Maybe I'm Just Not The Man

Ok so I told you earlier today that we had snakes under the front porch. The office sent out two of the men that work at the apartments and houses. One guy was just like me, he didn't care for the snakes and he managed to stay a good distance away. The other guy just went after the snakes. Not with a shovel, or gun, or a cascade of gas and fire, he decided just to pick them up with his hands and put them in a bucket. He caught two and and at least two got away back under the porch. They were each about two feet long. The reassuring news he gave me was that the snake skin he found wasn't from the ones he caught. No he said the snake skin came from a much larger snake that apparently is still lurking about around the front door. Maybe I'm just not the man but I have no intentions of catching snakes with my hands.

Where Do I Start?

Today's journey to Cincinnati started off easy enough. That all changed however when our car decided 3 1/2 hours into our journey that it didn't wish to continue with us. And it just so happened that our car came to this conclusion right at the point where there is no sign of civilization for about thirty miles. And when we did find civilization I am not so sure we really found anything. The car made it to a town called Jellico,TN travelling the interstate at speeds in excess of 42 MPH. Once there we stopped at a Napa Auto Parts store.

I could have literally fit the entire inventory of the store in the back of our Explorer. They didn't even have duct tape. As I sat in their parking lot I was able to diagnose part of the problem. It seems as though this little vacuum hose sensor had decided to just fall apart. The guy inside NAPA told me he could order me one but it might take two or three days. Sorry but I have seen the movie Deliverance and we weren't about to stay in Jellico if you know what I mean.

So, Melissa had some medical tape and I was able to tape up the hose and sensor enough to get the car up to 45 MPH. I called my friend Ryan at Norris Ford in Pickens South Carolina(Which happens to be the number 1 Ford Dealer in the Upstate) and he located the closest Ford Dealership for me. 10 miles and 30 minutes later we arrived just a few minutes before closing. I got the part and headed to a auto parts store to buy some tools to put it on with.(The dealership could have put it on but it would have been a few days before they could get to it.)

I got the part on and away we went. As of right now the part apparently isn't on just right but we did manage to get up to 60 MPH and sometimes 70 going downhill. We arrived late this evening only 3 hours later than expected. Tomorrow morning I will be out looking for some professional help with the Explorer.

In the beginning it was not fun but in the end we were laughing. Isaac said we should have had the go kart with us then that way if we broke down we could go for help.

I've been doing some reading

Ok so I know the title of this post surprised quite a few of you who think that reading is something I only do when trying to order my fast food. And....... I would have to say for the most part that you are correct. I hate to read but I have found that reading does help my learning. I know the last sentence doesn't sound that way.

But anyway, lately I have been reading in the book of Matthew. I have been reading this in a couple of different translations and a couple of weeks ago I started reading it in the Message paraphrase version just to help me get a grasp of what was being said.

A couple of days ago I read Matthew 5 and verse 5 really stuck out to me. Verse 5 in the Message reads this way. "You're blessed when you're content with just who you are---no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought."

That's what I want to be, Content. For years I tried to win peoples approval, make people happy, put on a performance, and try to be someone else. And for what? That people may think that I was a great guy, amazing youth pastor, someone important or a guy that knew the answers.

I quit. I quit trying to be someone else that is. Roughly, two years ago when Isaac was diagnosed with his disease, I quit trying to pretend to be who people wanted me to be and over the last two years I have began learning to be content with who I am. Would it sound good to be known as Sammy Clary ___________________(You fill in the blank)? Maybe so on the outside and for a moment but on the inside it would have nothing to do with who I am. A few years ago I wrote this poem or thing that kinda of sums up what I am trying to be.

"Somebody"
In actuality I am nobody
In Jesus' eyes I am somebody
In Heaven we'll stand equal,
Because whether or not I am "somebody",
He died for me.

We often place emphasis and praise
on people who have social standing,
fame, wealth, or power.
We may think we are a "Somebody", but
in relation to God we all fall humbly equal.

What are my motives?
What are my reasons?
Is it the praise of men or to hear
Jesus say "well done".

Am I striving to be "Somebody"?
Am I striving to be God's Child?

somebody or "Somebody"?

Author Sammy Clary

Great Job Guys

I just got back from Church. Today, Marathon's Youth Band led Worship and they did a great job. The cool thing about their band is that it consists of all students and I would put them up against many main service bands I have heard. The one thing that I can say about Marathon is that really spend time on developing new musicians and giving them guidance. I hear all the time about churches looking for musicians and trying to hire someone when they probably already have the talent there but they haven't taken time to develop that talent. Kudos to Chase, Bryan C , Bryan H for helping these new musicians along the way and giving them a venue to play. It's a really cool thing to see young musicians being discipled and trained instead of auditioned.

Oh yeah, Bryan did a great job speaking. Just remember to check your mic after you wipe. Some of you will get that about lunch time.

I like Cars

I decided Thursday evening that I really am thankful for Cars. Not the movie, although I liked the movie but rather the vehicle I travelled 420 miles in last evening/this morning.

I tried to imagine what it must have been like to travel back in the days of the horse drawn wagon. It must have taken forever to go 420 miles. If I had of been around back then, I have already decided that I would have probably driven a chuck wagon. A kind of drive thru restaurant on wheels. I would have been the most popular person too. People would pull up next to me on their Palomino Horses and ask me to cook them some cabbage and wild raccoon.

I would tell them no way I was busy driving my chuck wagon up to Cincinnati. Then they would say things like "come on, please cook us some cabbage and wild raccoon" I would say no again and then they would open up their leather saddle bags on the side of their horses and give me exorbitant amounts of gold that they had panned from the French Broad River. Then I would stop and cook them some cabbage and wild raccoon.

When their food was ready I wouldn't have one of those sissy triangle dinner bells. No I would fire off a couple of shots from my Winchester Repeating Rifle. My Rifle would be all the rage. Except mine would be for peaceful purposes like sounding off some "dinner's ready" shots. And it would be for any skirmishes that I got into with Indians. Mainly though I would use my Winchester Repeating Rifle for killing small otters to make myself a genuine otter skin hat. My otter hat would be warm in the winter and it would be all sweaty and smell like otter innards in the summer. In the spring it would smell like fresh strawberries. That's because I would use it as a fresh strawberry pouch in the spring.

Oh well, I guess for now I'll stick to driving my car.

Extended Stay

Yesterday, we found out that they are going to extend his weekly treatments into June. So for the next couple of months we will be staying 3 days at home, 3 days in Cincinnati, and 1 day on the road. We are leaving tonight to come back home after he finishes up his treatment. We should arrive back home sometime in the early morning hours of tommorrow.

A Couple of Things I Don't Understand

Today we made our weekly trek back up to Cincinnati. Along the way, I came across two things that I just quite don't understand.

1. Big Foot Long Jumbo Pencils with a state name on it. I mean, what the crap? You went to a foreign land and the only thing that you could get me was a foot long pencil with Tennessee "The Volunteer State" engraved on the side. Who uses that? Better yet, who buys that? Somebody must because every gas station from South Carolina to Ohio sells them, along with every other cheap trinket they bill as souvenirs. My favorites have to be the beach scene sand snow globe thingys that say Tennessee on them. There are no beaches in Tennessee. They should have like a snow globe with some deer poop in it. You shake it around and it turns all brown.

2. The second thing I don't understand is how they can build a house that will travel 75 miles per hour down the highway. Seriously, today we got passed by a house taking up two lanes almost and it was travelling more than 70 miles per hour down the interstate. Oh well, whatever works.

Anyway, we are in Cincy. We are scheduled to be back home some time in the wee hours Friday Morning. That's about it for tonight.