John and Yvonne Wagner's Blog

These are funny - enjoy!

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 18:41:00 +0000

1. The roundest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference. He acquired his size from too much pi.

2. I thought I saw an eye doctor on an Alaskan island, but it turned out to be an optical Aleutian.

3. She was only a whiskey maker, but he loved her still.

4. A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class because it was a weapon of math disruption.

5. The butcher backed into the meat grinder and got a little behind in his work.

6. No matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.

7. A dog gave birth to puppies near the road and was cited for littering.

8. A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.

9. Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.

10. Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

11. A hole has been found in the nudist camp wall. The police are looking into it.

12. Atheism is a non-prophet organization.

13. Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway. One hat said to the other, 'You stay here, I'll go on a head.'

14. I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger. Then, it hit me.

15. A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said, 'Keep off the Grass.'

16. A small boy swallowed some coins and was taken to a hospital. When his grandmother telephoned to ask how he was, a nurse said, 'No change yet.'

17. A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.

18. The short fortune-teller who esc! aped fro m prison was a small medium at large.

19. The man who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran..

20. A backward poet writes inverse.

21. In democracy, it's your vote that counts. In feudalism, it's your count that votes.
22. When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.

2 Timothy 1:7

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 23:24:00 +0000

Jesus is so faithful! When He wants to remind you of something He often does it through a variety of ways. I guess repetition is the key to learning.

In my last post I forgot to include the way Yvonne encourages me to push aside the fear that pops up. She quotes 2 Timothy 1:7 to me...

"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

She told me that last night again and I said, "yea, but I know too much about that verse. It doesn't apply in this situation. That applies to timidity in witnessing." She came back and said this verse applies exactly, because you're trying to encourage others to call for the elders of the church to pray for them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord when they're sick. You're trying to share with them what Jesus did for you. If you let fear stop you then this verse applies directly to you! I admitted that she was right.

I just came back from the bank and post office and on the way had the local Christian radio station on. Guess what the preacher was preaching about? You guessed it - 2 Timothy 1:7.

In your prayers for me please pray that I will keep my eyes on Jesus the author and finisher of my faith, and to remember the words of 2 Timothy 1:7!

Update on my condition...

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 20:41:00 +0000

When it comes to spiritual things I always try to be absolutely clear, precise and honest. I want to always glorify Jesus Christ my Lord so that He gets all of the credit and praise. I also don't want to overstate anything that would create confusion. So I want to give those of you who read my testimony an update on what's going on with me.

First off, I slept through the night for the first time Tuesday night! Thank you Jesus! Yesterday when I got up I was feeling great and wanted to share my healing with everyone. I first made a "status update" on my Facebook account and then proceded to write the story here. As I began to write my left hip began to hurt, not bad, but it still hurt. That went to my left thigh and to my left knee. and then down to the left ankle.

I really struggled with whether to publish the testimony at all or not. I also struggled with whether I had been healed or not. I began to experience fear that the whole horrible pain would return. I didn't want to look stupid for saying something happened that didn't, but I pressed on and finished the story and published the post. Amazingly enough as soon aa I published it the pain went away again. I can't explain that.

Last night I again slept throgh the night, but this morning my left hip, thigh, knee, and shin hurt. Not the excruciating pain I was feeling before my healing, but nontheless, it is painful. I can walk and bend and don't have the debilitating pain I had before, but nonetheless, it does hurt.

I am still following my doctor's advice and taking my meds, icing my back, doing the stretches, and resting. I am also still believing that the Lord healed me of the excruciating pain I was feeling the other day and I praise and thank Him for that!!!! I do not know why I am experiencing the pain I am at the moment. But I would like those of you who are reading this and who care, to please pray for me that the Lord will heal the rest of this problem for His glory.

I tried, by faith, to push past the discomfort I was feeling today to attend a clergy/pastor conference at the Norfolk Naval Station, but could only sit there for an hour before the discomfort became too much. I didn't want to disrupt the procedings by constantly getting up and going out and coming back in, so I left. That was disapointing.

