XTerra Update

A bill from Orr Nissan, and the check that paid the bill.

Dear Friends,
This picture is a bill from Orr Nissan in Shreveport, Louisiana. It covers a timing belt, water pump, heater core, and coolant overflow hose along with enough labor to tear it down and put it back together again. The check that covers the bill, literally and figuratively, was made possible through your generosity.

On July 10 I posted our first request online for help. Unemployment stinks and unemployment in East Texas without a working vehicle is impossible. We could have sold the vehicle to get a new one, but that would have netted us about $1,500 to buy something and it's not 1988 anymore. You can't even get a wreck in Marshall for that kind of money.

This is where I don't know how many of you joined us in prayer that we might get the help we need. Prayers were answer. Twenty-three of you decided to lend us a financial hand via the PayPal route. Your generosity has provided $2,500.00. Four others mailed us checks totaling $350.00. We also received another $350.00 in cash from four other people. This comes to... you guessed it... $3,200.00.  That was more than close enough to the total needed to pay the bill to make me dance in the streets.

When I posted this good news on Facebook, I also shared thanks and praise to God. Then Moishe Sachs, a friend from Santa Fe Trail Elementary School, wrote,  "Maybe more than is apparent; the check is made out to Orr (light in Hebrew) & Nissan, from the word in Hebrew meaning miracle, ness." Moishe is right, this is a miracle from the Light of God. Amen.

He also noted how glorious it is that an observant Jew and a progressive Presbyterian can get together and praise God. Amen Moishe, amen. God has blessed us through you. God bless all of you who helped.

Of course that's not all we need...

We still need another $1,000.00 for a tune up, but that's not urgent. That's not going to keep us off the road.

Another thing we need is a job. Friends, I think I've proven I'm not too proud to beg. I need a job. If you have any leads or friends with leads for someone with a bachelor's in business, two master's degrees, ten-plus years in Higher Education and over seven in ministry (and five in the "hospitality industry") I would love to talk to you.

If you want to help financially, the link is still active. (Still not a tax dedutable contribution.) Click the "Donate" button  and enter paandresen@aol.com when it asks for "To (Their email address)"



If you have a line on a job, email me at PAAndresen@aol.com. We can arrange phone contact or even lunch from there.

In the meantime, praise God and thank you for your help

Affirmation

There are days when it seems that nothing I say or do matters a lick in this world. Sometimes, on those days, I yell at the universe to see if anybody is listening. In the internet age this usually saying something or sharing something on Facebook or on my blogs.

Some days the universe answers and some days it doesn't. That's just the way it is. Then there are the days when the universe yells back at you. I've never had one of those days, but I have friends and acquaintances who know that feeling way too well. One friend wrote a blog post asking the world why private citizens need automatic and assault weapons at all. Believe me, the universe yelled back that day.

But sometimes, sometimes it's not a scream but a whisper that makes it worth while.

I preached at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church on July 14th. St. Andrew recently lost their pastor and until recently were seeking an interim pastor. I was among a number of local pastors who filled the pulpit during the process. So walking down the hallway on that Sunday morning, a teenager came up to me, gave me a big hug around the neck, and said, "Oh good, you're my favorite."

I posted the girl's comment on Facebook and a friend from Junior High wrote, "It was like God sent someone to let you know He knows." This made me smile almost as much. No yelling at the universe, just a simple word from a teenager, and the love of God welcomes me saying, "You're doing what I want you to do. Keep it up. You don't need to shout."

Thanks Megan. Thanks Debbie. Some days I don't think anything I do matters. Other days I find out that it does matter. God bless you all.

We Need Your Help

Dear Friends,

Yesterday (July 9) afternoon I was leaving the airport in Shreveport with two friends who were returning to Marshall from a wedding. The moment the XTerra left the airport grounds there was a pop and a hiss and the temperature gauge spiked. It wasn't a good moment. So I changed lanes and pulled into the AVIS/Hertz lot not a block away. That was a good moment.

To make a long story shorter, I got the car to the shop (Thanks State Farm Tow Coverage) last night and this morning (July 10) I got the diagnosis. To get the car running again will cost $1710.00. This amount will replace the timing belt, water pump, and coolant bypass hose. To get it running well will cost an additional $1,000. This covers a tune up and serpentine belt.

Our XTerra on a better day.

