The South and the Agrarian Tradition. The essay is by Allen Tate and is titled Remarks on the Southern Religion. My response so far is "hummm."

Yesterday I arrived home from work at about 6:30. I went to bed and was wakened at 11am to get ready for Thanksgiving dinner. We went to Lisa’s sisters house, where her whole family gathered to feast and be thankful. I was privileged to be asked to pray over the meal, and then we all at our fill on to many good foods and desserts to name.

I visited with family and friends until about 3:15 when my bro-in-law "J" brought me back home. I gave him a quick tour of the house, said good by and went back to bed. I slept until 5:30pm. Gary J picked me up for work a few minutes after 6.

Gary and I sipped on Bourbon on my front porch this morning after work. After he left for home I went to bed and slept until 11:30am. I then got up, drank a cup of coffee and started helping Lisa put up the Christmas tree. At about 1:45 I realised the LSU vs Arkansas game had started, so I turned on the radio (we don’t have cable or a working antenna) to listen to the game.

After a particular play, I called MK on the phone to on it. Chester was at his house and he invited me over (again) to watch the game with them. Lisa urged me to go join them, which I did. After the game, Lisa, the little boys (the big kids were at their jobs) and I went to Longville to visit my folks. We had a good visit.

We got home just before 10 pm. Lisa and I put a DVD of the movie Khartoum (Staring Charlton Heston) on. I watched the whole thing, but Lisa feel asleep early in the movie. It’s a good movie.

I will now try once more to go to sleep.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

I haven’t blogged in a while. I’ve been busy at work and home. Some of the business was on things that are not all that important things, and others have been very important. MK and I made it to the LSU vs. Ole Miss game. Mitch T. and Chuck Y. Came with us, but they sat in another section of the stadium. We had a flat tire on the way home. We were on the Interstate near Welch, La when the right rear tire blew out. We got home about 2:30 am on Sunday.

Me, Lisa and the little boys again attended the nearby Lutheran Church (LCMS). The pastor had a good sermon. The liturgy is not very different than what we have at Bethel (PCA) (where the big kids went to Church).

Some big news that also saddens me a bit is my friend, and pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church Bill Smith, and his family, may be leaving the area. He may going to pastor a PCA church in Louisville, Ky. This would put him near Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (the flagship of the SBC) and he could get his doctorate. Getting his doctorate is something we has wanted to do ever since I’ve known him.

Gary J. And I have car pooled to work the last couple of nights. He drives. We pick up a beer on the way home in the morning and drink it on my front porch. Yesterday we added a shot of Wild Turkey to our beer. We visited and drank our beer. When we finished he headed home and I went to bed.

I have not been able to read much lately, but I did finish book 1 of Calvin’s Institutes. The man was a absolutely brilliant. I can’t wait to read the whole thing, but it is going to take me a long time to finish it.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

I’m spending another Lord’s Day working at the refinery. My family is spread out today. Lisa and Morgan are in Monroe and will be attending Auburn Ave. Presbyterian Church. The little boys are with Reaux-Reaux and, like Christian, they are worshipping at Bethel PCA today.

Things are going well today. Matt brought some Ducks and pork (wild hog) and Cudd brought some deer sausage. Matt then made a homemade roux and then cooked an all wild game gumbo. That boy cooks a mean gumbo. He also fried up some of the duck breasts for an appetizer (yum). It was all very good.

We here at work are hoping for a quiet afternoon, because we all ate our fill. This has been a good week for food. While in Longville the other day, my mom cooked up some fresh mustard greens (with bacon), baked sweet potatoes and smoked pork steaks. That is a meal. I don’t get freshly cooked mustard greens very often, and they are so good.

I’ve read a number more articles from Richard Weaver’s book since last noted. I’m still working through Calvin’s Institutes and I’ve also read a number of things from the web, including the Battle for Fallugah.

When off work from the refinery, I’m doing some painting and other chores around our new house.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

Ps. Andy Richard (pronounced Ree-shard, because it’s Cajun) said that he has not yet appeared in my blog. He's promised to stop and drink a few beers with me just so I will mention him on the blog. He is now officially mentioned, so he has to stop by the house and drink a beer or two on the front porch.

I was able to enjoy most of this week off from work. I returned home from Beaumont Thursday evening a week ago, and did not return to work until yesterday. On Tuesday night The little boys and I went to Longville with our tent, shotgun and .22 rifle. We set up camp on a pipeline clearing on the back part of my parents ten acres. I set up the tent and started gathering fire wood. My brother Terry came and joined us around the fire. We drank a couple of cold beers, talked and watched the boys play, roast weiners and then marshmallows.

The boys had a great time. I let them stay up late and play with sticks by the fire (I was supervising closely) until one of the boys said he was tired. We then crawled into the tent, said our prayers and went to bed. It was cool out, and I slept good (considering I was on a thin piece of foam laid over hard grown). I had hoped the boys would sleep in after staying up late, but that was never going to happen.

They were up by 6 am and ready for me to get the fire going again, which I did. The good thing about camping where I did is mom is near by, and she soon had hot coffee ready.

