The Death of Absalom 2 Samuel 18: 9 - 10

Somehow I got behind one segment last Saturday and cut off my‘Appraisal by the real black book’, devotional, so I wanted to go ahead and post this to get the whole experience to any it may help as it has helped me.

I like the way Dell Takett with the truth project put’s it, that some passages in the Bible put you into a cocoon, they roll around in your brain as you seek God trying to understand while you wrestle trying to get out, and then….out comes the Butterfly.

This week I was studying the 109^th Psalm and when I read this passage David wrote about his enemies it sent me into a cocoon big time.

⁸ May his days be few;
       may another take his place of leadership.

⁹ May his children be fatherless
       and his wife a widow.

¹⁰ May his children be wandering beggars;
       may they be driven ^[d] from their ruined homes.

¹¹ May a creditor seize all he has;
       may strangers plunder the fruits of his labor.

¹² May no one extend kindness to him
       or take pity on his fatherless children.

¹³ May his descendants be cut off,
       their names blotted out from the next generation.

¹⁴ May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD;
       may the sin of his mother never be blotted out.

¹⁵ May their sins always remain before the LORD,
       that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth

I immediately thought now this is a little harsh, don’t you think, taking it out on the guy’s kids. But, the more I studied the passage the more I saw that it was much quoted, even quoted by Peter in the book of acts about Judas.

So wrestling around in my cocoon all week I started to get another look at how horrible sin’s consequences were, as God said to Moses as he was giving the second commandment: Exodus 20:5 “for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,”

So I started to wonder how bad sin makes God feel and why take it out on our kids. I talked with my men’s group talked about King David and how the sword never departed from his house, we discussed, Absalom, Tamar etc… Yet, I was still in the cocoon.

Later that same day a Pastor Friend of mine came by the station and looked in on me as always. I told him my dilemma. He shared a thought I had never considered.

“Robby have you ever considered how sin makes God feel?” The Pastor went on to tell me, “Think about if your son was killed by a drunk driver, how you would feel about that sin, because it killed your son? Then think that your sin required that God’s Son be nailed to that cross and you can just begin to get a taste.”

Oh my soul really started wrestling in the cocoon now,  a few hours later it broke open and out the Butterfly came,

I understood: Wow, if I want the good things I do to go on and on, like my love for Jesus, my wife and my children, and they do for generation to generation, and then my sin must go on as well. Then if I want other people’s good works to go on and on, then like David I should want others sin to be punished from generation to generation. A long term perspective God just gave me a glimpse.

Now hearing the second part of Exodus 20: verse 5 NIV “but showing love to a thousand {generations} of those who love me and keep my commandments.”  Means at least three thousand years of God’s grace for those who love Him and Keep his commandments….WOW!

Connect With Robby on:

The two-seater sports coupe P1800 was presented at the auto show in Brussels 1960. Production started one year later, so 2011 the P1800 celebrates its 50 year anniversary. Almost 46,000 units of the famous Swedish sailor Pelle Petterson designed model were produced in various versions until production finished in 1973.

 One of the P1800 icons is the British actor Roger Moore, who drove the car in the TV series “The Saint”. Another famous P1800 driver is the American Irv Gordon. With more than 2.8 million miles on his sporty red Volvo sports car, Gordon was celebrating his birthday on 15 July by affirming his goal of reaching three million miles before his 73^rd birthday – forever enshrining him as an iron man in automotive endurance.

 Gordon, a retired science teacher from East Patchogue, N.Y., purchased his Volvo in June 1966, and immediately fell in love, driving 1,500 miles in the first 48 hours. With a 125-mile round-trip daily commute, a fanatical dedication to vehicle maintenance and a passion for driving, Gordon logged 500,000 miles in 10 years.

 In the Guinness Book of World Records

In 1998 with 1.69 million miles, he made the Guinness Book of World Records for most miles driven by a single owner in a non-commercial vehicle. In 2002, he drove the car’s two-millionth mile down Times Square to national and international media attention.

