Explorers Anonymous

So one of the last things I wrote on here was about Dora the Explorer and how there were some things about it that just made me go "Hmmm."  Well here is a little bit of a follow up to that post for you.

Top 10 Signs my two year old is watching too much Dora

1) When he can name pretty much all the characters on the show, but still struggles to say the names of his sisters.

2) When he suddenly screams "DORA!!" when he is supposed to be going to sleep.

3) When he knows the answers to the questions Dora asks, but still doesn't speak in complete sentences to me.

4) When he has figured out how to open both the DVD player and case and can almost work it all on his own.

5) When he cries because he doesn't get to wear the Dora costume around the house.

6) When the first thing he does in the morning is to walk into the living room, point at the TV and say "Dora."

7) When he seems to believe that he can let himself out the front door and roam around on his own.

8) When you are afraid that you will have to have an intervention at the age of two.

9) You start seriously considering the idea of starting a Dora the Explorer support group.

10) When we go to Gran'maw's house and he immediately goes to the movie selection and begins bringing in all the Dora tapes.

Peace and Love y'all.

An Investment

I have been doing youth ministry now for a long time.  Long enough that I could for sure call it a career it seems.  I have been doing this for 13 1/2 years now, and most of those have been full time.  It has been something that I have loved doing, something that has been full of joy (and a little bit of pain) and has been very rewarding.  I have built relationships with students over the years that I am able to still nurture today.  These have been an incredible part of what God has called me to do.

In fact I would say that building relationships is the thing that I do best, and it is for sure one of my favorite things to do as far as youth ministry goes.  I have learned that it is well worth it to invest in the lives of these young people.  I have learned that that is one of the key elements to doing this job.  It is that willingness to pour oneself out into the life of a student that can make all the difference really.  Usually I am happy to do this, to pour myself into building these relationships.  This I believe is one of the key elements to youth ministry.  Many times it is easy to do this, to want to do this.  There have been students that I have been willing to pour every last ounce of me into...they were the easy kids to minister to.

But what about those kids that aren't as easy to pour in to?  Sadly, I can say that I have dealt with this in the past.  There have been kids that I have had in my youth groups that I, for one reason or another, just didn't want to take the time to really invest in.  I didn't pour myself out as willingly as I did with other kids.  I know that there are these kids in every single youth group.  For some reason there is just something about them that doesn't click with me and it is a struggle for me to be willing to invest myself into that kid.  Why does this happen?  Shouldn't I be willing to pour myself in to every student regardless?

I wonder if this was ever something that Jesus dealt with?  Were there times when He and the 12 would be traveling and make camp for the night and Jesus would look around and think "Man, I really hope Andrew doesn't want to hang out tonight, because I know he stepped in a pile of something back there and I can still smell it."  I wonder if he ever thought about things like this with Judas, especially as the end drew closer?  Somehow, even if the thoughts and ideas occurred to him, I doubt that Jesus acted on them.  I find it hard to believe that Jesus didn't invest as equally as he could into all 12, no matter what they may have stepped in to.

In the end, it is about taking an interest in kids and their lives.  It is about investing myself in others even when it means that I don't really want too.  I know that when I take time to be interested in the students' lives, the reward will be far greater than anything else I can do.  Peace and Love y'all.

Dora, Dora, Dora the Explorer

We have been watching a lot of Dora the Explorer here at the Durham house recently. I don't know what it is about that show that seems to just fascinate my children. Boo was a huge fan when she was young and Puck still watches it most mornings. But it is Little Man that is the biggest fan now. He knows where all the DVDs of Dora are and how to get them out of their cases and how to open the DVD player and the XBOX and try to get them in there. And he will ask for the show by name, although to be real honest at this point if you didn't live with him you would think that we let him watch The Simpson's because what comes out is "D'Oh" and that means Dora.

For real though, I'm not totally sure why it is that this show is so very popular in the 18 month -4 year demographic. I guess that if I were in that demographic maybe I would understand better what it is. As an adult though, I just have questions:

1) Dora is like 5, maybe 6 years old, and yet she runs around all over the place without ever letting her parents know what she is doing. Seriously, we have just recently started letting Boo walk to the post office alone, and it's only one street away.

2) Why is it that they always have to say the Spanish words and then follow it up with the English translation? Not saying that it is a bad thing to learn a new language, just I'm pretty sure that not everyone speaks Spanish. There was an episode the other day where twin brothers, who looked to be Swedish, automatically were able to speak Spanish to Dora. Weird.

3) Is it not weird/disturbing to anyone that Dora runs around with a talking monkey named Boots? Her parents seem to be totally fine with it, but again, it is a talking monkey who wears bright red boots.

