Categories
Career Holidays Military

Happy Armed Forces Week

It’s Friday May 19TH 2023, and National Military Appreciation Month continues here in the U.S.A. with Armed Forces Week (all this week), and that culminates tomorrow (Saturday) with Armed Forces Day. Unlike Memorial Day (this year on May 29TH) and Veterans Day (November 11TH) – this is an opportunity for us to honor everyone who currently serves within our military.

I’m a few weeks away from celebrating my 38TH anniversary within the United States Air Force. I actually committed to 4 years of active duty service about a month into my Senior year in high school in 1984. 6 days after graduating from high school in June 1985 – I was on my way to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio Texas for 6½ weeks of Basic Military Training.

I’ve been living in or near Homestead Florida since the end of 1987, so that’s 35½ out of my 38 years in the Air Force. I work at Homestead ARB (formerly AFB prior to Hurricane Andrew). During the 19 months immediately after Hurricane Andrew – as the city and the base was being cleaned-up and rebuilt – I served at Andrews AFB Maryland and MacDill AFB in Tampa Florida.

My 38 years in the Air Force includes 30 years as a civilian. Prior to that I served 8 years on active duty and 6 years as a reservist (overlapping with the early years of my civil service).

Up until about the age of 16 I was supposed to go to college after high school and emerge with a degree in either Meteorology or Communications (radio and television). That didn’t happen, but here I am 38 years into an Air Force career at 56-years-old. The Air Force determined that I was great at math, so they made me an analyst / statistician.

In the Air Force I’ve had some great years, some good years, some bad years, and some horrible years. There’s an entire 13-year era that was the worst of my career (and life). Thankfully I’ve followed that up with the best 16-year era of my career (and life) – where I am now. I’m ending this career near a high, and I’ve got about a half-year to go before I can retire and call it a career. I’m ready to do so.

To all of my fellow military service members – whether you are currently on active duty, a reservist, a civil servant, or a contractor working alongside all of the above – I thank you for all that you do with each new duty day.

All rights reserved (c) 2023 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Categories
Blogging Driving Geography Home Travel

Carnival Jubilee

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. A couple of days ago I observed exactly 2 months in my beautiful new dream home in my dream neighborhood in my dream part of Florida. I closed on it (officially became the owner) on March 16TH, and I actually purchased it on February 16TH, so that marks 3 months since I first walked-in to my new home and almost immediately decided that it would be mine.

But this week’s edition is not about that. It’s about a cruise that I took with my parents exactly 19 years ago this week. It was a 5-nighter out of #JAXPORT (Jacksonville Florida). (My parents lived in the area at the time.)

Over the course of 32 years (1991-2023) it was my only cruise out of Jacksonville. It was on an old Carnival cruise ship – the Jubilee – that was in-service from 1986 to 2004. In fact she was sold to an Australian cruise company just 3 months after our sailing.

I don’t remember much of anything from that cruise, and I have no photos of it – mostly because I didn’t take photos back then before the smart phone era. I don’t even remember the ports-of-call. Maybe Nassau ?

It was 1 of just 3 cruises that I went on with my parents. It was the middle cruise. (The first one was 13 years earlier when we all went on our very first cruise ever. I instantly fell in love with the idea of cruising, and I continued on with 23 more cruises after that first one in 1991.)

I’ve been telling friends recently that I probably won’t be booking any further cruises at this time. This past January I was on the newest, biggest, and best that Carnival has to offer – their brand-new Carnival Celebration – and I documented it for 6 weeks in a row here on #TravelThursday. It was perhaps a perfect ending to my cruising experience. Now that I have 2 homes and a 30-year mortgage on my new home – I’m on a budget now. I’ve declared a spending freeze of sorts. I need to figure out how to live my life with less than half the money I make today once I retire at the end of the year.

As for travel opportunities I really want to explore more of Central and North Florida – and into Georgia and Alabama – and the Carolinas – on a series of road-trips. I’ve conquered the sea, and now I wish to explore the land. I want to visit with some good friends along the way.

