From the Home Place

August 12, 2026

At 4 a.m. the temperature is 59 degrees, supposedly not to get over 81 for a high today, with a chance of some thunderstorms this afternoon. We shall see how all of that plays out. According to AccuWeather’s long-range forecast, yesterday was the last above 90 degree day of this year, I’m not putting much stock in their forecasting ability.

Yesterday was a tough day around here. The Lord called a dear friend home. Though my heart was sad that I didn’t get to see Todd one more time on this side, I’m excited for him and his family that we all know he is walking with Jesus today!

I figure when the Apostle Paul stated that “to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord,” he clearly stated that the moment a believer’s life ends, their eternity with Jesus begins! I sure wouldn’t wish my friend back because of that amazing truth.

I firmly hold onto the truth that “Jesus wept” at the grave of His friend Lazarus because Jesus knew what He was calling Lazarus back from, eternal joy. I wasn’t very far into this thing called “walking with Jesus” before I realized that for the Christ follower there are a lot of worse things than death. Because Jesus has defeated death, it is no longer an enemy of the believer, it’s just what we could call a rite-of-passage!

So for today, I continue to pray for the man’s widow and family who have to continue on without him there to help in their journey. Yet Todd taught all of us that if we look for the best in every situation, we are sure to find it eventually. This dear man showed me how to “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice!” Thanks my friend! Though I will miss his welcoming smile, I would never ask for him back.

I reckon when my graduation day comes, most folks will tell the Lord, “You can keep him, and good luck.” Yep, when our day comes to leave this ‘ol ball of dirt behind, I sure pray that it will be a great day for you as a follower of Jesus Christ. You see, it is one thing that is guaranteed about this life, we all get a turn at death. Make sure that you know Jesus Christ as Savior before that moment comes and marks a date on your headstone, please.

Miss Deb is on an airplane headed back home, I’m traveling to Cheyenne to see the “ticker doc.” I’m sure your day is busy as well. Remember, “we all run, run, run, and then we die.” Be sure to walk with Jesus here and there.

Looking forward to graduation day with you, Neal

August 11, 2026

Good morning! It’s a hot 61 degrees here at 4 a.m. As the temperature edges toward 96, there is a small possibility of rain this afternoon. Several dry weeks have quickly passed us by, hopefully there is some moisture in the near future?

Like the rest of you, our summer has been extremely busy with house projects, traveling for a variety of reasons, attending funerals and visiting with pastors in several states about new ministry opportunities. We have also enjoyed the many visits from friends and relatives over the last couple of months.

On top of all of the busy, I’ve been in a writer’s slump. With the extreme heat, drought and busy schedule, there just isn’t much of anything exciting to write about around this outfit. We seem to be stuck in the “same ‘ol” pattern at this time.

Yesterday, I did get to take a bit of a break when I went south of town to visit with a young man as we checked windmills. It was very enjoyable to beat around in the cab of an old pickup as we made our way across the pastures. The conversation was pleasant and relaxing, but then it was time to get back to work here at home.

I’m working on a project that requires installing a good-sized fan; but the problem is that I can’t find the mounting brackets for said fan. I guess you could say that makes my situation plum biblical; you know like Luke 15 where Jesus taught about the Lost Sheep, Lost Coin and Lost Son. I’ve been spending a good batch of time chewing upon these parables lately. I’m discovering that loosing stuff must be a really common occurrence, even back in biblical times.

So often, folks will speak of the death of a loved one something like this, “On such-and-such a date, we ‘lost’ my dad.” Now I know this is a common phrase, but it really isn’t very accurate. We didn’t lose the person, they died, plain and simple.

I mean, chew on it for a moment, lost things are looked for, sought after, like my mounting brackets. I’ve spent a right smart amount of time looking for those buggers, and I’ll spend more time today on the search, but as far as dad goes, I know right where to go to find his earthly remains.

When a loved one dies, they are not lost, they have passed from this life into eternal life. However some folks truly are lost, but they are still walking on this ‘ol ball of dirt. And though we no longer have influence in the life of a deceased loved one, we can still have meaningful influence in the life of a lost person by the way we live our remaining days on this earth. As Christ followers we need to be mindful that those who do not know Jesus yet, are watching our lives and listening to our conversations.

So, for today, let’s all make an effort to have positive influence upon the life of a truly “lost” person, and maybe even make a trip to the cemetery to remember when. Oh ya, you could also pray that I find those lost brackets, THANKS!