Tomorrow morning I have an appointment with a chiropractor to see if there is anything he might be able to do. Then on Monday I have a follow-up appointment with my primary care medical doctor. On the 21st I have an MRI scheduled at Portsmouth Medical Center to actually look inside and see what's going on.

Again, I believe Jesus healed me of whatever was causing the excruciating pain I was experiencing the other day in answer to the prayers of the elders. I give Him all of the praise and glory for that! I still believe it was a miracle! The fear of that coming back does pop it's ugly head up from time to time. Yvonne helps me to push it away, and I keep trying to believe and trust the Lord that it will not.

So, I am asking for your prayers for my complete healing from this back and sciatic nerve problem I am having. It makes it hard to focuas on anything else, although I am trying. Thank you and I will keep you updated on this spiritual journey...

Calling for the elders of the church - divine healing!

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 16:13:00 +0000

My friends, I believe in miracles! Jesus is alive and is my healer! Here's the story as best I remember the events...

About a month or so ago I felt a little "twinge" in my left hip while sitting in my office working on my computer. Nothing significant, but I noticed it. A few days later when I got up from my office chair it felt like my left leg sort of "gave way" and I had to catch myself. I thought, "That's weird" but went on about my business. It happened another time a few days later but then didn't happen again.

But over time, my back and left leg began to hurt. This isn't the first time this has happened so I wasn't too alarmed. The last time the doctors took x-rays and diagnosed me with degenerative disk disease in my lower back. The disk had "collapsed" (more so on the left side) and decreased the pathway for the sciatic nerve to exit my vertebrae. When the sciatic nerve is impinged (pinched) it creates pain all the way down the leg to the ankle. Basically the doctors said it would be a matter of maintaining the pain with medication when it occurs. The best remedy they said was for me to lose a significant amount of weight, and exercise (especially the back and abdominal muscles). I was able to control the pain by just taking Excedrin and exercised regularly. I did that for quite a while and the pain became minimal (and I lost 25 pounds).

But with working on my dissertation and rebuilding our web site I sluffed off going to the gym and exercising. And I confess, my posture for hours at a time in my office chair was bad. I have a tendency to slouch to the left and lean on my left arm while working the mouse with my left hand. I am guessing that that is what may have triggered this most recent bout with my back and left leg. I can't think of anything else I did that would have caused it.

So, I went back to the gym to exercise. I worked out on the Nautilus machines focusing on my back and abs and hips and rear end. but the pain didn't go away, it only got worse. So I scheduled an appointment with a chiropractor last Wednesday. I regularly iced my back and performed some rudimentary stretches he recommended; but my pain got so bad that when I went in for my next appointment on Friday I could barely walk. The doctor was surprised at the pain I was in. He gave me my adjustment and then said I should probably go to the clinic to get some medication for the pain, which I did on Saturday. They examined me and gave me Vicodin. It helped me sleep, but did almost nothing for the pain. Every time I tried to change position or roll over I would wake up in excruciating pain!

The pain got so bad that I could barely walk. At first the only relief I got was when I put ice on my back, or got into a kneeling position by a chair, or laid on my right side in bed with my legs drawn up (kind of a fetal position). Once I did one of those things I felt better for a little while.

Sunday was Yvonne's birthday and we planned to have Sarah and Brian over for dinner. I didn't want to spoil Yvonne's birthday so we decided to have them come on over. We ate dinner with me kneeling at a chair to eat by the table. And then we played a game of Settlers of Catan, again with me kneeling by a chair. What a sight that was. As a matter of fact, they got a picture of me...

Brian won the game!

Sunday night the pain got so bad that nothing I tried made the pain subside. Many times all I could do was cry out to the Lord for mercy and that he would relieve the pain! Often it got so bad all I could do was scream and beg God to help me! I also tried worshipping and praising the Lord and telling Him that I loved Him even in the midst of my pain. After a while the ice and the kneeling position didn't help any more. I only slept a couple of hours at a time out of sheer exhaustion! The thought occurred to me a few times, during times of less intense pain, to call for the elders of my church and have them come and anoint me with oil and pray for me according to James 5:14-15, but I didn't.

