4:45 AM – Wake to radio-alarm. Reset alarm for Noël at 6:15. Go to my study to pray.

5:45 AM – Meditate once more over the morning message and the “welcome to worship” and the “call to worship.”

6:45 AM – Shave, dress, and head for breakfast.

7:00 AM – Eat with the family, read Global Prayer Digest and the 11th chapter of Mark. Pray together.

7:35 AM – Walk to church (singing my new verses to the morning hymn).

7:50 AM – Meet with Dean, Brad, David M., and the quartet in the choir room to go over the service and pray.

8:00 AM – Final meeting in the prayer room before the first service for prayer with David M. and Brad.

8:15 AM – Worship and preach three times until 12:30 PM.

12:30 PM – Talk with new people in the visitors’ reception.

1:05 PM – Ride home to change clothes for the Junior/Senior High Picnic.

1:45 PM – Finally find Picnic in Como Park. Eat good food with great friends.

2:15 PM – Head home to change clothes for visitation with Rollin Erickson.

3:00 PM – Spend a great two hours with Rollin visiting Eric Tysk, Ann Anderson, Franklin Nelson, and Carl Peterson.

5:15 PM – Sit in the kitchen and talk with Noël about the day and the evening and the visits and the coming days.

6:00 PM – Eat supper (cereal, peanut butter, apples) with the family and Oscar Huerta (who lives downstairs; Kathi was out visiting).

6:45 PM – Gather in the living room as a family; spend 45 minutes reading and talking about what God is doing in the church around the world—vibrant church in Mozambique after 14 years of Communist repression which is now loosening up; new effort of Operation Mobilization to re-evangelize Europe with 432 teams of young people; incredible openness in the USSR to Bible distribution and possibly publication; burgeoning third world missionary force; and the exciting story of Bruce Olson’s (Bruchko) 9-month captivity by the guerrillas in Colombia, and how he led many to Christ and persevered in faith and was released. We all prayed for these great things and gave thanks to God for his mighty works around the world. “Fruit of the lips” was offered to the Lord!

7:30 PM – Little boys off to bed. I gather my materials for teaching the Perspective Course in San Diego tomorrow night (Monday).

9:15 PM – Enter some wonderful answers to prayer in my journal.

9:30 PM – Write this STAR article.

10:15 PM – With a heart full of thanks to God head to bed.

Finding the new rhythm with you,

Pastor John