Reaching the lost with you, Neal

August 5, 2026

Good morning Friends! Did you feel that? I have no idea about at your house, but here in Lusk, Wyoming the thermometer reas 49 degrees at 4 a.m.! Our first sub-50 degree reading for several months now. Though today is predicted to reach 86, Fall is sure enough on its way, hopefully with lots of moisture?

I have to wonder, if this part of the world has always experienced such temperature swings? I remember many years ago, we had a 86-degree temperature swing in one 24-hour period, smack in the middle of winter. We went to bed with everyone and everything frozen, and by the next morning we had shed our coats and broke a sweat while pitching hay onto the hay wagon. By the next day were all gained several pounds from the heavy coats we were wearing in an attempt to stay warm once again..

You see my friends, it would appear that many of us experience such “temperature swings” in our spiritual lives as well. Most likely, you too have had a season of running ice-cold spiritually, and then all of a sudden, you experience a spiritual heat flash! Or, more often than not, the swing is from hot to cold???

Such spiritual temperature swings are quite possibly normal, unless one is constantly in fellowship with our Heavenly Father. I just finished reading the biblical account of the man named Job. Emotionally and physically, Job experienced a freezing temperature swing that I pray none of us ever have to experience. Yet, with the loss of his children, his livestock and his health, Job still remained at a consistent “hot” temperature in his faith. Even when his wife and friends encouraged him to cut ties with God, Job clung to a strong faith in God’s ability.

Could it be that our spiritual temperature swings have to do with our lack of focus? It seems to me that when we focus upon how our circumstances are impacting us, our spiritual temperature plumets. Yet, when regardless of the circumstances, we keep our eyes fixed upon the Author and Perfector of our faith, we maintain a healthy spiritual temperature.

As the old saying goes, “Never measure God by your circumstances, but always measure your circumstances by God.” It really is a matter of proper focus and fully believing that “God has got this!” As we all know worry does not ever change our circumstances, yet hopefully we also know that fully trusting God in all ways at all times changes how we deal with those circumstances. Most often, God does not change the circumstances until our faith draws us ever closer to Him; and then quite often He changes the circumstances, or at least, God changes our view of the situation!

Perhaps that is why David prayed, “Change my heart ‘O God.” You see, most often God allows certain circumstances to take place within our lives in an effort to reveal the depth of our faith in Him. If my faith is cold, worry wins. If my faith is hot, worry is replaced with a peace that surpaces anything this world has to offer.

The next time any of us experiences a drastic spiritual temperature swing, may we draw ever closer to God, agreeing with Him about who the Bible says God really is. And by the way, another layer of prayer and confession is a great way to warm up on a spiritually cold day!

Keeping a warm focus upon Jesus with you, Neal

August 3, 2026

Good morning! As you probably know, it never did cool off last night after the severe heat of 105 yesterday. However, we have a west wind this morning and that usually brings cooler weather. As I looked at the forecast, I noticed today’s high will be around 86 with winds 20-47 mph and a low of 49 this evening. Tomorrow’s high is forecasted to be 75, but then back into the 80’s and 90’s the rest of the week. Hopefully you can enjoy the cool while it is here?

I hope your yesterday was as enjoyable as ours was. At 10 a.m. Miss Deb taught the Children’s Story at our home church, while I went to a neighboring church to preach. At 11 we both flew ten miles east of Lusk to participate in services at a great little church in the city of Node, Wyoming!

It was refreshing to see close to 20 people in a circle for the Sunday School hour, and then when we arrived, I was blessed to share a message with these great folks. You know, sometimes it is nice to step back to a simple and close-knit time of fellowship and worship. As the saying goes, it’s always good to go back home.

You see friends, that was the kind of church where Miss Deb and I committed our lives to Jesus. We would sit around in a circle, where everyone was involved in the learning process. But then as numbers increased and more teachers were trained, then we went to the lecture style where a teacher talks, and everyone listens. Sometimes bigger numbers are not a real blessing.

I often think back to what it must have been like when Jesus and those first disciples first started; before following Jesus became popular? I see those 12 guys and Jesus sitting around a campfire, talking, laughing and quite likely singing a new song that Jesus would teach them. Oh, the questions that must have been asked in those early days???

Today, during most adult Sunday School classes, for someone besides the teacher to ask a question is often considered inappropriate. And I have to ask “Why?” As teachers of the Bible, Miss Deb and I both know that it is risky to let anyone ask a question because that can lead to the person asking the question really wanting control of the class. We have both experienced such an event, regardless of if the question comes from a child or an adult. Yet there times that a well-formed question adds great value to the class.

