Author: Chris M. Day

I'm almost 59 years old. I've been online for 33 years - starting with my own dial-up bulletin board system in 1993 - and continuing with AOL, my own dot.com web site, Myspace, WordPress, Twitter / X, Flickr, and Facebook.

Categories
Blogging Driving Food Geography Home Travel

My Neighborhood Is Like A Cruise Ship

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. I did not visit Arcadia Florida last Thursday as I hinted that I may at the end of last week’s edition. I may visit today.

Last Thursday I stayed home and enjoyed a “day off”. Thursday is usually the only day of the week when I don’t have regularly-scheduled events – whether it’s neighborhood, museum, or church – morning, afternoon, or evening. So Thursdays are generally reserved as days of productivity at home (unless I embark on a local road-trip).

A friend of mine recently asked when I’m going on my next cruise (which would be my 25TH since 1991). I have no plans for such a cruise. I have no desires to go on a cruise. I’m settling-in to my retirement lifestyle, and I love what each new day brings. I’m physically and socially active like never before. (Not even close to my longtime Homestead lifestyle).

Besides – my neighborhood is as close to a cruise ship as I can get. We have 248 condos and villas surrounding a big mostly manmade half-mile-long lake in the middle. Each condo and villa has a spectacular elevated view of the lake. The condos and villas are like the cabins and suites on a cruise ship, and we’ve all got views of the sea. My lanai is like a very nice large balcony. I walk around the sidewalk that runs 1.1 miles alongside the lake, and it’s like walking alongside the perimeter of a cruise ship on a low deck with the cool breeze bouncing off the water and onto my face. Our clubhouse is like the small entertainment venue onboard where a lot of the fun events occur – including of course BINGO !

And our wide variety of daily, weekly, and monthly fun events that do occur – including the occasional meals and parties – resemble those of a cruise. I like our Cruise Director. I’m part of her “Fun Squad”.

I can’t imagine spending a couple thousand dollars on a 7 or 8-day Caribbean cruise when I’ve got my forever home that resembles the nicest balcony cabin I’ve ever occupied.

So if I embark on that shore excursion today to Arcadia Florida – then I’ll write about it – next #TravelThursday. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Categories
Blogging Christian God Ministry Music Radio

My Top 10 Hits – Week 420

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 March 02ND 2025 – the 420TH week of this current era that began on Presidents’ Day Weekend of 2017:

TW LW WKS SONG TITLE ARTIST / SITE
1 2 9 Goodbye Yesterday
[1ST week @ # 1]		 Elevation Rhythm
2 1 14 In The Name Of Jesus JWLKRS Worship Ft. Maverick City Music
3 3 22 Love’s Got A Way Andrew Ripp
4 6 7 Never Get Used To This Forrest Frank Ft. JVKE
5 5 25 That’s Who I Praise Brandon Lake
6 4 11 Running Back To You Seph Schlueter
7 9 5 Money Can’t Buy Cochren & Co.
8 10 7 Let It Begin Big Daddy Weave
9 – 1 Again Jeremy Camp
10 – 1 A Lil Church (Nobody’s Too Lost) TobyMac

# 1 This Week In:
2024 – “Strong” – Anne Wilson
2023 – “The Lord’s Prayer (It’s Yours)” – Matt Maher
2022 – “Jesus Is Coming Back” – Jordan Feliz Ft. Mandisa & Jonathan Traylor
2021 – “Say I Won’t” – MercyMe
2020 – “Almost Home” – MercyMe
2019 – “Red Letters” – Crowder
2018 – “Gracefully Broken” – Matt Redman Ft. Tasha Cobbs Leonard
2017 – “Love Broke Thru” – TobyMac

JEREMY & TOBY – Chart Veterans Jeremy Camp and TobyMac are back on my chart after short hiatuses. Jeremy is back with his 10TH hit of this current era (since 2017), as “Again” enters at # 9. Toby is back with his 15TH hit of this current era – more than any other artist. His “A Lil Church” enters at # 10. It’s the 5TH track of his brand-new 12-track album “Heaven On My Mind” that drops this Friday March 07TH. Both Jeremy and Toby also share a rare distinction of appearing on the previous “Salvation Era” of my chart (2006-2010).