We spent the day shooting guns and visiting and burning fire wood. The boys had a blast and I was completely worn out by the time we arrived back home (about 5 pm).

Coram Deo,
Kenith

Ok, I am going to post a political commentary on the blog, then I will get back to my regular day to day blogging. Here goes:

There is an interesting article I picked up onBayouBuzz.com. The article is titled Louisiana Democrats: Few Happy Faces. It is worth reading.


The Louisiana Democratic Party, like the Democratic Party in the rest of the South is hemorrhaging badly, and the future does not bode well for them.

In the 19th Century the Republicans were the Radical anti-Southern party and the Democrats were the conservatives. During the 20th Century these two parties flip-flopped positions.

The South has, historically been, and still remains, the most conservative region of the United States. It’s a no brainer to see why Southerners have abandoned the Democratic Party in the past 30 years.

In 1984 the democrats held 20 of 26 Southern Senate seats. Today they hold only 4 seats and the Republicans hold 22 seats. The South has been abandoned by its old party. Conservatives are not welcome there.

The old time conservative Southern Democrat is nearly an extinct political species. It has been cast out by its old party, and has either turned (like myself) independent or Republican. The Dems have no one to blame but themselves and their friends who have taken the place of Southerners. They are Feminists, Homosexuals, the anti-gun lobby, pro-aborts, rabid environmentalists and anti-Christian secularists (to mention just some of them).

Deo Vindice,
Kenith

I am so glad the elections (except for a few Louisiana congressional offices) are over and we can move on to other things, but before that here are my thoughts on things.

I have made clear on numerous occasions that I disagree strongly with neocon ideas, especially when it comes to international relations, and it is obvious that George W. Bush is surrounded by neocons. Still I am very happy that Kerry lost the election, and Bush won. This is because Kerry would certainly have placed liberal, activist, judges to the federal courts, including the Supreme Court. Bush is far more likely to place non-activist, constitutionally conservative men/women to the courts.

Republicans have a mixed record in their court appointments, especially on the Supreme Court. Dubya’s father gave us Justice Clarence Thomas (the best man on the court today) and Justice David Souter (one of the worst judges). Republican President Gerald Ford appointed Justice John Stevens onto the court, and he too is one of the more liberal and activist judges on the high court.

I am hopeful; the word is that President Bush is considering Clarence Thomas to replace ailing Chief Justice William Rehnquist. I think this would not just be historic (first black Chief Justice) but a wonderful choice, because Thomas is the best, conservative Justice on the court.

He could then (hopefully) nominate a truly conservative Hispanic, like Miguel Estrada , to replace Thomas. It is possible that he will opt for someone like Alberto Gonzales , who is an old Texas friend, but is not sound on a number of issues (like abortion and affirmative action). So GW may well follow his father and give us a mixed bag on the courts.
Now to Congress. I told some of my friends and co-workers that I could not for any reason vote to send a Democrat to Washington DC, because the Democratic Party is controlled by and beholding to radical/ liberal interest groups. A congressional Democrat would be under a great amount of pressure to fall in line with the party. This is not good.

The Democratic Party is rapidly losing the whole of the South, because it has been taken over by secular, pro-homosexual, pro-abortion, anti-Christian radicals.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

Ps. This does not mean that the Republicans are the “good” party. They are (overall) only somewhat better. They too are far from a conservative party.

I spent most of election week in Beaumont, Texas. An number of our Refineries Rescue Team members, including me, attended a Roco “Rescue III” training class . The training was great and we were not far from home (Lisa came over so we could go to dinner one night), so it was a good experience.

I was in Beaumont Tuesday for the election, but I had already voted absentee, so I was covered. I knew that turnout to vote was very high, and I expected that to turn things in Kerry’s favor. I was obviously wrong.

I'm trying to kick the information/news junkie habit, and I am doing pretty good. In the old days I would have watched the news from the moment I got back into the hotel until the wee morning hours (like MK did), but instead I went to eat with my other team members, came back to the hotel and read Calvin’s Institutes until I went to sleep.

I did wake up a 3:30 AM. It is then that I turned on Fox News and saw that Ohio and Florida were among the Bush/red states. I new Bush would be around for four more years. I have mentioned a number of times on these blogs that I don’t like the neo-con agenda, which Dubbya and his advisors hold to, but my main concern in this election was the Supreme Court. This President will likely get at least three anointments to the high court. With Bush we will get some (not all) good nominees. Kerry would have given us three very bad choices.

I made it back home Thursday evening, but did not have internet service until today. DSL was giving us some trouble, but BellSouth fixed the problem and we are back online.

Lisa, the little boys and I went to the Lutheran Church (LCMS )again this Sunday. Lisa seems to like the it there, and the Pastor seems to be theologically conservative and solid on social issues as well.

There are some differences between Reformed (my own theological view) and the Lutheran views, but they are not so big that we can not worship there. I do think I will read the Augsburg Confession this week. John Calvin signed the 1540 addition of the confession. I figure that if Calvin could sign it should be OK.

We did get to see how these brethren partook of the Eucharist today. They get up and go to the front of the church to receive the bread and wine instead of sitting in the pews.

Dominus Vobiscum,
Kenith