By Monday morning I was hurting so badly that Yvonne called Boone clinic and made an appointment for me, and we went in. Sitting in the car was excruciatingly painful, my only comfort being that I knew it was only a ten minute drive. I hobbled in as best I could and knelt on the pillow I brought in front of the chair in the waiting room. When the nurse called me in, I could only kneel in front of a chair to have any sort of relief from the pain while waiting for the doctor. The doctor gave me a shot of pain medication in my hip, but after an hour it had absolutely no effect! They prescribed three other muscle relaxants and pain medications for me that Yvonne went to the pharmacy to pick up. When she came back, the medical staff said they had done all they could for me in that setting and recommended Yvonne take me to the Portsmouth Medical Center emergency room.

I couldn't sit in the wheelchair they provided because it hurt too much. So I leaned on it and pushed it as I hobbled out the door, accompanied by three nurses. The staff at Boone Clinic were wonderful to me!

I dreaded the 40 minute ride in the car to the hospital. I laid on my right side in the back seat of the car, which was tolerable as long as long as Yvonne didn't hit any major pot holes. When we got to the hospital a very nice African-American gentleman (not one of the hospital staff) told me to lean on him and he helped me into the hospital. Again, I kneeled on my pillow on the floor in front of a chair while Yvonne checked me in. They took me into triage and took my vitals with me still kneeling on the floor. What a sight I must have been!

Not long after, two young hospital corpsmen came and let me lean on them as they took me to a bed. Laying on my right side again immediately reduced the pain I was feeling. The doctors and nurses came in, checked me over, and said they would try to alleviate the pain I was feeling. They gave me two percoset pills (sp?) and two Valium pills and let me lay there for a while (I don't remember how long). Then they said they had done all they could and sent me home. They gave me a prescription for Valium that Yvonne went to the pharmacy to fill. I laid in the back of the car to wait for her; a wait that ended up being 2 1/2 hours long!

Finally we got home. I took the medicines, but it didn't seem like they touched the pain. I hobbled around, I iced my back, I cried, I screamed, I prayed and prayed, and begged and pleaded with the Lord to take away the pain. I think I went to bed then and slept for an hour or so, but woke in the same pain. No position I got in seemed to alleviate the pain now. The verse went through my mind again to call for the elders of the church to come and anoint me with oil and pray for me. But by now it was midnight. But I had Yvonne make the call for me.

Pastor Maye had just driven 600 miles from meetings in south Georgia and had been asleep for half an hour, but he agreed to call some of the other elders and come and pray for me. They arrived at about 1:00am. Pastor Maye read the passage of Scripture in James 5 and he and Dave anointed me and prayed over me that the Lord would heal me and take away the pain I was experiencing.

I felt like I had been obedient to the Lord and His Word and called for the elders of the church and they were obedient to come and anoint me and pray for me. Now the rest was in the Lord's hands.We talked for a short time and they left.

Yvonne and I went to bed, but the pain was still unbearable! I cried and begged God for relief, I screamed and pleaded for His mercy. Yvonne was in tears and suddenly, through her tears screamed out "Satan I rebuke you, get your hands off of him in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth!"

By that time I was so exhausted I climbed in be and fell asleep. The next time I woke up I think it was about 6:00 or so. My side hurt so I got out of bed and tried walking to our other bedroom where Yvonne was getting ready for work. I gingerly got out of bed and tried to walk and noticed that it wasn't hurting as much as the night before and the more I walked the better it was feeling. I laid back down again and my leg hurt, so I got back up. The more I walked the better it felt and better I was able to walk. I felt like the blind man in the Bible that Jesus healed and when he opened his eyes he said he saw men as trees walking. In other words, it was part of the way there. I asked the Lord to please continue the healing.

Yvonne went to work about 9:30 and I took my medicine and went back to bed. I slept till 3:30. That's the most sleep I had gotten throughout this whole ordeal. When I woke up and tried getting out of bed I noticed there was no pain!! I got up and I could walk, bend, sit, and everything. Wow, did I worship and praise the Lord for that! Jesus had done the work! He had answered prayer and healed me of that excruciating pain.