Now here's where a big problem becomes an even bigger problem. Those of you who know us know that the congregation in Marshall has stopped meeting. To reduce expenses Marie and I have moved from the house we were renting into a room with a former member of First Pres-Marshall. I am seeking a new call, a process which can take a year and longer in Presbyterian Circles. I am also looking for work in Chaplaincy and higher education. I have been filling pulpits in Grace and Pines Presbytery (Many thanks to those congregations who have invited me to preach!) but this barely meets our short term needs.

As for asking the Presbytery for funds, I was told that since they helped cover dental work for Marie (they were very generous) they are not able to help.

We have about $400.00 dollars in the bank today, but that's earmarked for cover daily expenses like rent, medicines (Marie's meds are both abundant and expensive), and health insurance. Pastors are not eligible for unemployment, but we are on Food Stamps so we have dived into those possibilities to keep us afloat. Marie is unemployable because of a disability and is in the process of compiling documents to file for Social Security Disability. I'm giving you an awful lot of information because friends, we need your help.

I have established a PayPal account to help us cover these car expenses. I'm asking for your prayer and financial help. Any amount will help, no amount is too small. I also hope that our pastor friends will consider donating from congregation benevolence funds.

Like everyone knows, living in a small town, seeking work locally and nationally, and continuing to serve God, without a car we are hamstrung. It may not be impossible to live without a vehicle, but we can get more done with one. We thank you for your love and your prayers. And we appreciate your support.

JULY 15 UPDATE: When it rains it poors. I just got a call from the shop with more bad news. The heater core is cracked. Replacing it will add an additional $1,112 to the cost of the repairs in addition to the $1,700 for the timing belt, water pump, and coolant bypass hose. All told, with tax, the updated cost is $3.164.89.

Marie and I praise God and thank those who have contributed so far. The PayPal appeal has brought in $2,200.00 plus another $350.00 in cash dropped off personally. I have also been told there are a couple of checks in the mail that haven't made it to Marshall yet. This means we still need $600.00 to cover the major expense and then there is the tune up. We continue to thank you for your prayers and support.

In Christ,
Paul and Marie Andresen

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or follow this link and enter paandresen@aol.com when it asks for "To (Their email address)"

MUST BE SAID: I am not a church. I am not a charitable institution. I an not a 401(c)(3) organization. I can offer no tax relief for your donation. And is with all of my blog posts, this request is not affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in particular or any other organization in general. This is a personal request. Thank you and God bless.

Racial Equality, the Fight Continues in Even the Smallest Corners

If you are a regular follower of my blogs you know that I live in Marshall, Texas. The civil rights history of Marshall is long and storied. It is said the sit-in was invented here. 

At the Paramount Theater, if you were black during the eras before the 1960s, you walked past the front theater door where whites entered and rounded the corner to buy your ticket. You walked a steep flight of steps to enter and sat in the "Buzzard's Roost." Blacks weren't allowed to sit with whites, obvious in Jim Crow Marshall, but blacks weren't even allowed to enter with whites. CORE founder James L. Farmer Jr. who grew up in Marshall was so incensed that he went to Washington in 1941 to fight for civil rights.

The 1949 film "Pinky" became the subject of a tremendous battle when the city fathers decided it could not be shown in Marshall because the picture depicts "(1) a white man retaining his love for a woman after learning that she is a Negro, (2) a white man kissing and embracing a Negro woman, (3) two white ruffians assaulting Pinky after she has told them she is colored."The cinema owner was convicted of violating the ruling and was fined $200. He appealed the conviction all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court where he eventually won his appeal.

I mention this because Marshall Cinema is showing "White House Down" this week. It's the story of Channing Tatum saving the President of the United States played by Jamie Foxx from home grown terrorists. To the right you will see how it's posted on the Marshall Cinema website (as of July 6, 2013 at 10:30 am).

As you can see, this movie evidently doesn't star Jamie Foxx. It stars Maggie Gyllenhaal. Really? Yes, she's in the movie and she's important to the action but she isn't the star of the show. It's Tatum and Foxx, and for one reason or another Jamie Foxx isn't on the bill. 

Even in the smallest corners of our nation and our cybernation, discrimination exists. There is no other reason I can imagine leaving Jamie Foxx off of their web page. Do people not know? Are people so afraid of Jamie Foxx that even though his picture is on the page his name dare not be listed? Is Maggie Gyllenhaal a bigger draw? 

I find it hard to consider, but not so hard to believe, that even in the quietest moments, in the smallest corners of the internet, this fight has to continue.

Thanks to the Shreveport Times, http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20080217/LIVING/802160309/On-trail-history-Marshal-Texas-offers-black-heritage-tour

and Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinky_(film)