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Bible Blogging Christian Church God Ministry Scripture

Sunday Scripture

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday September 06TH 2026, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord + Savior Jesus Christ. Let us love our neighbor as ourself.

Volume 9, Number 28, Edition 428
“20 Years Of Salvation – Part 4”

No 20TH anniversary celebration of this fantastic journey would’ve been complete without a trip back to where it all started – Homestead Florida. I spent 3 days and 2 nights there last weekend.

On Friday I enjoyed both lunch and dinner at Longhorn and Outback respectively. At each place I reminisced about the past and shared the current and future with a different former coworker friend. In-between the two meals I visited the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center inside Everglades National Park – a place where I volunteered as a museum docent for the very first time a decade earlier (2015-2017). I also visited (for the very first time) the Historic Homestead Town Hall Museum in downtown Homestead. I thoroughly enjoyed my docent-led guided tour of the place, as well as our friendly conversation about our respective museums and lives in Homestead.

On Saturday I visited my longtime traditional shopping mall of 35 years (Southland Mall in Cutler Bay), and then that evening I enjoyed a spaghetti dinner fundraiser in the fellowship hall at my longtime second church (2015-2024).

On Sunday I watched as my former Pastor preached one of his classic topical long-winded 65-minute sermons. (I preached differently than him, and he appreciated that.) Afterwards 6 of us (including Pastor and his wife) enjoyed lunch together at Texas Roadhouse.

It was a wonderful weekend back in Homestead. I got to drive through torrential downpours, flooded roadways, and bumper-to-bumper traffic jams in-between all of the fun.

Last #SundayScripture I wrote about my current church here in Sebring Florida – Highlands Community Church. Today is my 3RD anniversary there. I’ll be leading Communion this morning.

Let’s continue my story:

I was rescued and saved by God during the week of August 20TH 2006. Gradually – as I got closer to Christ and I learned more about Him and His ways – and I matured on my journey – I realized that salvation was not that single event that happened on that day when I turned that radio dial and started hearing songs about God. Salvation is not a single event. Salvation is an ongoing event. My salvation started back then on that otherwise mundane morning during my drive to work. And salvation continues to this day. And salvation will continue tomorrow. The salvation that we know now will continue until the ultimate salvation on the last day.

You know lives are being saved all around the world – one life at a time. When one of God’s children turns from the darkness – and moves towards the light – that’s another miracle. He or she was facing the devil, but now – he or she is facing the Savior of the world.

Sometimes it happens solitary – with nobody else assisting. God intervenes, and He reaches out to the lost soul in the pit of despair – out of the mud and the mire.

But I think that most of the time a life is saved because one of God’s Messengers – one of His royal priests – evangelized. When you evangelize – you spread or preach the Gospel that you know. You bring God’s Good News. And God commands all of us to do just that.

(I’ll continue this story – next #SundayScripture.)

All rights reserved (c) 2026 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

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Blogging Driving Food Geography Nature Photography Travel

The Scenic City

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. This week I’m writing about Chattanooga Tennessee. I’ve only been there once – back in August 1992 with my brother. We were on a road-trip from Huntsville Alabama to Atlanta Georgia by way of Tennessee. We spent the night in “Chatt” after crossing The Great Smoky Mountains earlier in the day via U.S. 441 (Newfound Gap Road).

34 years later I’ll be visiting Chattanooga for the 2ND time in my life, and I’ll be spending a single night at a hotel (just like the first time). The next morning I’ll be at Ross’s Landing to board my American Cruise Lines paddlewheeler ship with about 180 fellow passengers. It’s about a 15-minute walk from the hotel that the cruise passengers will be staying at the night before embarkation. (We’ll actually get a luxury coach bus ride over to the ship with our luggage.)

If my plane arrives on time (or earlier) at Chattanooga Airport (#CHA) then I should have about 4 hours of daylight in the afternoon and evening to check out the downtown area and riverfront (and also eat dinner). I hear that City Cafe Diner is a good place for any meal at any time.

Fun Facts: U.S. 27 runs right through downtown Chattanooga about 670 miles north of my home (which is also located along the historic route). Chattanooga is a border town, as its southern city limits straddles the Tennessee / Georgia State Line. Chattanooga shares the border with the city of Rossville Georgia. Much of downtown Chattanooga sits at an elevation of about 620 feet (along the river) to about 680 feet. Southwest of downtown elevations climb substantially to about 2,369 feet above sea level along the slopes of Lookout Mountain.

Next #SundayScripture – I’ll share more about my visit to Homestead Florida last weekend. Check it out on Sunday here at revchrismday.com.

Next #TravelThursday – I’ll write about Decatur and Huntsville Alabama. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2026 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

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Blogging Christian God Ministry Music Radio

My Top 10 Hits – Week 498

Every Monday I post my all-new Top 10 Christian hit music chart based on personal preference and influenced by radio airplay from the previous week. It’s the continuation of a weekly hobby that goes back almost 50 years. Here’s this week’s chart – for the week ending Sunday August 30TH 2026 – the 498TH week of this current era that began on Presidents’ Day Weekend of 2017:

TW LW WKS SONG TITLE ARTIST / SITE
1 1 8 Breathe On It
[2ND week @ # 1]
Tauren Wells
2 2 4 God I’m Just Grateful Chandler Moore
3 4 9 Gonna Be Alright Matt Maher
4 5 4 It Really Is Amazing Grace Phil Wickham Ft. Crowder
5 3 14 Washed Elevation Rhythm
6 9 2 Living Water Cain
7 10 2 If It Was Up To Me Ben Fuller Ft. Carrie Underwood
8 8 9 The Author Brandon Lake Ft. Nick Jonas
9 1 Lord It Feels Good TobyMac
10 9 Perfectly Micah Tyler