I got up and walked around the house, praising and worshipping Him. I took a shower and got dressed so that I would look good for Yvonne when she came home from work. I felt really good! Later Marian, Pastor Maye's wife called to see how I was doing and I was able to give her the great news! I also called Dave to let him know what had happened. I believe that was a miracle in answer to being obedient to His Word. I thank Him for His faithfulness.

Sarah came over to the house and when she saw me standing there feeling good she was shocked. A few minutes later Yvonne walked in from work and was also shocked! We all praised the Lord Jesus for His healing!

I wanted to write this story as a way of encouraging you to believe in the Word of God and obey it. James 5:14-15 says,

"Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven."

If you're sick, call for the elders of your church and have them come and anoint you with oil in the name of the Lord Jesus and pray for you. Don't wait. And if you're an elder of a church, please be willing to obey the Word and go when someone calls. This is all about loving and following Jesus and loving each other. I can't tell you how much it meant to me that my pastor and Dave came to pray for me in the middle of the night!

Monday Evening...

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 23:19:00 +0000

On Monday Andy and his parents loaded all of his stuff from Andy's storage unit and packed it into their van and a U-Haul trailer hooked behind Andy's truck. The night before we planned to get together again for dinner and another game in the evening. Andy placed his order for Yvonne's Lasagna for dinner and to play Attack Uno afterward. He liked the game the first time he played it here a few weeks before. Mike and Ruth had never played it before.

This is Mike and Ruth Davis

I don't like all these cards in my hand...yuck!

Mike won four rounds out of five to win the game!

Then on Tuesday morning the Davis's pulled out to drive back to Illinois. The worst winter ice storm of the season was moving east and they were going to try to outrun it up north. everything to the north of the ice band was supposed to be snow. Mike felt that would be all right as long as it wasn't ice. andy will spen the next three years as an instructor at Great Lakes Naval Traiing Center teaching recruits how to use small arms.

Sunday with Ruth, Mike, and Andy...

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 23:14:00 +0000

Sunday afternoon about 3:00 o'clock Andy came in with his mom (Ruth) and dad (Mike). Yvonne was preparing lunch for us all but found out they had just eaten lunch, so Yvonne slowed the process down and we visited and got to know each other. We decided to eat later and make it an evening meal instead of noon (Yvonne is so flexible!) For those of you interested in the menu, she made terriaki chicken and rice for dinner, and apple crisp for dessert.

This is the mouse eye view of us at dinner

After we ate we played Settlers of Catan. Andy, Ruth, and Mike had never played it before. But, they caught on really quick!

We had a lot of fun together!

Yvonne won

Saturday Night RISK Battle!

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 23:05:00 +0000

Saturday evening Nichole Thomas came over and Andy Davis joined us. We had pizza for dinner and played RISK! Nic and Andy took Yvonne and me out of the game (I've never seen anyone roll as many six's as Nic did!). Then at 9:00pm they decided they had had enough and split up the world and called it a draw. Andy controlled North, South, and Central America, and Nic had the rest of the world. We closed the evening praying together.

Azalea Garden Church of God 2009 Missions Banquet

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 16:14:00 +0000

Sunday evening Yvonne and I attended the annual missions banquet at Azalea Garden Church of God. What a fun night that was! We went to the church at 5:00pm to the Prayer Center and had a time of prayer with the missionaries. There were missionaries to Honduras, Nicaragua, The Native American Tribes in New Mexico, India, Benelux, Fiji, Columbia, Spain, to the Seafarers, and a whole bunch of other places. All week they had been sharing stories about their ministries around the world. The banquet was the high point, or culmination, of the week.

The food was really great! I was told that the fried chicken was Church of God chicken. I wondered if that meant that the chickens got saved and filled with the Spirit before they were cooked??? Anyway, the cooks did a terrific job!

Terri Goodin - Missionary to the Native American Tribes in New Mexico

After just a few minutes with Terri, Yvonne and I felt like we'd known her for years!

Dr. Charles Dewing and John

Dr. Dewing and his wife Joan minister to the crews of the international cruise ships.