Yet, I wonder, so how did Jesus keep His disciples on course? Or did He just let the questions and opinions run wild for a bit and then when He spoke, He spoke “as one having authority.” If the Holy Spirit doesn’t damper such conversations, it may just be time to close in prayer and enjoy some fellowship!

All I know is that it sure would have been fun to sit with Jesus and listen to His comments. Or perhaps we can still do that? When you read any of the Gospel accounts of the life of Christ, allow yourself to gather around the circle with Jesus and the other disciples. Listen, laugh and even cry with them as you hear the words of Jesus spoken directly to your group. May I suggest, don’t just read about biblical stories, insert yourself into the story.

Become an active participant, surround yourself with the circumstances and the people, and then allow the One who “speaks with authority” to lead the conversation as if you are the only person there with Jesus! Don’t be afraid to ask a question that pertains to the topic at hand and then listen as the Holy Spirit gives you an answer. Allowing the Bible to come alive is a great way to allow the Bible to live within you so that it can live through you!

Enjoying being in the circle with Jesus, with you, Neal

August 1, 2026

Good morning, dear friends. At 3 a.m. the temperature is a sweet 54 degrees. I reckon a feller had better soak some of that cool up for a while, it’s going to be another scorcher at 96 degrees for a high! We were blessed with a shot of rain last evening, but it also came with a lot of dry lightning which started several fires around our area. Our poor fire fighters are spread out thin as they try to battle several different blazes in many different kinds of terrain. Please pray for them!

Well, here we are looking August 1 right in the eye. Yep, the days will continue to be hot (104 on Sunday) and dry, but then there will be a few cooler days as well (74 on Tuesday), as we slip ever closer to Fall. Right now, those ‘ol snowballs sound good, but we will see how many of us are cheering about the cold come December? Or maybe we should just learn to appreciate whatever He sends us?

As I said earlier, my ‘ol Coffee dog and I started this day a tad before 3 a.m. I’m trying to get ready to travel 50 miles south to serve breakfast to a group of men gathering for a time of food, fellowship, song, and a biblical lesson. Please be in prayer for us as we get to minister to men hungry for a deeper walk with God.

I’m taking two of the young men with me, who I was blessed to get to mentor this past winter. One will lead the singing and share a bit about the value of mentoring, while the other young man will share his personal testimony and lead us in a lesson from God’s word.

In 1995, Dr. Howard Hendricks made the following comment, “It’s a fact of life that for every man willing to serve as a mentor, there may be a hundred men looking to be mentored.” Dr. Hendricks made that comment 31 years ago, and here we are today. As we attempt to figure out what to do with the average American male today, the need for mentors has exploded in our faces. It would seem that in today’s culture there is one man willing to mentor for every several hundred men who would like to be mentored. The American male is starving for someone to help him figure out what it means to be called “a man of God.”

In the Bible we read reports on the lives of men like Abraham, Moses, Joseph, Paul and Peter. I am of the strong opinion that those same types of men exist today, we just usually have to look deeper to find them; and we certainly have to get busy trying to help them develop into men who reveal the nature of Jesus Christ!

As I have written before, we have done a good job of advancing the cause of womanhood, but at the cost of emasculating most of the males of today’s society. We men have stood by and watched as a very confused culture has painted men as a blundering group of half-wits. If something goes well, women did that; yet if everything is wrong, men did that.

I’m not asking for equality, nor am I saying that the advancement of womanhood was wrong; I’m simply stating that biblically balanced men need to be a valued part of today’s society as well! It would appear that the Holy Spirit is leading me to finish out my earthly journey attempting to help men of all ages find a biblical balance to their roles within a very confused culture.

So, today, I and two young men who love Jesus will be investing our Saturday morning into helping a group of men understand what it looks like to be men of God who are mentoring others. We may not be a large army, but we serve a great-big God! It has been well stated that a revival starts with one. And if our Lord blesses, that one will soon become many such gatherings all around our great nation!

I would sure enough appreciate your prayers as we travel, share and challenge a group of men today. It will be a long, hot day, but we are praying that it will also be a very fruitful day! Please pray that many men will draw ever closer to their Heaven Father and choose to walk as His sons as we develop groups of mean who are willing to mentor men.

Reaching the confused culture with you, one changed life at a time, Neal

July 31, 2026

Good morning. A cool 53 degrees at daylight. Looking to score 91 for a high, with a 60% shot at some rain. With an East wind at 8 mph, it’s just cool enough to put goosie bumps on a feller’s hide. July may be closing down today, but it’s starting to feel a tad bit like Fall in the early mornings. One thing I know for sure, it sure enough makes good sleeping weather!

