Today we decided to head north towards Leesburg. Every other outing has been to the south, so the north is largely unexplored as of yet. We liked the church we went to last week, First Baptist Church in Groveland, but didn’t want to drive south for a while and then head back north after church, so we found another church in Leesburg, called First Baptist Church of Leesburg. On the way there we passed the First Baptist Church of Okahumpka. I know there are other churches around but First Baptist seems to be quite popular for a name. I have yet to see a Second Baptist Church.
It’s a good thing we were about ten minutes early. The parking lot was filling fast and there may not have been enough room for an RV if we had been any later.
Unlike the First Baptist Church of Groveland, the Leesburg Church was rather large and had a choir and an orchestra in addition to the praise team. They also made an announcement about adding a third service as the other two were becoming quite full. We sat in the back and had a few seats on either side of us, but the rest of the auditorium was indeed quite full.
The sermon was on Acts 1:8-11--Jesus’ commands to his disciples as he ascended and how we should remember that God enabled his disciples (and us) to be his witnesses, but we need to stay plugged into the Source (his word). We also learn from the admonishment of the angels in verse 11 to not just stand there looking into heaven--we should be motivated to share our faith, to live in light of His return. Great sermon and great reminders.
Last weeks sermon in Groveland was also from the book of Acts. I wonder if other First Baptist Churches are also in the book of Acts.
Our quest for a donut shop was finally rewarded. We spotted the Donut King on the way into church and stopped there afterwards. We came away with this afternoon’s snacks.
It was just a short drive to Venetian Gardens, a park right in the town of Leesburg. We found a space to park the RV and walked around the park for a while before lunch. Coming from Michigan, where Winter silences most animal life, the constant chirping and chittering of birds takes a little getting used to. And lots of different birds also, from iridescent birds that walk on the floating leaves near the lake shore to the larger black birds with four legs and big teeth that lurk at the water’s edge, the variety here is amazing.
After lunch we got on the bikes and rode a nearby trail. The Venetian Trail starts from this park and follows a road through town. It connects with several other trails which form a network of trails through town and the surrounding areas. We rode about ten miles off these trails, stopping at one point to enjoy the donuts we had obtained earlier. Definitely a lot better than the Walmart fare, but MiLady in Tifton, Georgia, still had them beat. By a lot.
Back at the RV we did what any normal retiree would do on a sunny Sunday afternoon; we took a nap. Not a long one, but just enough to take care of those mid-afternoon sleepies that set in when you sit down after a long-ish bike ride.
We spotted a natural area when driving into town and stopped there on the way out. The Flat Island Preserve was not mentioned in any of the information we had looked at; we only saw the sign along the road. This is a 2300 acre preserve protecting several islands in the Okahumpka Marsh, and has a network of trails winding through the diverse plant life. We hiked the trails for a while and determined to come back for more when we weren’t pressed for time. We had a family call at 6pm and the cell service here was marginal, meaning we had to go back to the camp to take the call.
Back at camp, it was an evening of family calls, connecting with siblings and with kids back home.
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