Kuulei - missionary in Fiji

Kuulei is from Hawaii. That created an instant connection since we spent six years minsitering in Hawaii. We had to compare some notes and places we knew. Yvonne is showing her a picture of someone we thought we both knew (it wasn't the same person).

Some of our local folk:

Steve and Bonnie (Children's pastor)

Ralph and Jim

Gene and Linda

Kathy - she and the mission board were responsibile for putting this all together. They did a great job too!

Rodney and Angela Vickers (Rodney's the executive pastor of the church)

Larry and Joan

Hamburgers, Chips and Settlers of Catan

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 15:47:00 +0000

Saturday evening Todd Williams and Andy Davis joined us for hamburgers and chips.

Then Todd, Yvonne and I played played Settlers of Catan (Andy just watched because he wasn't feeling well). We played two games.

Can you tell who won the first game?

So, guess who might have won the second game?

Finally, guess who I had to coax to give me a big, friendly, smile...?

Todd the Sunday Baker

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 21:12:00 +0000

On Sunday Yvonne made Lasagna, salad, and Italian bread for dinner.

Todd Williams made the dessert - a Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake. It was really good too!!

Evan and Brandon had to drive down from Petersburg so we ate late - about 3:00pm. So it gave Todd plenty of time to make it. You all should have seen his concentration. Actually, you can see his concentration - just look at the pictures. :)

No sooner had we sat down to eat than Evan and Brandon showed up. Evan opened the door, stepped in, and let out this high pitched, spine chilling scream that caught Yvonne totally by surprise. She almost came three inches up out of her chair! (We all had a good chuckle out of that).

The lasagna got polished off in a hurry! Everyone liked it.

After dinner Todd's dessert was a huge success too!

Finally, Evan led us in a really awesome "hymn sing" led in his own unique style. We had a good time worshipping the Lord together!

Pizza and a Movie for Saturday Night

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:40:00 +0000

This week we ordered Pizza from the Pizza Hut and watched a movie for our activity. YN2 Todd Williams and GM2 Andy Davis started the evening with us and then SPC Evan Bunch called and said he was coming over too! He was in town from Ft. Lee in Petersburg and joined us. He brought a friend with him who he went to high school with and who is stationed at Oceana Naval Air Station - AT3 Brandon Justice. Yea!!

The movie we watched was called "The Perfect Stranger." it is based on the book Dinner with a Perfect Stranger by David Gregory. In the film a skeptical lawyer (Pamela Brumley) has a conversation with a stranger (Jefferson Moore) who claims to be Jesus of Nazareth. In the discussion that followed, they touched on a variety of thought-provoking topics, including the meaning of life, the accuracy of the Bible and the divinity of Jesus Christ.

The film really gets you thinking, both about how Jesus would present Himself if He were alive today, and about the issues that they discussed. I highly recommend it!

As always when Evan comes over, we closed the evening singing a couple of Christian songs and then prayed together. :)

Sharing a Christmas Tradition

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:19:00 +0000

There's one tradition Yvonne and I enjoy sharing with others at Christmas. We have real candles on our Christmas tree instead of electric lights. The visual effect and the ambiance in the room is totally different with real candles.

Friday evening pastor Aubrey Maye and his wife Marian came over for dinner. We had dessert and coffee in the living room and lit the Christmas tree candles. Pastor Maye said it was the first time he had ever seen real candles on a Christmas tree, a comment I like to hear because it means we're sharing something new and unusual with someone.

All of us enjoyed it even though it was after Christmas. Although in Germany the Christmas season doesn't end until January 6th. We left the tree up just to share this tradition with the Mayes and now it will go the way of all Christmas trees...

NAB Little Creek Coffee House Ministry

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 18:24:00 +0000

Sunday evening Yvonne and I went to the Coffee House at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base. Stephanie Parker, the Religious Education Director at the chapel invited us to come and share about our ministry and give a short devotional.

After a time of eating together, and praise and worship, Stephanie introduced me. Yvonne passed out our ministry flyers and I shared my testimony about how I came to know Jesus Christ at a servicemen's center in California called the Port O' Call where Yvonne was a hostess. I explained how Yvonne wouldn't date me because I wasn't a Christian. But over time, realizing that the kids at the Port had something I didn't, and together with Yvonne's and the center director's explanations, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior.