Yesterday, Miss Deb and I made the 200+ mile round trip to Casper and back. That’s the problem with living in the middle of “Now Where” Wyoming, it’s a long way to Anywhere from here. However, you would never know we live in a remote part of Wyoming by the amount of traffic that goes through this little town every day.

There are four highways that all meet in Lusk. Going north will take you into the Black Hills of South Dakota, going south will send you back to Denver, East drops you into Nebraska toward famous Fort Robinson, and west will let you see a lot of country before reaching Yellowstone National Park, or California if you have any likin’ to go that way. That’s why main street of this little town never sleeps, especially this time of the year.

You see, Sturgis Rally starts this weekend, so we have a steady flow of motorcycles screaming their way through town. Oh, and this is County Fair week, so the village is already full of folks. As busy as things are around town, a person would think that we live close to some big tourist attraction; but we don’t, we just live on the road to several tourist attractions.

That sounds a lot like life in general: This ‘ol ball dirt isn’t the big attraction; it’s just on the road to THE big attraction. You see friends, any time we get frustrated with the circumstances of this life, we should probably remind ourselves that we are just on the road that leads to heaven. Though this world is home to many amazing places, this world should never be considered to be our destination.

Wherever you live, it is just a camping spot where you get to stay for a bit, before you leave there to travel to the real destination. In Matthew, Chapters 3, 4 and 5, we read a common phrase, “the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” It’s not a million, zillion miles away, a portion of “the kingdom of heaven” is right here with you as a Christ follower. Because the Holy Spirit lives within and through you, God’s kingdom is “on earth as it’s in heaven.” Yet, this isn’t the end of the trip.

For each believer in Christ, the presence of the Holy Spirit working around us each day is just a “dim” picture of the joy we will experience in heaven! As enjoyable as it is to fellowship with other Christians at church, that is still a glimpse of what heaven will be like. As amazing as it is to open your Bible and to have the Holy Spirit enlighten your mind to biblical truth, that’s just a little look out the side-window of your vessel as you travel across this world, headed for the most amazing place ever!

So, as you travel through your area today, remember that as a Christ follower, you are on the road to glory; much like the hundreds of vehicles that will pass though Lusk on their way to one of the wonderful places around here. And by the way, don’t allow yourself to get extracted by the other neat places along the road, keep traveling to your eternal destination, using the Bible and the life of Jesus as your roadmap.

For you see my friend, the people traveling through Lusk all travel on wide roads, headed for their destination. How was it that Jesus said it, “For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” So, as you travel across this ‘ol ball of dirt, enjoy the scenery, enjoy the people you get to ride with, but you are not at your final destination yet. Stay on the “narrow” road that leads to eternity with Jesus. Rejoice and be glad!

Enjoying the trip with you, Neal

July 28, 2026

Greetings Friends! Within the last week, we have received more rain than we’ve had all summer; A little over a 1/2″ this week! We are very grateful for His kindness.

In 1 Peter 4:8 we read, “Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.” I find it interesting that Peter, guided by the Holy Spirit, writes, “Above all.” I would say that how we love one another is the top priority of things we can do as Christians. Could it be that it is impossible to “love one another” apart from the working of the Holy Spirit actively working within our spirit? As such, we have to be walking in the shadow of Jesus to really “love one another.”

Jesus said it this way, “They will know that you are My disciples by your love for one another.” We can go to church, we can do our devotions every day, we can give large sums of money to missionaries, but without love we are just making noise. In 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 we find the qualities of biblical love. Yet, even in this passage there seems to be a summary, “love never fails.” There are many other places where the Bible tells us that “love” is the top priority of the Christian faith.

So, how are we doing? Do we speak to “one another” with love. Even more importantly, do we speak about “one another” with love??? If the people around us know that we love Jesus because of the way we talk about “one another,” what do people around us think of Jesus? Does following Jesus change lives, or does it just keep us extra busy?

Back to 1 Peter 4:8, the second part of this verse states, “love covers a multitude of sins.” I can’t say for you, but I sure am glad that Jesus loves me because His love sure enough has covered a “multitude” of my sins! I wonder, because Jesus loves me enough to forgive my sins, maybe Peter is saying that I should allow that same love to flow through my life as I forgive those who have sinned against me? After all, love does “cover a multitude of sins.”

For today, how about we love someone else who isn’t all that lovable, just like Jesus loves us? After all, there are plenty of times that I’m not all that lovable myself, but He still loves me. The theme seems to be that whatever we have received from Jesus, we are supposed to pass along to someone else; and not just on Sunday!

Loving others as we have been loved with you, Neal