Today, Gordon breaks his own record every time he drives, whether it’s to Cincinnati for coffee, Rolla, Mo., for lunch or Green River, Wyo., for dinner. Gordon – like any mighty record-holder at the top of his game – is mindful of his legacy, as well as setting a record no one can beat.

“Three million miles by my 73^nd birthday sounds right,” Gordon said. “But, whether I reach that mark is more up to me than it is the car. The car’s parts have long proven they can take it, but I’m not so sure about my own. Either way, it will be a fantastic testament to the engineering genius of Volvo as well as to the resiliency of folks my age. 

Like baseball legend diMaggio

“Three million miles is an iron clad number that I’d like to think sits right up there with DiMaggio’s consecutive game hitting streak. Who’s going to beat that? No one.” 

Gordon is unsure what to do with his Volvo after three million miles, though he has considered selling it for no less than one dollar per each mile he’s driven.

“I used to think I’d park it in a museum where people will get to enjoy seeing the car that beat the odds – all with the same engine, same radio, same axles, same transmission and of course the same driver,” Gordon said. “Now I think, ‘no way.’ I’ll either keep driving it or sell it for $3 million.”

 And what would he do if he made $3 million off the car?

“I’d spend it on traveling,” he said. “Road trips, of course.”

Connect With Robby on:

1. Prayer… God does know and if you are like me you need all the help you can get.
2. Pedigree… Sure make model all that kind of stuff, but more importantly: Who owned it? How many owners? How was it maintained? How was it used?
3. Probe…Have it checked out by an expert, and look into every nook and cranny. Even the valve stem caps by removing them may reveal flood damage.
4. Poll… Proverbs 24:6″ in a multitude of counselors there is safety” Someone might just know that all 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokees had rear axle problems, or some other clue to problem cars.

These are a few of my tips. Share yours today and call in to 866-348-7884 or post them under comments.

Connect With Robby on:

Today on the Christian Car Guy Sam De La Garza, Fiesta Brand Manager.

 The Ford Fiesta sedan/hatchback is the first minicar to earn the Top Safety Pick award since the Institute added a roof strength requirement for rollover protection. The Fiesta is recognized as a Top Safety Pick after earning good ratings for front, side, rollover, and rear crash protection, and for having electronic stability control as standard equipment. No other minicar the Institute has tested has earned top ratings in all four safety evaluations.

 The Fiesta is the eighth Ford model to earn the Institute’s top designation. The others are Ford Fusion/Lincoln MKZ/Mercury Milan, Ford Taurus/Lincoln MKS, and Ford Flex/Lincoln MKT.

 The Fiesta’s award applies to cars built after July 2010 because Ford made design changes to strengthen the outside door handles to minimize the possibility of doors opening in side impact crashes. 

Connect With Robby on:

Today on the Christian Car Guy: Share your, “locked out experience”, what do you do?

• Tennis Ball idea
• Cell Phone Idea
• coat hanger
• slim-Jim
• Locksmith
• AAA
• Tow Truck

What to do and what not to do today on the Christian Car Guy….

Connect With Robby on:

 To me a great car salesman is like this Ox in two ways both in competence and in character.

Proverbs 14:4 (New International Reader’s Version)
 4 Where there are no oxen, the feed box is empty.
      But a strong ox brings in a great harvest.

 A salesman who really knows his product, what model has which features and how those features benefit the customer. He also needs to know financing and leasing and those options as well. He should know his store and how to work things smoothly within it’s systems from handling the transaction to getting the car ready.

Proverbs 10:4 (New International Reader’s Version)
 4 Hands that don’t want to work make you poor.
      But hands that work hard bring wealth to you.

 This has more to do with the salesperson’s character, the salesman that will go the extra mile to get you the most for your car or the lowest interest rate, or sometimes go across the country to find the car you want.

1 Timothy 5:18  

For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.”

Lastly consider how hard the salesman worked for you before you go online or something and beat his deal by 50 bucks. Many times customers take advantage of the hard working salesman and forget that part of the transaction has to pay the salesperson.