Then I shared four passages of Scripture that we base our ministry on. The first was Matthew 25:35-36, and 40

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in...'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" NIV

Yvonne and I feel that what we do for the servicemen and women who come into our home we are doing for Jesus Christ.

Then I talked about 1 Thessalonians 2:7, and 11-12

"we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children...For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory." NIV

I explained that our ministry is like a home away from home for servicemen and women and Yvonne and I feel toward those we minister to like a mother and father.

Finally, the last passage I talked about was 1 Thessalonians 2:8 that says:

"We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us." NIV

Love is the motive for what we do. As a result, what we do isn't just about sharing the Gospel with young military men and women, but about sharing our lives with them as well.

Attack Uno!

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 18:13:00 +0000

This weekend Andy, Todd, Yvonne and I played Attack Uno. Andy had never played it before and decided it was more fun than the old style Uno. At first the Attack Uno machine was only spitting out a few cards once in a while. We thought it was the batteries, so Andy volunteered to go to the store and get some new ones.

It didn't help. So we cleaned the rubber rollers that grip the cards to spit them out, using rubbing alcohol. That didn't help either. Then cleaned the rollers again using a damp towel. Wow! Did that make a huge difference! It started spitting out all kinds of cards after that. Way more fun!

Yea! Todd's Home!!

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:51:00 +0000

After a week of leave in Ohio for Thanksgiving, four weeks on temporary duty in Falon, NV, and then another week of leave in Ohio for Christmas, Todd Williams finally decided to come back home! Todd flew in yesterday and Yvonne went to the ariport to pick him up. Then he hung out with us for the afternoon. It's really nice to have him back home.

Elizabeth, our younger daughter flew in from California to visit Sarah and Brian. She came over yesterday and hung out with us for the afternoon too. It was nice to have her here too!

To top off the day, Andy came home from work and cooked his personal chili. We all dove into that with great gusto - and it was delicious.

Christmas 2008

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 19:56:00 +0000

We had a really neat Christmas! It actually started early. Andy gave Yvonne several of the attachments for her Kitchen Aide for Christmas. They made preparing our Christmas Eve dinner much easier.

Sarah (our daughter) and Brian (our son-in-law) came over and we had butternut squash soup and bread and cheese for dinner. Afterwards Andy participated in our family gift exchange and then baked cookies for us (last post).

Here Sarah's taste-testing the cookies!

Finally, we lit the candles on our Christmas tree and watched them for a while.

On Christmas Day Nicole Thomas (USS Carl Vinson) came over and joined us for Christmas dinner. We baked a ham, and Nicole helped with the preparations by making the mashed potatoes. Nic jumped right in and did the dishes after dinner! What a help these two were.

We went into the living room and lit the candles on the tree again. I asked Nic if she had ever seen real candles on a Christmas tree before, and she said she had. I was surprised and asked where? She said at her grandmother's. Her grandmother had been from Germany and brought the tradition with her from there. When I asked Nic if her grandmother was still living she said no, she passed away in October. It made me feel good to think we shared a family tradition with her that was a pleasant reminder of her grandmother and actually part of her own family tradition.

I read the Christmas story from Matthew and Luke and then shared the Four Spiritual Laws Tract. Then we prayed. Yvonne made a cheese cake for dessert, and before she cut it she had us all sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus. It is His birthday after all!

Nic had to go back to the ship because she had duty, while the rest of us watched the movie "It's A Wonderful Life!" with Jimmy Stewart.

NavyforMoms.com

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 17:50:00 +0000

We've also discovered NavyforMoms.com which is an online support community for moms who have sons or daughters about to join the Navy, or in the Navy. When we were told about it and checked it out it too became a means of making contact with sailors and their families. Now, I realize I'm not a "mom" and neither Yvonne nor I have any biological children in the Navy. But we have hundreds of "sons" and "daughters" around the world in the Navy, the Army, and the Marine Corps. So, I thought we met their qualifications :)

I've really learned a lot about moms who have adult children in the military. They worry. They have tons of questions. They pray. They cry. They miss their sons and daughters. They hope that they are safe. And, they search for information and answers to their questions. The more information they obtain the more it eases their anxiety.

