THE GREATEST SERMON EVER PREACHED ON THE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT:


At 30,000' in an F-15. You never know how God will use your witness. Thanks, Cricket Renner.

WELCOME

Welcome to my website! Writing is my passion. I'd rather write than eat.

I’ve had an uncommon life with blessings far beyond my deserving. There have been bountiful showers of God’s grace in my growing season, still in progress. From a heartland farm through the Orient aflame to the Old World on nuke alert in a Cold War, at the tip of a supersonic spear—a single-seat jet fighter; then from the metropolitan madness of post-modern America and Europe through Florida’s slothful Suncoast and the Delectable Mountains of the Blue Ridge to a laid-back life on the road; from birth to rebirth enroute to Glory beyond; from incorrigible country kid by way of Top Gun and urban overachiever to mellow mountain man to full-time RV’er, I’m a blessed soul. (You may read the formal version of my life story on my bio page.)

I now have the time and inspiration to emulate the psalmist, to ponder and proclaim, with passion and plain English, all that a merciful God has done, is doing, will do for me and a fallen world, both desperately in need of his Amazing Grace. My Old Testament namesake speaks for the motivation of my heart: “…his word is in my heart like a fire…I am weary of holding it in; indeed I cannot” (Jeremiah 20:9b). If God is willing, some saints will find comfort and some sinners conviction from my feeble literary efforts. You’ll find a few of my favorite samples here. Check them out and see for yourself.

Grace and peace to you.

THE ISAIAH 6:3 TOUR: An Author's RV Travel Blog

The road less traveled. San Lorenzo Canyon, NM

Since December 1, 2008 and for the foreseeable future, we have been traveling fulltime in an RV. We call it The Isaiah 6:3 Tour, and what a wonderful life it is! The Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, quoted an angel in the throne room of GOD proclaiming, “Holy, Holy Holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” My bride of 44 years and I can testify to that truth. We see his glory at every point of the compass at every place on the map we have been in this beautiful country. That's a total of 120+ campsites in 27 states so far.


Home is wherever we park it. In this case, Catalina State Park near Tucson, AZ.

After roaming the globe in war and peace, riding limousines and corporate jets (and thinking I was actually worth every bit of that extravagance)and racing the rats down Wall Street, LaSalle Street, Pennsylvania Avenue, Threadneedle Street, the Champs de Elysées and the Rue de Lyon, Genève, I’m back on two-lane country roads again. I'm now the pokey ole codger who used to frustrate me when I was young and in a hurry. At our travel pace--less than a hundred miles average on moving days, with stops of 1-14 days, average 3--there’s ample opportunity for reading, writing, hiking, bird-watching and meditation on the magnificent manifestations of God’s amazing grace in his creation. We stick to the national and state parks, national and state forests, and Corps of Engineers lakes, detour to explore every target of opportunity that presents itself, and avoid freeways, big cities and commercial RV resorts as much as possible. We intend, God willing, to continue the Isaiah 6:3 Tour till the wheels come off the RV or one of us.

I post an Isaiah 6:3 Tour Position Report at least every weekend and Google Tracks of our position every time we move (see the Quick Links in the right side bar).You are welcome to follow along in our happiness.

Happiness. JD and Karen at Organ Pipes Cactus National Monument, AZ.

Grand Teton National Park, WY, from across Lake Jackson. Our favorite view in America so far.

Favorite sunrise (I miss nary a one), over Florida Bay from the end of the road in the southernmost tip of mainland Florida--Flamingo CG in Everglades NP.

If you see this through your windshield while driving some two-lane road in America, give us a HEARTY WAVE!

SELECTED WORKS

Short Works
Still the Noblest Calling
The Wall Street Journal op-ed column
Arrogance and Airplanes
The Tampa Tribune op-ed column
The Most Furious Sea Battle
Los Angeles Times op-ed column
Books
NO TIME TO WASTE
No Time To Waste is a chilling combat memoir, a gripping gospel story—to hell and back and glory beyond by God’s grace alone. It's a true tale of amazing grace at Pearl Harbor and Guadalcanal aboard the heavy cruiser USS San Francisco; under the South Pacific aboard the submarine USS Queenfish on all five victorious war patrols; over the Ho Chi Minh Trail in an F-100; and in the hearts of two veterans—cultural curmudgeons—long after their combat days were over.
"NO ONE..."
“No one…” is the unequivocal subject of six quotations by Christ in the book of John. They comprise the most important message that can enter the mind of man—how God saves sinners. His words are simple enough for a youth to grasp, profound enough to stagger the mind of an intellectual.
SON OF THUNDER
Duty. Honor. My country, right or wrong, drives the young fighter pilots of Dusty Squadron, from flack in the face above the A Shau Valley to the canned hellfire of napalm in the jungle to midnight gunfights over the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Top Gun F-100 pilot John Ellsworth, the impetuous Son of Thunder, is the most zealous of the lot, and he pays dearly. A story of redemption in a disastrous war that changed the American culture, and the awful price of heroism. A novel.

Quick Links