Connect With Robby on:

 Dear Friends,

Dennis Rainey

Close your eyes and try to picture this scene: blue skies, warm sun, the vast expanse of the ocean, holding your spouse’s hand as you slowly stroll the decks of the beautiful Monarch of the Seas cruise ship.  For the first time in history, FamilyLife is setting sail with Premier Christian Cruises, and Barbara and I want to invite you to join us February 14-18, 2011, for the “Love Like You Mean It™” Marriage Cruise.

But I’ve saved the best for last…Barbara and I will be joined by popular marriage experts Bob Lepine and Crawford Loritts.  Additionally, you’ll enjoy insights from Kirk Cameron and Shaunti Feldhahn.  Our speakers will show you exactly how to pursue a marriage that really works.  And if that’s not enough, there will be warm Christian fellowship and entertainment by musical guests Michael O’Brien, Big Daddy Weave, Point of Grace and more.

Barbara and I would love to welcome you aboard the “Love Like You Mean It™” Marriage Cruise.  Whether you’re feeling challenged in your marriage, or just want a better plan for the rest of your lives, I know this cruise will help you make real progress.  What better time, and what better place, to focus on the most important earthly relationship you have…your marriage.

Love like you mean it,

Dennis Rainey

The Christian Car Guy Robby Dilmore

Connect With Robby on:

MONTEREY — How do you amp up a performance car package as complete as the new 2012 Mustang Boss 302 – already a street-legal race car in its own right? Pull out everything that doesn’t make it go faster and add in more of what does. The result is the limited-production Laguna Seca package – the ultimate 2012 Boss, named to commemorate the first-place Boss 302 finish at the 1970 Trans-Am series opener.

“The Laguna Seca package puts a race-ready version of the new Mustang Boss 302 directly into enthusiasts’ hands,” said Mark Fields, Ford president of The Americas. “Laguna Seca isn’t intended for Boss buyers who simply want an exhilarating daily driver. Think of it like a factory-built race car, which we hope avid racers and track-day fans are going to love.”

Boss Laguna Seca builds on the bumper-to-bumper improvements found on the standard Boss while further stiffening the chassis and installing an aerodynamics package carried over almost in its entirety from the Ford Racing Boss 302R.

“Drivers who know how to get the most from a tuned race car on a closed course are going to be amazed by what the Laguna Seca is capable of,” said Derrick Kuzak, group vice president, Global Product Development. “The balance, agility and tuning of each vehicle system places the driver at the center of the machine, completely connected to everything the car is doing.”

Chassis enhancements
Laguna Seca cars are powered by the same smooth, high-winding 440-hp 5.0-liter V8 as the standard Boss, since the engine was already tuned specifically for road racing. Instead, engineers turned their attention toward delivering power to the ground most efficiently, and getting the car around a track in the quickest possible time.

“When we built the Boss, we had to step back and ask ourselves ‘How do we improve on this?’” said David Pericak, Ford Mustang chief engineer. “That car is so strong we realized the Laguna Seca package was going to have to be just a fraction of a step back from the Ford Racing 302R to top it. So we went back and threw daily-driver practicality out the window, cut some things we couldn’t cut on the volume model, like the back seat, and built it the way we would set up a production Boss for pure competition.”

Laguna Seca cars eliminate the rear seats, instead adding a cross-car X-brace that couples the structure between the rear wheels. The brace offers chassis stiffness improvements of as much as 10 percent and allows the suspension tuning – precisely calibrated by Mustang team members – to better do its job.

Standard Recaro front seats were designed by Ford SVT in cooperation with Recaro for high performance Mustang models, and are shared between the Boss and GT500. An Alcantara-covered race steering wheel provides a solid grip for hard cornering.

Engine power routes through a six-speed close-ratio manual gearbox to a standard 3.73-ratio Torsen limited-slip differential, helping the revised rear suspension deliver maximum torque and traction under the punishing conditions encountered on the track.

Higher spring rates and a larger rear stabilizer bar – all upgraded over Boss specifications – help generate unrelenting grip. And drivers can dial in exactly the level of shock stiffness a particular track requires using the four standard, independently adjustable dampers with Laguna Seca-specific valving.