So, Yvonne and I try to help by providing what answers we can. But we also try to let moms around the country know that we are here to provide a home away from home for their sons and daughters in the Norfolk/Virginia Beach area if they are interested in participating in our activities.

We had one mom contact us and let us know her son was coming to Norfolk for a month and needed a place to "crash". We invited him to stay with us. So, as I write, Andy is here with us. He was even able to spend Christmas with us! On Christmas Eve we had dinner together with my daughter and son-in-law. Andy made some of his famous chocolate chip cookies. I took pictures of him doing it and emailed them to his mom right away. So they were included in our activities almost as they were happening.

I know there are other moms who are trying to encourage their sons and daughters to check us out too. This seems to be a tremendous door that the Lord has opened for us to make contact with sailors who are in the area or are coming to the area. Hopefully we can help them so they don't have to feel so alone in a huge, strange area. And, maybe we can provide some level of comfort and support to the moms of the sailors too.

Facebook

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 17:38:00 +0000

I was thinking about getting on Facebook for quite a while. Then Sgt. Ashley Sangret invited us to become friends with her. So we figured out how to set up a Facebook account and invited people to be friends with us too.

This has been a fantastic way of staying in touch! It combines pictures and little comments and longer notes, private emails, and just so much fun stuff to stay in touch. And, if you hit it just right, you can even chat in real time. The more we use it the more we enjoy it! Amanda Coots said once, "Yea, its really addictive!" We agree. :)

Birthday greetings via telephone...

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 17:27:00 +0000

Yvonne and I try to call the people who have been part of our fellowship on their birthdays. Being human, sometimes we forget, sometimes no body's home and sometimes, eureka! we succeed. This month we've done pretty good. It was fun to catch up with Randy and Nikki Mayzak in Camp LeJeune, NC. Since their birthdays are a week apart we thought it would be clever to called them right in between their birthdays. :) We talked with Amanda Coots in Ft. Lewis, Washington; and with Danielle Neitzke who was home on leave in Cason City, NV. And, we got in touch with Melissa McCausland in Imperial Beach, CA. Cell phones are so awesome! You can call the same number and wherever the person is, they still get the call.

American Media Version of Throwing the Shoe

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 18:43:00 +0000

This post was originally a comment I made on NavyforMoms.com but I wanted to include it here too.

It's interesting. For many people the original reasons we went into Iraq have become so clouded that they don't even know what they are anymore. Our own media does the American version of "throwing the shoe" at our president. They distort his words and spin everything we've accomplished in Iraq in the worst light possible. If there are two possible ways to report a story they will opt for the negative one every time. The media in this country goes out of its way to maintain a deafening silence regarding anything positive and screaming incessantly about everything that is "wrong" in Iraq. According to our journalists we have essentially lost the war and have accomplished nothing.

Unfortunately, it is their incessant drumbeat that people, over time, believe - even if it is not true. It's like the old adage that "a lie repeated often enough, and loud enough, soon becomes the truth."

What breaks my heart is that I believe this incessant negative media coverage contributes directly to the post traumatic stress disorder which so many of our young warriors struggle with when they return home from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Shoe Thrown At President Bush

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 17:52:00 +0000

I was shocked when I heard about the journalist that threw his shoes at President Bush! I read it inthe newspaper first. Then I saw it on the television.

In America this just looks funny. But in the Arab world throwing your shoe as someone is a tremendous insult! It is an act that can lead to fights between people in that culture.

I was shocked at the journalist's behavior. It was a grave insult coming from a man representing another nation as a journalist. I think it reflects shame on the country he represents as a journalist.

But, having said that, I was so incredibly proud of President Bush's response. For our nation's leader to simply shrug off and dismiss an insult such as that, with his usual wry humor, brings great honor to our country, and to George Bush as a Christian. I believe this is an example of the difference between the concepts of "an eye for an eye" and "turning the other cheek".

