The other day, the amazing athletes that are participating in the Tour de France experienced "the cobblestones". On a good day this is a test of men and machine. This particular day it was wet and rainy making the cobblestones extra tricky to navigate. Some of the riders made it through without incident while others fell, bounced and slid their way over the ancient road paving. 

As I go down this road called life there have been times that I have come up on one of those curves. You know what kind of curve: A tight curve, it's raining, at night in the fog; oh, and its paved with cobblestones. It seems easy to go to God in those moments, crying out to him in a critical time of need. I hit one of those curves last week with my heart situation. There was a moment, a small moment, that I was a little scared. Actually there were a lot of little moments like that.

One of those moments was while I was waiting to be wheeled in to get my heart cath done. Two things happened that let me know that God was "on the job". The first was when I had just been parked in the waiting area.
Sensory overload:
>What's next?

>It sure is cold in here.
>Oh no, I think I may have to go to the bathroom.

>Hello, don't forget about me in here!

>Why are the curtains red in the cath lab?

>I'm cold.

>What is this going to be like?

>It sure is cold in here.

In the midst of all of that I began to hear something that quieted my mind. A familiar sound offering peace, security and hope. Some how the TV was changed to a channel that was playing contemporary Christian music that I play on the radio. What a change it made when I heard Matthew West, Third Day and I think Jeremy Camp was in there too.

The second thing that happened was that my doctor, Dr. Morris, came in to see me. He asked me a few questions and did some doctor scribble in my chart. Then he asked me if there was anything he could do for me. Without hesitation, I told him that he could pray for me. He said, "Alrighty" and stepped over to my gurney, grabbed my hand and proceeded to share one of the most special prayers that I have ever heard.

God was definitely there during my most recent wipe-out in life. But what about the everyday traffic jams of life? The everyday bumps in life's road that cause frustration, panic, pain and tears.

The same God that took time to weave together the wings of a gnat, create the Wyoming sunset and put the fish in the sea is the same God that watches over you and me. He is there in the big crashes on life's journey as well as the little

fender benders. We can find Him in the wave from a random stranger, a Facebook post from someone you haven't heard from in ages, even that "enjoy your day" from the lady behind the counter at the e-z mart. Yep, He is there in the BIG bad times and the every day bad times. This is a very good reason to trust him with everything.

The Heart Of The Matter (I know its a corny title)

Wow, what a crazy ride the past couple of days have been. Sunday night I woke up with a strange feeling in my chest. Nothing major, I thought, but still a little odd. It passed after about 15-20 mins and I was able to go back to sleep. The day progressed pretty close to normal until about 4:30 or so. The strange feeling in my chest returned. This time it did not go away so quickly. The “something is not right” alarms began to go off. I got up with Nancy and told her what was going on and within the hour we were in the Emergency Room. Six hours later I was admitted to the hospital. Something had shown up in the blood work. There was an elevation in some of the enzyme levels that they use as indicators for cardiac events. I was told that it was slight, but still enough to err on the side of caution. Additional blood work was scheduled and a stress test was ordered. The overnight tests were apparently a little more conclusive because Tuesday morning I was told that I was no longer having a stress test. I was to undergo a heart cauterization. I will admit to you there were a few tears as I evaluated my situation.

The day seemed to drag on as I waited for my procedure. Well, no, it did not seem to drag on, it did drag on. It was sometime in the 3:00 hour that I was finally taken down to the cath. Lab. What an experience that was!

During the procedure the doctor found several blockages. The severity and amount of the blockages was surprising to the doctor. I had 2 arteries with 90% blockage. I was living with high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes, and thought with my current level of exercise, taking note of how and what I was eating and medication that I was on the fairly healthy side of things. Nope. The two 90% blockages were treated; one with a stint and one with angioplasty. The rest is up to me and major lifestyle changes.

I would appreciate your prayer as my life’s journey takes a new direction. I am just glad that I am here to make the change.