December 30-31

In the morning Thursday, I worked on the December issue of Gospel Gazette Online and on trying to set up a new online shopping cart. The license on the former shopping cart expired (quit working after December 23), and that version is no longer supported; it snuck up on me and has turned out to be a speed bump! Of course, the new shopping cart is not compatible with the old shopping cart; so, I am entering each of the 285 items individually. Even if we were able to import globally, the fields don't match up, etc. and would necessitate extensive adjustments individually. I'll be working on this for awhile!

Thursday afternoon (and evening), we made a trip to Starkville, MS to pick up a sink, etc. for the home repairs scheduled to commence again on Monday. Limited anything is available in Winona!

Friday, the weather was uncooperative. In the evening, on two different occasions, Rebecca, Bonnie and I huddled on the hallway floor as the weather radio warned of tornados coming through the area. That's how we spent New Year's Eve! Happily, Winona was spared any weather damage. Not to waste opportunities, I worked on the new shopping cart for the online store in the hallway — until the power went out, temporarily.

December 27-29

Feverishly working on The Voice of Truth International and miscellaneous tasks in the morning, all afternoon Bonnie, Rebecca and I worked on Rebecca's book. We conducted a "test" shortly after our arrival in Winona three years ago, comparing printing class study books in-house versus outsourcing the entire book. Well, three years later, we are still putting that "test" together. We established that we could save about $500 per title in production costs in-house, but we cannot produce nearly as good printed pages in-house, and we do not have sufficient time to devote to production in addition to all else we attempt to do. It has also been a challenge to keep aging equipment operational. I'll be very happy to get this job behind us; we need the space, among other things. We chose this week of the two weeks Rebecca is with us to have her help us try and get as much of this completed as possible. Over the years, we have sold or given away hundreds of copies of her book, What Makes Us Tick? A Study of Personality and the Bible.

We scored book spines in preparation for binding the pages together and bind a cover on them; when binding, the glue pushes up into the grooves, improving page retention. However, many of the books had to be cut apart first, then scored before binding. We essentially consolidated our mess and straightened the print shop. We moved the whole project along, but we still have about 17 hours of binding ahead of us (stretched out over weeks or months an hour or two here and an hour or two there).

We are not really wearing muzzles, just dust masks. After all the books are bound, we must trim each book on its top, bottom and face edge to complete production. We made some tablets from some scrap paper, too, which helped clean up some of our sprawl.

December 26

Bonnie, Rebecca and I worshipped in the morning with the West President church of Christ in Greenwood, MS and with the Elliott (MS) congregation in the evening.

December 25

Our daughter, Rebecca, taught a children's class at and worshipped two services with the Collierville church of Christ on Sunday the 19th. Afterward, she came to our home in Winona in time to attend worship with us at the Elliott congregation. We have enjoyed her visit (and work — we put her to work!). The three of us had a pleasant, quiet holiday together. The ladies prepared a modest, but delicious, special meal.

December 20-24

Tuesday, we unloaded and reloaded a tractor trailer. Three pallets of volume 66 of The Voice of Truth International magazine arrived, and we three, along with the Bates, Betty and her brother-in-law Clayton, transferred each box from the truck bed by hand and hand trucks to their destination in the periodical room of our warehouse/office. Next, we loaded 2,000 pounds of boxes of books on to two pallets on the bed of the truck; these books are bound for overseas via ship on the east coast. We are constantly receiving and shipping out books throughout our nation and the world, and when not involved in shipping or receiving, we are doing all the behind the scenes work required to keep all the publications in print. Of course, most weekends we are "on the road again" (as Bonnie's phone sounds off each time it rings) talking to congregations about the work stateside and abroad. (We have neither truck dock nor garage door, and most of the time the tractor trailers that deliver or pickup do not have lift gates.)

Finally, I not only completed the November issue of Gospel Gazette Online, but I selected (for a monthly fee, of course) an Internet service to deliver email notifications to our subscribers. Spam precautions make it difficult to use ordinary ISP's for such things as subscription lists.

