March 2021 – Page 5

2 weeks ago (2 Thursdays ago) I returned home from my Spring Break 2021 Road-Trip. It was a fun 5-day adventure traversing 624 miles through the 10 South and Central Florida counties of Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, Okeechobee, Highlands, Hardee, Glades, Hendry, and Collier. I also barely touched Monroe County, and I saw its many islands.

Last Thursday I wrote on Days 1 and 2 – my first 229 miles. The story continues now:

On Day 3 on a rather chilly (for South Central Florida standards) and rainy Tuesday morning I headed northward and then westward from Lake Placid into Hardee County. My first stop was the small town of Zolfo Springs. I visited Pioneer Park – a sprawling county park straddling the Peace River. I tried to visit the Cracker Trail Museum at the park, but it was unexpectedly closed. I did enjoy some time at the Hardee County Wildlife Refuge (also at the park).

My next stop in Hardee County was Solomon’s Castle. I spent over 2½ hours there taking a couple of fun and pun-filled guided tours. I also enjoyed Lunch there. It was my 2ND visit to this quirky place out in the middle of nowhere (essentially swamplands). My 1ST visit was almost 5 years to the date earlier. I need to get back to this place again sooner than 5 years from now.

My final stop of Day 3 was another weird and wacky place back in Lake Placid in the downtown district – the American Clown Museum & School. I think they are the only clown museum and school in the U.S.A. I’m guessing that if you’re a clown – a professional one that is – then you may have gone to school there. They were actually getting ready for a new class in a few days. I spent about a half-hour checking-out their clown memorabilia. (They also have a small gift shop.)

In my intentional goal to stretch-out my Spring Break 2021 Road-Trip recap for as long as I can, and milk-it for all it’s worth – I’ll close for now. I’ll share Day 4 of 5 next Thursday here on my blog. It’ll include my very short visit to Avon Park, and an unscheduled spontaneous experience in downtown Sebring that could be a vision of what I may be doing about 3 years from now.

Miles Driven on Days 1, 2, & 3 = 344

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 40+ years. Here’s this week’s chart:

COUNTUP MINISTRIES	FOR THE WEEK ENDING SUNDAY FEBRUARY 28TH 2021	WEEK 211

TW	LW	WKS	SONG TITLE	ARTIST / SITE
1	3	7	Say I Won’t [1ST week @ # 1]	MercyMe
2	1	14	Every Step Of The Way	Cade Thompson
3	2	16	Out Of My Hands	Jeremy Camp
4	4	6	Less Like Me	Zach Williams
5	6	2	Good God Almighty	Crowder
6	9	6	Fires	Jordan St. Cyr
7	5	21	Truth Be Told	Matthew West
8	7	4	Battle Belongs	Phil Wickham
9	8	5	Next To Me	Jordan Feliz
10	10	10	Another In The Fire	Hillsong United

# 1 This Week In:
2020 – “Almost Home” – MercyMe
2019 – “Red Letters” – Crowder
2018 – “Gracefully Broken” – Matt Redman Ft. Tasha C. Leonard
2017 – “Love Broke Thru” – Toby Mac

After 12 consecutive weeks at # 1 Cade Thompson’s “Every Step Of The Way” eases down one notch this week to # 2. It was # 1 all 4 weeks of December, all 5 weeks of January, and the first 3 weeks of February.

Replacing Cade at the top is the last act to spend 12 consecutive weeks at # 1 – MercyMe. They did it last February to May with “Almost Home”. This is their follow-up single – “Say I Won’t”. It’s their 5TH hit on my chart since 2017. 2017 is also the last time they released an album (“Lifer”) which included their first 3 hits. I’m expecting a new album from them this year that will include both “Almost Home” and “Say I Won’t”.

This concludes another weekend of blog posts. I’ll do it again this upcoming weekend – with 4 new entries on Thursday, Friday, Sunday, and Monday. I don’t blog on Saturdays. That’s my day of rest.

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. I’m also on Twitter and Flickr.

Be blessed my friends ! May the 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.