The final touch for a proper race car was to add the proper wheels and tires: Laguna Seca models use lightweight 19-inch alloy racing wheels in staggered widths: 9 inches in front, 10 inches in the rear. R-compound ultra-high-performance tires, 255/40ZR-19 in the front, 285/35ZR-19 in the rear, maintain contact with the pavement – a job that ended up being trickier than expected.

“The R-compound tires on the Laguna Seca are so sticky we had to really work on the rear suspension tuning to make sure drivers can get the most out of them,” explains Pericak. “The rear stabilizer bar is the largest we’ve ever installed on a production Mustang – including any SVT product. The rear spring rate was also maximized to work with the massive rear tires and balance the car for minimal lap times.”

While standard Boss 302 cars get vented brake dust shields to help cool the rotors, Laguna Seca models receive Ford Racing front brake ducts that force outside air directly onto the 14-inch vented front rotors, helping to eliminate brake fade and ensure hard, repeatable late braking on the track. Combined, the braking changes help refine the sense for drivers of being directly connected to the pads – an essential edge during car-to-car combat on a road course.

Added up, the further improvements to Boss Laguna Seca result in the best-handling Mustang ever, with more than 1.03 g of lateral acceleration, stopping distances shortened by three feet from 60 mph over Boss, 0-60 acceleration improvements of one tenth of a second, and an overall expected lap time improvement of one to two seconds over the standard Boss on a typical road course.

Styling evokes racing, improves aerodynamics
As a race car should, Boss 302 models with the Laguna Seca package look like nothing else on the road. A bright red C-stripe offsets either Black or Ingot Silver paint, and is complemented by a red roof panel. Red also sets off the front grille, mirror caps and rear pedestal spoiler, while Laguna Seca rear badging and unique two-tone red and silver wheels complete the transformation.

Adding both to appearance and aerodynamics, an aggressive front splitter for track use adds downforce at the front of the car, while helping channel air under and around the car. At the same time, air impacting the front end is funneled into the radiator and brake ducts, supporting cooling even under grueling race conditions.

“The Laguna Seca front splitter is really a Ford Racing piece we’ve lightly adapted for our purposes,” explains Pericak. “It’s been tested and refined for the last six months on the Boss 302R to perform exactly as required on the track; we just made a few changes so it could be adapted to the production Boss – though owners will still want to avoid speed bumps and parking blocks.”

At the back, a large rear spoiler is sized to exactly complement the effect provided by the front splitter and underbody aero treatments, with the combination adding as much as 90 pounds of downforce at 140 mph.

“Balance is the key on Boss, and even more so on Laguna Seca,” said Pericak. “A winning race car has to do everything well, and we’ve had the ability to test all the engineering that went into Boss Laguna Seca on the Ford Racing 302R. It’s not for everyone: It’s stiffer, there’s no back seat, and the aero package is designed for downforce, not speed bumps in the mall parking lot. But for hard-core Mustang racers who want something they can occasionally drive on the street, to shows or whatever, Laguna Seca is the car they’ve been waiting for, and they’re not going to be disappointed

Connect With Robby on:

Lester Cranfill was about eighty years old when I met him, about six four and two hundred and fifty pounds he was a big man and a stout broad shouldered old truck driver.  Yet in so many ways his constant grin and his demeanor always made me feel like he was a big kid. I met him because he loved to drive and he drove cars for us when we would sell a car that was at another dealership, we would call Lester and it never seemed to matter to Lester where it was, Arizona or ten miles away in Winston Salem his response was always, “I’m prayed up and packed up and ready to go.” Those words I herd from Lester hundreds of times to me sort of defined Lester.

Lester loved to drive and the further the trip the better, as far as he was concerned and when he said those words he meant them. He had a ditty bag that was always packed up. All those years of truck driving he knew about favorite truck stops and restaurants all over the country and where ever we would send him he would tell us, “Oh Boy, now I get to go ‘Old So and So’s they have the best (fill in the blank) in the country.” I’m telling ya Lester was a truck drivin man.

