More Quotes

When someone said, “I don’t believe in God because there are too many wicked people in the world,” Billy Bland replied, “Well, I guess I don’t believe in soap because there are just too many dirty people in the world.”

Drink one drink and you’re one drink drunk. - Carl Garner

It is possible to lie while singing hymns to God. - Burt Jones

One transgression unrepented of will keep us out of heaven and send us to hell. - Don Walker

A greedy preacher is about as useful as a square circle. - Tim Ayers

Little Blessings

God has blessed us in so many ways! We are always very thankful for what He has done for us. One of the little blessings that we have received while being here is Andrea being closer to her niece and nephew, Chelsi and Dillon. They live just north of Austin with their mother. Instead of seeing them only once or twice a year, now she gets to see them almost every month. This picture was taken last year during the holidays when her brother, Andrew, was home from Iraq and brought his children to Florida.
They sure have a lot of fun together! She takes them shopping and swimming, they play games and watch movies together, and they usually call Andrew on the internet over seas together to say, "Hello!"

Goooaaal!

Soccer is by far the most popular sport in South America. Much like football is in the United States, except not everyone has a TV to be able watch the games. So when there is an important match, like Paraguay playing Argentina or something, then the fans will gather around any TV they can find. On the night this picture was taken we saw several big groups gathered outside convenient stores, bars, and other places that had a TV (mostly little ones)! This place was just a little convenience store along the sidewalk.

Is it just me, or is this scary?

Halloween is obviously known for some scary ghouls and goblins and we certainly had our share last night. This little neighborhood we live in looks like something from an old fashion all-American-town. So, it is pretty safe for the kids to roam about and collect candy. There were a bunch of 'em and it was a lot of fun!
Some things that actually are scary to me, however, are some of the things that I've seen when visiting Central or South America. For example, this guy working on a power pole with a gazillion wires hanging off it, (hope he doesn't mind getting bug eyes!)
Or, what about this kid riding on the spare tire BETWEEN the cab and the bed of the dump truck! OSHA would just keel over and pass out if they saw all the different safety violations going on! I'm not sure how many people actually get hurt, and I doubt it would even be reported, but it sure gives you an appreciation for some of the laws or codes we have in this country.

- God Bless
TROY

Quotable Quotes

I have heard some really great quotes lately by different preachers:

"You can't get more aller than all" - Robert Taylor

"I wonder if devil worshippers always hear, 'You people in the church of Satan think you're the only ones going to hell!'?" - Kieth Mosher

"I love Goodwill! It's the only place where you can get a 1970's suit for a dollar!" - Chance Blackmer

More later.....................

Final Exams!

This picture depicts about how I feel right now. We have our final exams this week and my poor head is spinning! Not just from all the studies that I have been doing, but also from the fact that my first quarter is already over! I can't believe how fast everything is going. Lots of people have told me this would be the fastest two years of my life. If this first quarter is any indication, I do believe they're right! God bless! - Troy

A Feast of the Word

One of the things I have really enjoyed about being in Bible School is the opportunity to attend Gospel meetings and Lectureships. We just returned from the 10th Annual Lubbock Lectureships hosted by the Southside church of Christ. What an incredible feast of God's Word! There were several outstanding speakers and I had the opportunity to meet many of them, as well as, many brethren from all over the country. The subject was "Your Adversary the Devil." It was a thoroughly interesting topic to study and the speakers did an outstanding job in their preparation and delivery of their lessons. Next month we have the opportunity to attend the Shertz Lectureship for a couple of days.
This picture is of a classroom in the Institute of Theological and Cultural Studies that I visited while in El Salvador. It is interesting to me to know that there are preacher's schools in all parts of the world that are learning the same things that we are here, just in different languages!

Thank you for your thoughtfulness!

We have received a ton of cards, emails, and calls from our brethren in Florida wishing Andrea and me a happy anniversary. We can't begin to tell you how much we appreciate the thoughtfulness! Of course, it did make us miss home even more! God bless you all!

Congratulations Andrea!

