Posted: September 11

Update to concerned friends.I slept much of the night while the wind and rain came sideways until 4:30 when Rita awakened me so we could make coffee (a must have) while we still had power. It turned out to be an unnecessary awakening as we still have power at 9:54 AM. It's rather amazing because everyone I've called to check on is out of electricity and has been since the early morning hours. I just tell folks that our generator is out of this world but you can't buy it at Home Depot - it's a gift! Our congregation all seem to be in good shape. I just looked at the weather radar and the worst winds and rain are literally going around Madison hitting east, west and north of us. Amazing. We had a wonderful service yesterday morning. The Lord awakened me at 3 AM and I wrote a new sermon entitled "Our God Is An Awesome God" - not an original title but sure seemed to fit. I've been preaching through Romans 1:18-32 and the title of that message originally scheduled to be preached yesterday was "Abandoned By God." Somehow that did not seem the right sermon to preach for this occasion. So, we are doing well. A curfew is in effect until 2 PM today so we will stay indoors even as the wind and rain continue. As we all love to affirm - God is good, all the time. Pray for our brothers and sisters and fellow citizens further south. They didn't fare so well - especially south Florida and we have a number of churches along both coasts. Thank you for your prayers. Deeply appreciated.

Posted: September 09

Here is the latest from the National Weather Center out of Tallahassee... Hurricane Watch Weather Updated: Sep 08 11:12PM Issued by the National Weather Service For Madison County, Florida HURRICANE WATCH IS IN EFFECT ...HURRICANE WATCH IN EFFECT... A HURRICANE WATCH MEANS HURRICANE WIND CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE SOMEWHERE WITHIN THIS AREA AND WITHIN THE NEXT 48 HOURS * LOCATIONS AFFECTED - MADISON * WIND - LATEST LOCAL FORECAST: EQUIVALENT STRONG TROPICAL STORM FORCE WIND - PEAK WIND FORECAST: 50-65 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 75 MPH - WINDOW FOR TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS: EARLY MONDAY MORNING UNTIL EARLY TUESDAY MORNING - CURRENT THREAT TO LIFE AND PROPERTY: HIGH - EMERGENCY PLANNING SHOULD INCLUDE A REASONABLE THREAT FOR HURRICANE FORCE WIND OF 74 TO 110 MPH OF EQUIVALENT CATEGORY 1 TO 2 INTENSITY. - TO BE SAFE, AGGRESSIVELY PREPARE FOR THE POTENTIAL OF EXTENSIVE WIND IMPACTS. EFFORTS SHOULD NOW BE UNDERWAY TO SECURE ALL PROPERTIES. - DANGEROUS AND LIFE-THREATENING WIND IS POSSIBLE. FAILURE TO ADEQUATELY SHELTER MAY RESULT IN SERIOUS INJURY OR LOSS OF LIFE. - POTENTIAL IMPACTS: EXTENSIVE - MAJOR DAMAGE TO FRAME BUILT HOMES, WITH SOME EXPERIENCING PARTIAL ROOF OR WALL COLLAPSE. NUMEROUS WINDOWS AND GARAGE DOORS WILL FAIL, LEADING TO ADDITIONAL STRUCTURAL DAMAGE. MOBILE HOMES SIGNIFICANTLY DAMAGED, WITH MANY DESTROYED. DAMAGE INCREASED BY LARGE PROJECTILES. LOCATIONS MAY BE UNINHABITABLE FOR DAYS TO WEEKS. - NUMEROUS LARGE TREES SNAPPED OR UPROOTED WITH ROADWAY SIGNS BLOWN OVER. - SOME PRIMARY AND MANY SECONDARY ROADS ARE IMPASSIBLE DUE TO DEBRIS. - SIGNIFICANT POWER AND COMMUNICATION OUTAGES; POTENTIALLY LASTING FOR WEEKS. * FLOODING RAIN - LATEST LOCAL FORECAST: - PEAK RAINFALL AMOUNTS: ADDITIONAL 4-8 INCHES, WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS - CURRENT THREAT TO LIFE AND PROPERTY: ELEVATED - EMERGENCY PLANNING SHOULD INCLUDE A REASONABLE THREAT FOR MINOR FLOODING WHERE PEAK RAINFALL TOTALS ARE NEAR AMOUNTS CONDUCIVE FOR LOCALIZED FLASH FLOODING AND RAPID INUNDATION. - TO BE SAFE, PREPARE FOR THE POTENTIAL OF LIMITED FLOODING RAIN IMPACTS. - LOCALIZED FLOODING IS POSSIBLE. IF FLOOD RELATED WATCHES AND WARNINGS ARE ISSUED, HEED RECOMMENDED ACTIONS. - POTENTIAL IMPACTS: LIMITED - LOCALIZED HEAVY RAINFALL MAY RESULT IN FLOODING OF LOW LYING AREAS, NECESSITATING BASIC PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT VULNERABLE STRUCTURES. - RIVERS AND ASSOCIATED TRIBUTARY CREEKS AND STREAMS WILL RISE AND APPROACH BANKFULL LEVELS. RUNOFF WILL INCREASE WATER LEVELS IN AREA HOLDING PONDS AND DRAINAGE DITCHES, REDUCING STORAGE CAPACITY TO ABSORB FUTURE RAINFALL. - ISOLATED FLOODING IN LOW LYING AREAS WILL MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT. PONDING OF WATER IN LOW LYING AREAS MAY RESULT IN BRIEF ROAD CLOSURES. * : NWS TALLAHASSEE - HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/TALLAHASSEE

weather.gov

Posted: September 07

We will gather together to worship our God & King this Sunday, September 10, as Irma is not expected to show herself in our area until Sunday evening and on into Monday. However, we WILL NOT have our Sunday evening service as we anticipate the weather slowly deteriorating throughout the day. Here is the outline for the sermon as we continue our study of Romans 1:18-32 ... ABANDONED BY GOD The Essence of Man’s Sinfulness * * * Text: Romans 1:24-25 I. THE WHY – is found in the word, “Therefore” 1. God graciously reveals Himself to man (19-20) 2. Man rejects God’s revelation (21) both in… - Natural Revelation (the revelation of God in His Creation) and in… - Special Revelation (the revelation of God in His Word) 3. Man rationalizes his rejection of God (22) 4. Man creates substitute gods & immerses himself in idolatry (23) II. THE WHAT – Man abandons God, so God abandons man by “giving them over” (24) LIFE TAKEAWAYS