December 19

Bonnie and I worshipped with the Elliott (MS) church of Christ. During Sunday morning Bible class, it was my pleasure to present Motivated by the Cross (PowerPoint) about our 2010 mission trips. For morning worship, I preached, "What Is Jesus's Plan for My Life"; that evening, I preached, "What Is the Mission of the Church?" These brethren support our labors monthly, for which we are thankful. The Elliott church of Christ is about 20 minutes north of Winona, MS just off U.S. 51.

Not having an appointment for Sunday, Bonnie and I worshipped with the Elliott (MS) church of Christ. Monday through Friday we worked on issue 67 of The Voice of Truth International by day and the November issue of Gospel Gazette Online by night. Interspersed throughout the weekdays and evenings was repair work being done at our residence (i.e., electrical work, attic insulation, etc.).

December 11

Since Saturday was supposed to be one of the warmer days expected in the foreseeable future, I finished winterizing the house outside, closing or making and affixing vent covers at the crawl space level, wrapping the turban on the roof and blowing most of the pine needles off the roof. As I was attempting to clean up some of the piles of pine needles on the ground, as a result of getting them off the roof, I was caught in the rain.

Sometimes we receive mail or email that encourages us in our efforts for the cause of Christ. At other times, brethren with whom we are conversing in our travels give us great encouragement. Immediately preceding our last trip abroad, children from the Walnut Grove Church of Christ in Benton, KY send us personalized greeting cards that they had made. Their teacher and they remembered us as we were about to leave the country again.

December 9-10

Thursday and Friday, Bonnie and I finished readying three books for publication. I was delighted to complete preparation of the School of Missions Study Guide on Thursday night.

At about 1:30 a.m. on Friday morning, I finished proofing for the final time Bonnie's book, Living Principles. Since we had work being done on the house, we didn't go to the office, but worked on our laptops in the living room. Bonnie put her book into the InDesign program. Friday, I also finished preparing a for publication a book entitled, Introduction to Christianity, by Wayne Barrier.

December 6

Bonnie and I departed Rebecca's home in Collierville for the two hour drive to Charleston, MS. This was the site of a one day lectureship hosted by the Charleston Church of Christ and Robert Rawson. Two of the speakers were graduates from Memphis School of Preaching, James Hill preaching in Euphora, MS and his father-in-law, Danny Butler, preacher for the Louisville, MS Church of Christ. After making a day of it, we returned to 705 Devine St. in Winona, MS.

December 5

Sunday morning, we traveled north from Rebecca's the two hours to the St. Joseph Avenue Church of Christ in Dyersburg, TN. We were wonderfully received, as always. Brother and sister Stacy treated us to a Chinese restaurant with as many or more food bars than I have ever seen. In addition to Chinese food there was a variety of typical American dishes, too. The fellowship and meal together was delightful. Afterward, we headed back to Rebecca's home to stay the night in preparation for an appointment south of Memphis in Mississippi on Monday.

December 1-4

Highlights of Wednesday through Saturday include the arrival of Don & Sylvia Petty from Texas on Thursday. Bonnie prepared an excellent and tasty meal for the four of us plus Betty Choate and her mother, Theola Burton. The Pettys and conversed with Bonnie and me until after midnight — as we often do when we have the occasion to be together. Friday, Jerry and Paula Bates, Don and Sylvia Petty, and Bonnie and I lunched at the World Evangelism office. After eating, we formed a convoy of three vehicles to make our way to Double Springs, AL. Friday evening, we six ate at the Italian restaurant in Double Springs, treated by Jerry and Paula.

Saturday, the Double Springs Church of Chris hosted the next session of the School of Missions was conducted from 8:30 a.m. through 2:30 p.m. Don Petty was the primary speaker this time.

Betty Choate was not with us in Double Springs since she took French books to Nashville, TN and Searcy, AR, from which locations they would be sent to various countries overseas. The Bates were headed another direction, the Petty's back to our house as a wayside stop on the way back to Texas and Bonnie and I headed for Rebecca's house, in preparation for a Sunday appointment in Dyersburg, TN.

P.R. Swamy
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