Andrea has been offered a job and has accepted a position with The American Lung Association here in Austin, Texas! We are really excited about it because it is an organization that she is familiar with and it will give her an opportunity to get to know the community better. Andrea really loves her kind of work as an event planner and coordinator. I think she is really good at it, myself. We are also very thankful that God has provided this opportunity because it gives us a little more stability while we are attending Bible school. If you get a chance, give her a call and tell her congrats! I know she is really happy about this. - This picture is of her with Ambassador Paul Bremer at one of the events she was involved with. Way to go, Andrea!

When in Rome.....

There are so many cultural differences in Paraguay that are new and interesting that one can easily be overwhelmed by the experience. There's the traffic, the language, the signs, the street vendors, and so many other things that contribute to a sensory overload. One of the things that it is truly unique and interesting to Paraguay is the general preference for drinking yerba mate. It seems that everyone in the country drinks it all day and almost everyday. They all carry around a little cup called a guampa, which holds the yerba, and a cooler of ice water. You can see men (and many women) all over the city just sitting around sipping their mate and relaxing.
I snapped this picture of a local Paraguayan man sitting in a street market enjoying his own. Something about him seems very familiar.......

(For those who don't know: this is Chris Fry - American missionary to Paraguay)

High on a mountain...

There is a mountain top that can be seen from the hotel where we stay in El Salvador. It is called Cero Pena de Cayaguanca (there seems to be different spellings). I have had the pleasure to climb it two different times. The first time was when Josh and I went to La Palma and the second time was with Ralph McClurg. Each time we we were lead to the top by a local Peace Corp worker named York.

It is a very steep and tiring climb up a very narrow trail that switchbacks through the forest. The view from the top is amazing as you can see three countries: El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. In fact, the boundary between Honduras and El Salvador bisects the mountain. It was such a great experience! This picture is Josh and me "on top of the mountain."

The Brokedown Blues

My old Ford pickup truck has decided to get 'onry with me for some reason. Maybe it doesn't like Texas (after all, it is painted Miami Dolphin teal), I don't know why. But, I just had to replace the clutch and now it has a miss in the engine! This is getting expensive! Is this where James 1:2-3 comes in??
Well, one of my classmates, Russ Tracy, has been a real friend and helper with my problem. He introduced me to an honest mechanic (yes, they do still exist) and he was even kind enough to let me drive his old Chevy pickup that he just had sitting in the driveway! (pictured above) I must say it is a really cool truck and I get some interesting looks while driving it down the road. It reminds me of that old TV show, Sanford and Sons!
- God Bless!

Point of view......

I have been reading the La Palma, El Salvador blog this week and following the mission team from Missouri that is down there working right now. I feel close to that work and I like to see the updated pictures to see how everyone is doing. It makes me wish I was there! Here are a couple of pictures from when I went with the team last March. It shows the local preacher, Jose Castillo preaching at an evening meeting at someone's home.
The picture below shows what he had do deal with (from my vantage point) while speaking to the people: a puppy curled up at his feet and a chicken walking around! That's concentration!

Knockin' at the door.

Hi ya'll!
We just got back from a campaign in Victoria, TX where we knocked on doors and conducted Bible studies in conjunction with a Gospel Meeting at the Midtown church of Christ. Brother Don Walker from the Shenandoah church of Christ in San Antonio was the speaker for the week.
It was a very successful week with many doors knocked, flyers passed out, and invitations made. There were two baptisms and about 15-20 Bible studies conducted during the 5 days we were there! All the SWSBS students and I are really pumped up right now and are really grateful for the hospitality shown to us by the Midtown congregation.
God bless! - TROY

Here are we Lord, send us!

Andrea and I are excited to report that we have arrived at a decision that we have been thinking and praying about for many weeks now. After much consideration, we have decided to join the work in Asunción, Paraguay, South America. As many of you may know, we have been working with Josh and Cara Blackmer in an effort to form a missionary team to go into the world somewhere to evangelize to the lost. Chris and Vickie Fry have invited all of us to come join their team in South America, so we are going to begin the application and fund raising process to be able to enter that work. If all goes according to plan, we should be in Paraguay sometime in late 2009 or early 2010. We are really excited about the possibilities and we are thankful for the opportunity that God has blessed us with. We are praying diligently that we are doing this according to God's will. Please keep us in your prayers as we continue through this process!
The picture is from one of our meetings with Chris while we were on our survey trip to Paraguay this past July. - TROY