Next #TravelThursday I’m not driving – I’m walking. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2023 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Categories
Blogging Christian God Ministry Music Radio

My Top 10 Hits – Week 326

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 nearly 45 years. Here’s this week’s chart – for the week ending Sunday May 14TH 2023 – the 326TH week of this current era that began on Presidents’ Day Weekend of 2017:

TW LW WKS SONG TITLE ARTIST / SITE
1 1 17 The Lord’s Prayer (It’s Yours)
[12TH week @ # 1]		 Matt Maher
2 2 11 This Is Our God Phil Wickham
3 5 7 Fingerprints Dan Bremnes
4 4 24 I See Grace Micah Tyler
5 3 22 My Story Your Glory Matthew West
6 7 7 Cornerstone TobyMac Ft. Zach Williams
7 6 5 Desert Road Casting Crowns
8 – 1 Anxious Heart Jeremy Camp
9 9 4 Thank God I Do Lauren Daigle
10 10 2 You Will Be Found Natalie Grant Ft. Cory Asbury

# 1 This Week In:
2022 – “Egypt” – Cory Asbury
2021 – “Help Is On The Way (Maybe Midnight)” – TobyMac
2020 – “I Will Fear No More” – The Afters
2019 – “Alive” – Big Daddy Weave
2018 – “The Way (New Horizon)” – Pat Barrett
2017 – “Forgiven” – Crowder

JEREMY CAMP – One of my favorite singers is back with his 8TH hit since 2017, and 9TH including “Tonight” in 2006. His “Anxious Heart” finally made it onto my Top 10 after a couple of months of radio airplay on great radio stations like K-LOVE, The Joy FM, and WGTS. It’s a deeply personal song that Jeremy wrote a couple of years ago based on his struggle with anxiety. I can relate. Check this out:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart. Do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT)

This concludes another weekend of blog posts. I’ll do it again with the new weekend – and 4 new entries – known as #TravelThursday, a special #MilitaryFriday, #SundayScripture, and #MusicMonday.

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 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) 2023 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Categories
Bible Blogging Christian Church God Ministry Scripture Travel Weather

Sunday Scripture

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday May 14TH 2023, 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.

I’m back with my home church family in Homestead this morning. I’ll be singing as part of the Praise & Worship team. I’ll be opening the service. I’ll be leading Communion. I’ll be closing the service. It’ll be great to see everyone for the first time in 3 weeks and celebrate Mother’s Day !

This Sunday morning also marks a milestone. I’ve officially been with this church family (8 years + 2 months) longer than my first church family (8 years + 1½ months). It’s been a great journey with my brothers and sisters, and the story is not over yet.

A couple of weeks ago here on #SundayScripture I began transcribing my sermon on “Paul & Titus” that I preached to my church family on March 05TH 2023. Here’s Part 3:

[CONTINUATION OF SERMON]

So back then the people of the island of Crete had quite the reputation, and it was not positive.

For there are many rebellious people who engage in useless talk and deceive others. This is especially true of those who insist on circumcision for salvation. They must be silenced – because they are turning whole families away from the truth by their false teaching. And they do it only for money. Even one of their own men – a prophet from Crete – has said about them – “The people of Crete are all liars, cruel animals, and lazy gluttons.” (Titus 1:10-12)

Wow. That’s what I said when I read that for the first time. Wow. Sounds like Titus has his hands full in Crete. The belief in Greek mythological gods – like Zeus – ran rampant all throughout the island. It was believed that Zeus was once a mere human who lived and died on Crete, but became a god based on his good deeds alone. That of course completely contradicts God’s Good News, and so Titus must appoint elders who display none of those behaviors, so that they can lead the people away from their beliefs in the false gods – taught by the false teachers.

Paul says an elder:

must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must love what is good. He must live wisely and be just. He must live a devout and disciplined life. He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught. Then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong. (Titus 1:8-9)

Paul continues his letter:

As for you – Titus – promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching. Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely. They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience. (Titus 2:1-2)

Similarly – teach the older women to live in a way that honors God. They must not slander others or be heavy drinkers. Instead – they should teach others what is good. These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children, to live wisely and be pure, to work in their homes, to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then – they will not bring shame on the word of God. (Titus 2:3-5)

In the same way – encourage the young men to live wisely. And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching. Teach the truth so that your teaching can’t be criticized. Then – those who oppose us will be ashamed and have nothing bad to say about us. (Titus 2:6-8)

So Paul gave Titus specific instructions on how to lead the church on the island, and that would set the example for others to follow. Wholesome teaching from the truth – God’s Truth – was critical because of the rampant false teaching not from God, and sin, and corruption on the island. Paul – a disciple of Jesus – was himself a disciple-maker. And Titus was Paul’s disciple. Titus was a mature disciple, and he was now passing on what he learned to his elders of the church. Titus was ordained by Paul as the Bishop of Crete.

[TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK]

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) 2023 Christopher M. Day, CountUp