The prayed up part was for real as well, Lester became a member of our men’s group there in a small town in North Carolina called Mocksville, where we meet to this day. There is a seat that no one will ever sit in because we all know that’s Lester’s seat. I never met a man who prayed like Lester. Simple honest and clear to the point with the Lord, but the thing that impressed me the most about Lester’s prayers was that Lester always prayed that God would put someone in his path that day that he could witness to. That was a prayer the Lord would answer for Lester constantly. Lester was always telling us about how he picked up stranded drivers, met someone in the grocery line, and sat next to somebody else at a diner and each time he would share his powerful testimony.

Lester was kinda brought up on the wrong side of the tracks in Mocksville. He grew up smoking and drinking and fighting. As big as Lester was I don’t think I would have wanted any part of that. My understanding was that on Depot hill, (where the bars and whatnot were back in the day) that Lester kinda had a reputation similar to Bad Bad Leroy Brown. He married early to a saint, (believe me), named Lucile, a truly wonderful lady. Yet, in his younger years, Lester would tell you, he didn’t treat her well and would get drunk and start problems.

One of those night’s he went to pick up another beer and although Lester was not at all religious at the time, he herd a word from the Holy Spirit, “Lester don’t pick up that beer, this is your last chance!”. The way Lester told it, that night he gave his heart and life to the Lord and everything changed. Lester became a member and eventually a Deacon of Turntine Baptist Church.  The drinking and fighting no longer part of his life he became more and more like Jesus.

His relationship to Lucile was of the most unique things about Lester. countless times Lester would come into our meetings all sleepy eyed and tell us how he had sat up with Lucile and talked till three or four in the morning. I would ask, “Lester what in the world could you talk to Lucile about till four in the morning?”

“Oh Robby, I just love that lady and I could talk all night to Lucille.” Lester would tell us, but we never got the details. Lester loved his family, children, and grand children with a deep abiding love that taught us all.

Then the day came when I got a call that Lester was in the Hospital with a heart attack. Painfully Lucile was on a trip to help another family member and was hours away. I rushed over and met his grandson waiting in the emergency room. Soon the doctor came out and told us that Lester was in the middle of a massive heart attack and they were rushing him into emergency surgery. The doctor told us that Lester would be wheeled down the hall and we may be able to speak to him. Moments later here he came.

Although he must have been in unbelievable pain from the heart attack you could see that, ‘Big Kid’, grin of his from way down the hall. I will never forget what he said nor how he said it. “Robby, I’m prayed up packed up and ready to go!” Lester’s last words to me and his grandson, confirmed his trust in his Savior, said in Lester style, like he was headed for a vacation somewhere, and that he was, shortly to be on the ultimate vacation.  

The Lord told me I would be speaking at Lester’s Funeral and he told me to get Lester’s ditty bag. Sure enough Lucile came to me and asked if I would speak and she looked at me like I was crazy when I asked to see Lester’s ditty bag. I told her that Lester had always told me he was prayed up and packed up and ready to go and I wanted to illustrate that at his funeral. When I got home and examined the contents I have to admit I was shocked. Not at the Bible I was certain to see or the picture of his son and him standing by the big truck they both once owned. What shocked me were the diapers. I found out from his family that Lester had prostate cancer surgery years ago that had left him in a bad way. At this point I had known Lester for about eight years and I had never herd him ever complain of any pain or anything for that matter. Lester was all about helping anybody any time with anything with no mention of his pain.

I had the honor of speaking at this saint’s funeral and I guess at this point you know what I said and how I illustrated it with Lester’s ditty bag. He was “prayed up packed up and ready to go!”

Connect With Robby on:

Mr. Allen Swift ( Springfield , MA.)

Mr. Allen Swift ( Springfield , MA.) received this 1928 Rolls-Royce Piccadilly P1 Roadster from his father, brand new - as a graduation gift in 1928.

He drove it up until his death last year…..at the age of 102 !!!

He was the oldest living owner of a car from new. Just thought you’d like to see it.  He donated it to a  Springfield  museum after his death.

It has 170,000 miles on it, still runs like a Swiss watch, dead silent at any speed and is in perfect cosmetic condition. (82 years)

Connect With Robby on: