Greg Wagoner & Family

I would like to ask you to remember Pastor Ray Chamberlain in prayer. Pastor Chamberlain is one of the godliest and most faithful men I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. A life and testimony like his is a rarity. He has occupied the place God put him for 53 years! Fifty-three years in one location... What a model of patience, perseverance, and persistence! This dear pastor has recently been diagnosed with leukemia and will begin treatments soon.
The following is a message from the Pastor's son, John...
Brother Ray spent today (Monday) at the V.A. hospital. He successfully had a "port" installed so, that if all goes well, he may begin chemotherapy for leukemia next Monday. He is anemic and tires easily. The outpatient surgery went well. He is in little pain at this hour. Pray for him to remain infection free and for the effectiveness of the upcoming treatments.
A STORY OF FAITH AND FAITHFULNESS (January 31, 2007 archive from this blog)

Pictured with us are Pastor Ray and Mrs. Chamberlain. What a great couple! In the early 1950's God saved Bro. Chamberlain and in 1956 led him to start the Faith Baptist Church in Cynthiana, KY. Cynthiana is not far from Cane Ridge where the Campbellite movement became a prominent denomination in the 1840's under the leadership of Alexander Campbell and others. THANK GOD FOR A MAN LIKE RAY CHAMBERLAIN who went to Cynthiana to preach a message of salvation by grace through faith. Today, 51 years later Faith Baptist Church is moving forward and I am glad they have a part in our work in Tanzania.

Posted by Greg at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the Wagoner Family Pool da boyz are hurtin'. The girls have stayed comfortably out in front. However, the final three games of the tournament could shake up the standings. Next Monday night, we will know who will be strutting around the house as Bracket Champ. (No matter what happens, though, it won't be me... it is mathematically impossible. The best I can do is 2nd place.) It has been a fun tourney with all of the kids getting involved this year.
Here are the family bracket standings going into Detroit:
1) Paige - 76.5
2) Christine - 76
3) Abigail - 70
4) Susanna - 69
5) Joseph - 68
6) Me - 68

Posted by Greg at 9:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Before the preaching time I felt compelled to call the folks to the altar for a special prayer for rain. The season seems to be quite late this year, which means this could present some extraordinary difficulties in East Africa this year. We cried out to the One who causes the rains to fall upon the just and the unjust.
Following the rain prayer, we opened our Bibles to Colossians two. Verse six provided the title for the message... "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him." I emphasized the fact that faith in Christ is the beginning, the journey, and the finish of the Christian life.
After the service we tended to two specific issues: (1) a deacon's benevolence fund; (2) a property line dispute. The deacon's benevolence fund is a good idea that was born within the congregation. We only had to talk about how the fund would be financed and how it would be managed. We will meet again next week to tweak the plan. It is very encouraging to see the church take these steps forward. The property line dispute involved a neighboring plot to the west of our property. The owner was not well pleased that the town municipal did not confer with him when they surveyed and settled the church property lines. This stickler has been on my mind for quite some time, and it was a great relief to reach an agreement with the owner of the neighboring plot.

Posted by Greg at 9:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As I was preparing to go outside for a bit of fresh air yesterday morning I was thinking...

Let me put my comfortable leather sandals on and step outside for a second. Why isn't my left foot going all the way into the sandal? Hmmm... Something is lodged inside. Now... What is one of the girls' hairbows doing in side my sandal? Oh... no... it is one of Christine's socks. Nope! A dead rat!

Posted by Greg at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Our family is ready for the Sweet 16 games today and tomorrow. Everyone has completed a bracket and... some of us are struggling to keep our heads above water. LOL! The way we do it is... every round has its own respective point value. That is... for every winning team picked in the first round, you get 1 point; second round - 2 points, sweet 16 - 3 points, Elite 8 - 4 points, and 5 points for every team chosen to advance to the Final Four. The kicker... If you picked the champion team, the award is 10 points! (Oh yeah... 1/2 point for the play-in game... Paige is the ONLY one who picked Morehead St., so she has the edge there!)
Here are the family bracket standings going into tonight:
1) Paige - 54.5
2) Abigail - 54
3) Christine - 50
4) Joseph - 49
5) Susanna - 47
6) Me - 45

Posted by Greg at 7:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My plans for the summer are to go to Disney World with my family; including, my mom's side of the family: Grandma & Grandpa, Uncle Brooks & Aunt Shay, and Zane & Nate, my cousins. I also plan to go to the Steelers Training Camp with my dad, Abigail, my second cousin, John, and his son, Jake! And... Abigail, Susanna, and I are going to a camp in North Carolina called the Wilds.

Posted by Joseph at 1:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Oh man, last night, Christine had me in stitches! We were having a family discussion on our upcoming re-entry into American culture. (We make attempts to prepare the kids for the changes to our lifestyle that occur during furloughs in the U.S.A.) When we were talking about the different kinds of restaurants, ordering, and good manners, Christine piped up:
"I like when we drive up and say in that thing - 'I want blah, blah, blah, blah; and... they give you a bag with toys in it for kids!'"

Posted by Greg at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

When I found out Brother B.J. was taking his van into Arusha for some body work, I volunteered to make the trip with him, and bring him back to Moshi. It was a selfish sort of volunteering though... I had some things to do in Arusha and the timing worked out very well. Among the things I need to do were:
1.) Buy chlorine for the kids' pool.
2.) Pick-up LVBC graduation gowns from a fellow missionary. Our first four graduates will be walking next month!
3.) Stock up on dog food for furlough. A friend of mine in Lawrence County, OH, told me that we buy dog food like he buys his cattle chow! LOL. The cheapest and easiest way to feed our three Rottermans is with generic dry dog food from Shop*Rite supermarket. I bought them out today; and it looks like we have enough food to feed the dogs through March '10. We will have to get the stock for April-May '10 at a later date.
Our dogs serve as a necessary form of security in Tanzania. For the most part the violent break-ins and robberies occur on properties that are dog-less. As a general rule, bandits and thieves don't like messing with the noise and aggravation that guard dogs pose to their operations.
So, all of these things were accomplished + Bro. B.J. and I had some great fellowship and conversation over lunch and the ride back home.

Posted by Greg at 7:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

What a joy to be back at International Baptist Church today. We received a very warm welcome from the people, and it was a blessing to see their faces. Even though our congregation is small and growing slowly there are encouraging signs that this church is growing in the grace and knowledge of Christ Jesus, our Lord.
I preached from Colossians 1 this morning on "Christ in You... the Hope of Glory". We examined the manner in which Paul reminded the Colossians of the truth he had taught them. He was reminding them of several points of truth because they were being bombarded by the fallacies of legalism and humanism.
There was a new face, Baraka, in the service today. (I think he has been coming for a couple of weeks, but he was a new face to me!) Baraka means "blessing" in Swahili, and it was a blessing to have him with us today. I encouraged him to begin our discipleship lessons, which he did.

Posted by Greg at 8:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today is the day for the NCAA! This year the whole family has filled out a bracket. LOL! Abigail and I have UNC winning it all. Joseph and Christine picked PITT. Paige is going with Louisville, and Susanna Memphis. It should be a fun couple of weeks in da house.

Posted by Greg at 10:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

While studying for and preparing an Old Testament history class, it was interesting to see the ebb & flow of spirituality that existed within the nation of Israel under the judges and kings. It is a common thing for us to try to brush off bad news and think everything is okay. It is also a common human trait to pull back from controversy and accept the flow of popular trends. During the study I was reminded that right now... at our time in history... things are not okay...
When God's name is mindlessly used in repetitious and irreverent rants... things are not okay!
When individuals are given more severe prison terms for cruelty to animals than they are for cruelty to humans... things are not okay!
When there is serious confusion and clamor about what a legitimate marital union really is... things are not okay!
When politicians and parishes embrace the GLBT community... things are not okay!
When an innumerable number of unborn children are massacred and then mutilated in laboratories... things are not okay!
When you hear more about saving the planet than saving souls... things are not okay!
When every form of religion and belief is seen as possessing equal validity and values... things are not okay!

Posted by Greg at 8:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last week I was able to attend a conference that is held bi-annually for nurses in East Africa and the Middle East. This is the fourth time that I have attended. In order for a nurse to keep her license current in most states, she must obtain a certain number of continuing education units (CEU). Although I have not practiced nursing in over 12 years, this conference is always a big help. It is 6 days packed with sessions on various topics. Many that are helpful in tropic topics: TB, HIV/AIDS, malaria, worms, domestic violence, and other sensational subjects. Some of the content keeps us "in tune" to what is happening back in the US, so we can stay current with practice there... CPR and ACLS re-certification, immunizations, assessment labs.

Posted by Paige at 7:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We were back with the folks at Karen Baptist Church today. They are getting ready for a big "Friend Day" Sunday, March 29. It will be a blessing if they can meet or exceed their goal of 200 in attendance.
Down in Tanzania things are going well at International Baptist Church. Brother B.J. has been handling the preaching with Brother Majaliwa teaching the Sunday School lessons. We look forward to being back with them next week.

Posted by Greg at 7:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We found out that this was a good time for us to be in Nairobi, because the Mickeys had a birthday bowling party at Village Market today. It was Charity's 18th birthday, and we went bowling with them. We really had fun knocking down the pins with our friends! After we were done bowling we went to pick-up mom from the nursing conference.