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) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Categories
Bible Blogging Christian Church God Ministry Scripture

Sunday Scripture

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday March 02ND 2025, 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.

My trip down to Homestead (Florida) and back last Sunday and Monday was successful. I preached my sermon “63 & 34” to my former church family, and LIVE Praise & Worship music beforehand was Glorious.

After church service 5 of us enjoyed food and fellowship at a busy Texas Roadhouse.

And so it’s on to my 64TH sermon. It’ll be the first of a multiple sermon verse-by-verse series. I’m reading, studying, writing, praying about, and eventually preaching from Paul’s first letter to Timothy. I’ll cover the first 11 verses in my next sermon.

This letter is from Paul – an apostle of Christ Jesus – appointed by the command of God our Savior and Christ Jesus – who gives us hope. I am writing to Timothy – my true son in the faith. May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace. (1 Timothy 1:1-2 NLT)

It’s a great time to be alive and locally active – physically and socially – here in Sebring Florida, as I enter my 2ND year of retirement following a nearly 39-year career with the USAF.

My testimony is featured each week here on #SundayScripture – whether it’s part of a sermon, a testimony, or just me writing about the events of the past week. Hopefully it encourages you and inspires you to seek the Lord – and get closer to Him with each new day.

If you wish to learn more about the God I know – then stay tuned to #SundayScripture. The best is yet to come !

Thank you for reading my blog for this day, and may:

The LORD bless you, and keep you.
The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you.
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.

All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Categories
Animals Blogging Driving Food Geography Holidays Travel

From Texas To Florida

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. Exactly 16 years ago here on my blog – I wrote about my road-trip westward from the Jacksonville Florida area (specifically Fleming Island in Clay County) to the Dallas Texas area (specifically Allen in Collin County).

This was a very unique road-trip. It was a relocation road-trip for my parents. After a dozen years of living at 3 different homes in and around the Jacksonville area – they moved to the Dallas area to be close to my younger brother and his wife. My dad had Lou Gehrig’s Disease at the time, and it would ultimately end his life the following year in 2010.

The moving truck had already come and gone – headed to Texas. All that was left was to drive from Homestead to Fleming Island, pick-up my parents and their cat Pumpkin, and head west. And so that’s what I did. I left Homestead shortly before 4:30 AM on that Tuesday, and I drove about 375 miles to my parents’ home (which was deeded over to me). They got in my mom’s car, and I drove her car. We drove about 345 miles westward along I-10 on that first day, and we made it to Milton Florida (just east of Pensacola). We ate Dinner at a fancy Mexican restaurant called La Hacienda. (It’s still there today.)

We got back on the road again on Wednesday morning. We made it another 415 miles – straight into the heart of Louisiana. You know – timing is everything – and we hadn’t planned on it – but we got mixed in with very heavy traffic coming out of New Orleans. It was Ash Wednesday – the day after Mardi Gras. Thousands of tourists were heading north out of New Orleans. I remember us eating Lunch at IHOP, and it was jam-packed. I also remember us missing National Pancake Day at IHOP by exactly one day.

We stayed at a hotel in Alexandria – near their airport. Their airport used to be England Air Force Base for 50 years until 1992.

Incidentally – Pumpkin the cat – who didn’t care too much for me – stayed with me in my hotel room for both nights. (We stayed at pet-friendly hotels.) Pumpkin was completely terrified during the trip – especially in the hotel rooms. It was quite the chore chasing that big heavy cat out from underneath the bed.

On the 3RD day (Thursday) we arrived at my brother’s and sister-in-law’s house in Allen Texas. It was about 1,075 miles in my mom’s car. It was the first and last time I ever drove that car.

Meanwhile – my own car was still sitting in Florida on my parents’ former driveway. I flew back to Jacksonville International Airport on that Saturday. I then took a taxi back to my car some 35 miles away. I then drove 375 miles back home to Homestead – arriving late at night.

You think I have such a great memory from exactly 16 years ago ? Not so much. Most of these facts were copied and pasted from that blog post that I originally wrote.

I think I’m driving to Arcadia Florida today. If I am then I’ll let you know how it went – next #TravelThursday. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp