Arkansas Wildlife







 As we enjoy the spring here in Arkansas, there is so much to see and praise God for. As I said earlier, Fred enjoys chasing the squirrels from the feeders. They usually just jump into a tree, and chatter and laugh at him.

The famous Arkansas Acrobatic squirrels

Dinner Time

The beauty of the songbirds at the feeder remind us of who created each and every one of us, in a unique and special way.

Even God's creatures find time for fellowship

the beauty of the color and song of the cardinals are my favorite

Even the noisy blue jay is graceful in flight and amazing in color.

As we drove along some of the winding country roads in rural Arkansas, we were awed as we always are by the simplicity of the area, as well as all of the wildlife and  gorgeous scenery. The deer did not seem startled by our presence, but were watchful, just as we should be watchful of our words and actions, that they may be pleasing to God.

Who's there?

We were so very lucky to see the last of the dogwoods blooming - a spring flowering tree here in Arkansas. How fabulous they are.

 
The Legend of the Dogwood
At the time of the crucifixion, the dogwood had reached the size of the mighty oak tree. So strong and firm was the wood that it was chosen as the timber for Jesus' cross.
     To be used for such a cruel purpose greatly distressed the dogwood. While nailed upon it, Jesus sensed this, and in his compassion said. "Because of your pity for my suffering, never again shall the dogwood tree grow large enough to be used for a cross. Henceforth, it shall be slender, bent, and twisted, and its blossoms shall be in the form of a cross–two long and two short petals.
     "In the center of the outer edge of each petal will be the print of nails. In the center of the flower, stained with blood, will be a crown of thorns so that all who see it will remember."

How do you greet the morning??  Do you say "Good Lord, it's morning" or "Good morning, Lord!!! This is the day the Lord has made - let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Our Fathers Day

Since we have been in Arkansas, we have attended our home church, Prairie Grove Christian Church. http://www.gotopgcc.com/ to check it out. The sermons have been about Godview - our view of God as each of us has a specific view of God in our lives. This last week was so awesome - when God looks at you He doesn't see just a super-sinful human that He is disappointed in. He sees His child that He loves and He sees who you could become. We all need to remember that when we sin, God does not desert us, but forgives and gives us another chance to prove our love and faith in Him. We are so blessed to have Chaplain Maloney in Texas for our winter teachings and our ministers Vance Eubanks and Matt Tibbit here in Arkansas to lead us and help us to know what God wants and expects from us, As we soon head to Wisconsin for a month, we will miss the familiar and comfortable church settings, but will find where God leads us to worship there.

Meet a couple of our spiritual leaders

Dennis & Sally Maloney

Dennis and his wife, Sally, have been with missions for almost 4 decades and bring an understanding of the resort and leisure industry to campgrounds; they also have extensive experience in financial planning, ranch management and missions coordination.
When asked about their greatest need right now they replied, "One of our needs, a new 'rig' was presented to us in Branson, MO in November of 2004. Now we can travel where God requires. Our greatest need now? I guess I would have to say, the fields are white for harvest and we need people to help harvest - are you ready to serve?" 

In the winter months, Dennis serves the Rio Grande Valley at Alamo REC VEE Rv Resort as their Chaplain. 

During the rest of the year, Dennis and Sally travel to where there is an administrative need for CRM, places such as - Missouri, Colorado, Iowa, etc.

Senior Minister - Vance Eubanks
Vance and his wife, Lynda have been serving Prairie Grove Christian Church since 2001. They have two children, Miles and Lyndsey. From Northwest Arkansas, Vance graduated from Rogers High School in 1981.  He continued his education at Ozark Christian College where he graduated in 1985.   Vance likes to spend time with his family or you can find him riding his road bike, running, or hiking.  Vance has a real heart for seeing Northwest Arkansas won to Christ! 

Favorite Scripture:  II Timothy 2:10-21
Leisure Activity:  Bicycling, running, and hiking
Person I admire:  The one who endures great hardship and continues to see God at work in their life.
Favorite Author:  Chuck Colson
Favorite food or restaurant:  Anything Italian
Book I'd Recommend:  Primal by Mark Batterson
Favorite Vacation Destination:  Hawaii
If I could meet one famous person (besides Jesus) it would be:
 The Apostle Paul

Mother's Day

We celebrated Mother's Day here in Arkansas with our two Arkansas daughters (the other two are Wisconsin daughters). There is such beauty in the area as well as the wildlife here in Arkansas this time of year. Fred spends a lot of time scaring the squirrels away from the feeder as I just watch the beautiful songbirds. God has such a wonderful imagination to create so many living creatures. And we are so very blessed to be able to sit and enjoy them.

Our 4 daughters - from the back left: Chandra,(oldest), Christine (youngest), Second row from the left: Connie ( #3 and only blond), and Brenda #2 who recently lost her husband.
And of course, proud Mama and Papa in the front.

Our two daughters Christine and Brenda, are as different yet as alike as two sisters can be. Both are loving, sincere, compassionate, and that is where the likeness ends! Christine is an awesome cook, while Brenda only has three things she cooks - cheesecake, lasagna, and deviled eggs. And she does miraculous things with them. Wherein Christine is an innovative, totally great cook in everything (perhaps inherited from my chef father?). For Mother's Day she asked for my request - it was this unbelievable meat loaf - unimaginable flavor (using a variety of herbs), stuffed with mozzarella cheese and Canadian bacon. Fresh strawberry pie for dessert - sorry you missed it. We spent the day together just enjoying each others company, and actually reminiscing about things past. God is so good to us.

In Memory

Roy Eugene  (Gene) Crosswhite  1960-2011

This last Saturday, April 30, we celebrated the life of Roy Eugene (Gene) Crosswhite, husband of our daughter Brenda who went home to the Lord on January 17 of this year. We held the service at the beautiful St. Catherine's Bell Gable Chapel in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is a little chapel ( only seats 40 people) in a gorgeous setting with beautiful flowers, a bubbling stream, and all of God's creation abound. Jim Newberry, a wonderful Christian friend and retired minister, officiated with a very moving time of reflection. The most amazing part of the week-end was that all of our daughters, their spouses, and all of their children were in attendance, including Gene's children and grandchildren from a former marriage. It was a time of healing and bonding for us all. It was really quite a feat to gather them all here, as some came from Alabama, North Carolina, and Wisconsin.

St. Catherine's Bell Gable Chapel



A reflection spot on the grounds




the soft murmur of the water added to the serenity of the day

  Most of the family members were in Arkansas already on Friday, when our daughter, Christine, opened her home for a home made biscuit and gravy breakfast.

Biscuits and gravy for 24 people

Later that afternoon we all met at the Battlefield Park for family pictures, which was my number one request.




Our 4 daughters and spouses, 6 grandchildren, and us.  I am holding a picture of Gene.

 Again, Christine hosted a family cook-out at her house, with turkey, beef, pork, and bratwurst grilled and smoked by our son-in-law, Scott, who does a magnificent job. The girls planned and surprised us with a 50th anniversary celebration ( real date is May 27) wiith a beautiful cake and a specially made book of our life (techie guru Cristine did the work with advice from the other three) !!

Smell the food roasting!

Anniversary cake - chocolate and yellow

 Another son-in-law brought his karaoke machine, for an evening of fun and laughter. We all felt Gene's presence with us as he would have been in the midst of the fun.The Lord has blessed us with a loving family who are always there for each other, regardless of the distance.

Aunt Connie and Katie harmonizing

Both days presented us with beautiful weather, and time to bond, love, grieve, and praise God for all He has provided us as a family.