Posted by Susanna at 7:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today we went to the Panari Sky Center where you can eat at a Brazilian Steak House and go ice skating. So... we were planning on doing the 1 o'clock skate, then eat; but, we got there a little early and ended up eating first. Then, we went ice skating. While we were ice skating, we ended up playing hockey. We skated for an hour and had a blast!

Posted by Joseph at 7:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today, we met some fellow missionaries, the Halsteads. Mom and Mrs. Halstead are staying in the same room during the nurses' conference, and we all arranged to meet together while our moms got a break from the conference. The Halstead kids are: Johanna (16), Wesley (14), Emily (11), and Sarah (9). Emily is turning 12 on Sunday. Johanna, Wesley, Emily, Joseph, and I all "grouped" together, leaving Sarah, Susanna, and Christine to do their own thing.
First, we older kids played a couple rounds of P.I.G. After that, we threw a ball around until we decided to sit down. We were planning on playing a game called "Signs", but we got sidetracked and started a conversation about movies. (It lasted about a half an hour.) btw... Movies are the primary tool for becoming friends with other MKs. OK, well... not all the time, but... It is mostly true. All too soon, the parents called that time was up. I promised Johannah and Emily that I would hook up with them on Facebook when I turned 13! So, we met some great preople and good friends (who have seen a lot of the same movies we have! ;-)

Posted by Abigail at 6:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Biblical Christianity is the only PERFECT belief system. Notice a couple of things... (1) I did not say "Christianity," because it is a catch-all term which makes up a conglomeration of religions. (2) I didn't say "PERFECT religion", because my perception of Biblical Christianity is that it is a relationship with God, not a religion of do's and dont's.
Biblical Christianity is the only PERFECT belief system. Notice that I did not say "Bible Believing Christians are perfect.", for their imperfections are something they, themselves, understand. (And, again... I stress that there is a distinction between a "Bible Believing Christian" and a "Christian" in the very vanilla sense of the term.) The practice of a Bible Believing Christian is sometimes contrary to his/her spiritual position of perfection, which, from time to time, brings the belief system under attack from the ungodly.
Biblical Christianity is the only PERFECT belief system. Because...
(A) It is the only belief system built upon a PERFECT PERSONIFICATION - Jesus Christ, God in the flesh. (John 1:1-14)
(B) It is the only belief system built upon a PERFECT PUBLICATION - The Holy Bible, God's only revelation. (John 17:17)
(C) It is the only belief system built upon a PERFECT PURIFICATION - Spiritual rebirth, by Grace through Faith. (John 3:1-18)

Posted by Greg at 9:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We made it in to Nairobi yesterday so that Paige can get her CEU's for her nursing license. After the kids and I dropped her off in Tigoni, Kenya, we made our way to Karen Baptist Church. Karen Baptist is a new church in the the southwest section of Nairobi. This work has been started by missionary friend, Denny Madory who is sent by Southwest Baptist Church, Oklahoma City. It is very exciting to see what the Lord is doing in this ministry. Please pray for them as they push forward.

Posted by Greg at 2:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I got Barbie clothes, and I got a shirt that matches with a Barbie shirt. I also got a Barbie friend bag, and I got some nice Barbie toothpaste. I got a Barbie doctor and two babies. The Schultzes came over and we had yummy cupcakes. I got a Magnadoodle and a marker board.

Posted by Christine at 9:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I would like to ask those of you who believe in prayer to remember Tom Foltz when you go before the Lord. Tom and his wife, Joanne, have been missionaries in Tanzania since 1998. They work in Arusha, which is a one and a half hour drive from us. They are flying to the USA tonight (Tuesday, March 3rd) due to some health issues. I know they would appreciate you lifting them up before the Lord.

Posted by Greg at 4:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The day started with a run in the Kilimanjaro Half Marathon: a 21.1km race that takes each runner on a 1000 ft climb up the side of Mount Kilimanjaro with a fast track back down to the finish. This was the first time I had ever entered a competitive race and really enjoyed it. My goal was to finish under 2 hours. So, I was thrilled with an unofficial time of 1:48:27.
After the run, it was time for worship at Baptist Bible Church - Kilimanjaro where Pastor Ernesti Mlembezi graciously invited me to preach. The message??? The Christian's Marathon. It is always a joy to preach to these folks. The song service was lively and inspiring. By the time I climbed into the pulpit my heart had already been blessed and fixed upon Christ.The thrust of the message was to encourage God's people to stay in the race and finish their course. There were so many illustrations that I was able to incorporate, having just finished the 1/2 marathon.

Brother BJ took care of the services in Kingereka, and said they enjoyed a profitable Sunday. In a meeting to discuss the needs of a widow lady in our church, one of the church members suggested that we begin a benevolence fund. What a blessing! Now we need to incorporate that into the church budget.

Thanks for your prayers... You are appreciated!

Posted by Greg at 9:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)