To me, this was another of many occasions where President George Bush has revealed his gracious character both as our nation's leader, and as a Christian gentleman. This makes me think of him even more as a Christian Statesman.

Fort Lee Army Band Christmas Concert

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 20:21:00 +0000

Sunday morning Yvonne and I drove to Petersburg, Virginia to listen to the Fort Lee Army Band perform their annual Christmas concert. It was really nice! SPC Evan Bunch, one of our soldiers is a percussionist with the band. What we didn't know, was that he was also going to perform as a vocalist in a quartet. They all did a great job!

The children in the audience were treated to the First Sargent reading the story "Twas The Night Before Christmas" set to the band playing.

And, of course, what Christmas show is complete without a visit from the fat bearded guy in the red flannel suit?

After the concert Evan had to help tear down the equipment and take it back to the band hall, so being the Civil War buff I am, Yvonne and I went to see "The Crater" in Petersburg. It was the place during the Civil War that the Union engineers dug a tunnel under the Confederate line and detonated a huge amount of explosives to cut Lee's supply line from the south. I had read about the Crater years ago, but have never seen it. I have to admit, it wasn't as big as I thought it would be.

This was the entrance to the tunnel (512 feet long).

This is the crater itself.
Finally, we went back to the base, met up with Evan and, after a tour of the band hall, Evan took us out to dinner at a Chinese Buffet. Yum! By that time we were all hungry, but especially Evan!

We prayed together and then drove back to Virginia Beach. Yesterday turned out to be a really special day...

Prayer Meeting Time

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 20:22:00 +0000

Pastor Maye has been mentioning the Sunday evening prayer time for several weeks now. I've been thinking about attending and then planning to attend, but just never doing it.

This past Sunday evening Yvonne and I went for the first time. And, I'm gad we did! It was a real blessing. The church has a prayer room set up with little benches to kneel at and even provided cushions for the knees :)

One wall has a huge map of the world. on other walls there are groupings of pictures of missionaries, military, church members, etc. The lights were turned low, and there was soft music playing in the background. It was the nicest prayer meeting experience I've ever had at a church.

I spent considerable time laying my hands on different parts of the global map praying for the different servicemen and women that have been involved in our ministry that are now stationed around the world, including those deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq.

That prayer meeting was definitely worth attending!

The Peace of God that Passes All Understanding

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 20:00:00 +0000

This past Sunday morning Pastor Aubrey Maye preached an excellent and very passionate message about the "peace of God" in the midst of difficult times. His text came from Philippians 4: 4-7.

Phil 4:4-7

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. NIV

He talked about the different kinds of peace, but focuses most of his comments on the kind of supernatural peace that comes from the Lord in the midst of difficulties. It's easy to have peace when everything is going well. It's also easy to have peace when we get our prayers answered the way we want them to be answered. But it's another kind of peace all together that is needed when things are chaotic and the answers to prayer are not coming the way we'd like them to. That is the supernatural peace that comes from an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. It's a peace that passes human understanding.

Especially in uncertain times like those we are going through right now, with the economic crisis we're experiencing. Anxiety, worry, and stress can dominate and preoccupy a person's mind and heart and steal away faith, joy, and trust in Jesus.

While he was preaching I thought of the passage of scripture in Habakkuk 3:17-19

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights. NIV

Jesus does not change with the circumstances. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He can be trusted, even in dark, troublesome times. It is only as we go through the valleys in life that we can come to know Jesus as the Lilly of the valley.

Revival Services at Azalea Gardens Church

noreply@blogger.com (John and Yvonne Wagner) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 19:51:00 +0000

Yvonne and I attended the revival services at Azalea Gardens Church (Church of God) last week from Sunday evening through Wednesday evening (Oct 12-15). Cliff West was the evangelist that spoke each evening. He was a good preacher. The Lord spoke to Yvonne and me several times through what he said. It's been a lot of years since I've attended a series of revival services like that. Pastor James the minister of music did an excellent job of leading worship, along with the choir and the instrumentalists. It was spiritually refreshing!