2025 – “Breakdown” – Andrew Ripp
2024 – “Take You At Your Word” – Cody Carnes
2023 – “Praise You Anywhere” – Brandon Lake
2022 – “Hold You Tight” – Dan Bremnes
2021 – “Into The Wild” – Josh Baldwin
2020 – “Miracles” – Colton Dixon
2019 – “Nobody (But Jesus)” – Casting Crowns Ft. Matthew West
2018 – “Who You Say I Am” – Hillsong Worship
2017 – “Broken Things” – Matthew West

PHIL WICKHAM & CROWDER – Phil’s 14TH song on my chart – and Crowder’s 12TH – is a bonafide certified # 1 smash on the radio from coast to coast. Believe it or not – “It Really Is Amazing Grace” – was released way back in January. It took a while to start receiving spins on the radio, and some Christian radio stations have just recently added it as a new song to their rotation. Imagine my joy last Sunday morning when the Praise + Worship band at my home church kicked-off their four-song set with this song !

I’m up to my # 14 hit during my first 3½ years of salvation in Christ from August 2006 to January 2010, and Stellar Kart are back. They were at # 12 with “Procrastinating”. 3 weeks after it fell off my chart in June 2007 – “Finding Out” entered my chart. It spent 17 weeks on my chart and went to # 1 – just like “Procrastinating” (on both counts). “Finding Out” is about learning more about God’s ways, and that’s exactly what I was doing back then, as I continue to do with each new day.

Next week it’s my # 15 hit, and as an amateur meteorologist I can almost relate to it.

SPOTIFY – You can hear “My Top 10 Hits” anytime by accessing my CountUp playlist on Spotify. All 10 hits are there from top to bottom. You can hear them in order from # 1 to # 10, or you can shuffle them. My playlist will be updated every weekend (usually before the actual chart is presented here on Mondays). You can link to it here.

Your likes, follows, and comments are always appreciated. Thank You for being part of my online ministry to share God’s Good News and win souls for Christ through His music. God used loud music on the radio in South Florida to reach me in August of 2006. I’ve been testifying about Him ever since.

Be blessed my friends !  May our God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

All rights reserved (c) 2026 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Categories
Bible Blogging Christian Church God Ministry Scripture

Sunday Scripture

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday August 30TH 2026, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord + Savior Jesus Christ. Let us love our neighbor as ourself.

Volume 9, Number 27, Edition 427
“20 Years Of Salvation – Part 3”

This morning I’m waking up in Homestead Florida – the place where I was saved exactly 20 years ago. I’ve been here since Friday morning – spending quality time with former longtime coworkers over meals – and church brothers and sisters over more meals.

Last #SundayScripture I wrote about my first church of 8 years in the movie theatre – just a half-mile down the road from my hotel this weekend. That theatre incidentally went out-of-business in October 2019 after 13½ years. The last movie I ever saw there was a month earlier in September. I saw the faith-based movie “Overcomer” (a Kendrick Brothers Production).

The former movie theatre is now a converted medical facility.

I wrote about my second church in Homestead – the one that I’ll be heading to this morning. I also mentioned my first church in Sebring.

Let’s continue my story:

Highlands Community Church is my fourth church overall over the past 19½ years – and my second church in Sebring. My first Sunday at my current church was Labor Day Sunday in September of 2023. (My 3RD anniversary is next Sunday.)

I love my church family, and my Senior Pastor Tim is a great Pastor and friend. I started watching him and the Praise & Worship band for a couple of months on YouTube before I ever set foot into the building. I knew what to expect before I got there; although, I did not know that on that first morning I would meet a couple who lived in Homestead for many years before moving to Sebring. They knew my former Pastor, his wife and family, and a few church members.

I plan to be there indefinitely. As far as I’m concerned – it’s my forever church, and Sebring is my forever home.

I’m so glad that God guided and directed me to each of my four church families since that first Sunday in January of 2007.

You know nobody invited me to any of the four churches. I arrived. I walked in through the front door. I appeared. There I was – on a Sunday morning. Thanks be to God.

My story is an anomaly. For most of you – you were invited to a church by an already existing member of that church family – perhaps by a neighbor or coworker. For many of you – you were rescued and saved by God when you were a teenager, or maybe even into your 20s.

I was middle-aged when God rescued and saved me at age 39. I didn’t know Him before then.

I love to share my salvation story with anyone who will listen – one-on-one, in a group setting, inside, outside, online, offline, anywhere, and everywhere. “For where two or three gather in My name – there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:20 NIV)

My salvation started unexpectedly – without notice – out of nowhere – unscheduled – during that week of August 20TH 2006. Nobody led me to God. Nobody bought me a Bible. Nobody invited me to church. Nobody asked me to go to a revival or a crusade.

Before that August morning – I had no idea what salvation was. I didn’t know what “being saved” meant. An old life versus a new life meant nothing to me. I didn’t know God. But God. He knew me. He knew me before I was born to my parents. But I didn’t know Him. I met Him in 2006 – when I invited Him closer to me – when I invited Him into my heart – when I asked Him to take over my life. I was dead to my old life. I was born to this new life.

Meeting God and allowing Him to enter my heart – that was the most important event of my life. Nothing else comes close to that. Nothing ever will. My life was changed forever.

All praise to God – the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by His great mercy that we have been born again – because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance – an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you – pure and undefiled – beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith – God is protecting you by His power until you receive this salvation – which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see. (1 Peter 1:3-5 NLT)

(I’ll continue this story – next #SundayScripture.)

All rights reserved (c) 2026 Christopher M. Day, CountUp