4) Dora's backpack is from the same store as Mary Poppins' handbag it seems. I mean that kid carries everything you could possibly think of in that thing: scissors, markers, library books, life vests, ladders, English/Spanish dictionary, rope and stars...and it sings and talks to her too. I usually wear a backpack to the office or when I going somewhere, but her's is truly amazing.

5) Where does she live that every time she needs to go some place she has to cross rivers and climb mountains and out smart a fox that want to steal her stuff? "We are headed to the library to return my books. First we go over the crocodile infested river; nest we have to climb the nearly erupting volcano, and finally we go through the deep dark woods to get to the library." I think I would just keep the books and pay the fines.

6) One thing that might be really nice though would be to have the little insect mariachi band that plays every time Dora gets to a milestone of her journey. This would make it so much easier in the car to answer the question "Are we there yet?" "Have you heard the band yet, has the insect mariachi band marched past us playing the song yet? No? Then we are not there yet are we?"

Like I said earlier, I don't understand it, but for my kids its like baby crack (thanks Jon Acuff for that term). Peace and Love y'all.

The Big 2 and New Info about Dental Health

So the Little Man turned 2 today. It is hard to believe that this time two years ago, I had welcomed my son into the world. Time has gone by so fast. There have been such crazy changes in that time it's unbelievable almost. We went from being in a "big" church to no church (or ministry job) to living with parents (hard to do as a family of 5) and working for a scaffolding company, to being in a smaller church that has a big heart and loves us and all our children a great deal. God has blessed us in these last two years.

So they say that this is the age where the child begins to want to assert themselves a bit more and they get to be a bit more of a challenge, thus it is dubbed the "Terrible Twos" (honestly, I'm not sure why it is plural). With the girls, this didn't start really until the year after at 3. With the boy, well lets just say he got the memo early about asserting his independence.

It has been so different having him around. He is just something else. A few weeks ago he got me up about 4:30 in the morning and took me to the living room. Once we were there, he turned on the TV, which happened to be tuned to ESPN, and started watching the replay of Boise State and Tulsa from earlier that evening. About a week ago he took me to the living room about 5:30ish. I tried to get him to lay on the couch with me to go back to sleep, but he wasn't having it. Instead, he directed me to the kitchen, had me get him a Pop Tart and some juice, and then and sat on the couch and turned on SportsCenter. He is quite the little man.

I can't imagine my life without him now at this point. He is a very special little boy to his Moma and I as well as to his sisters. We love him very much, and are so happy to get to celebrate two years of him being a part of this family.

Now onto the new info about dental health. For those of you who don't know, I have a tooth that is discolored. The reason for this is the fact that as a Freshman in high school I had it broken in half one day at basketball practice. It has never really been the same colorwise since that day. I have come to terms with this. It seems however that it is something that stands out to young kids. Puck as of late seems to have noticed this. Tonight, as we lay on the couch trying to get her to go to sleep, she started telling me about teeth a bit. Mainly she informed me that if people drink lemonade, that will turn their teeth yellow...like my tooth that I have. So glad to know that that is the reason that the tooth is discolored, it is simply from all the lemonade that I drink. So remember, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade, but realize that if you drink that lemonade, it will turn your teeth yellow. I guess that is chance you have to be willing to take. Peace and Love y'all.

The Greatness of Metallica

So I was walking over to the house today around lunch time and the guys at the construction site had the radio going. The song that was playing was "The Memory Remains" by Metallica. Now, I have only owned one CD by Metallica ever in my life, but it was a disc that I really enjoyed. As I was walking and and listening to the song playing, I got to thinking about a few things that I have been informed that Metallica helped to inspire. So this of course got me thinking and wondering what else they may have influenced. So I decided to make a list. Here you go.

1)The Faux-hawk- That's right, believe it or not I have been informed that the fauxhawk was inspired by James Hetfield, the lead singer. I think it was on a day when he had really bad hat hair combined with some serious static electricity. True story.

2) The chin only gotee- Again Mr. James Hetfield is responsible for this look. After being burned in a pyrotechnics accident he grew out only his chin hair to cover the scarring. On a side note, the three little pigs would like to dispute this, claiming they had the look first by the hair of their chinny, chin chin.

3) The Beatles- I know!! It seems that Metallica is so incredible that they once traveled back in time in order to help a little band from Liverpool get their start.

4) The Titanic- Though the great ship was not directly inspired or influenced by the band, had they been aboard on April 15, 1912 they would surely have been able to prevent the great ships sinking by their mere presence.

5) A Cure for cancer, AIDS and the eradication of the H1N1 flu- In the future scientists will discover the cure for these and many other diseases simply by playing all of Metallica's albums backwards. Tipper Gore really was on to something.

6) Mythology- The ancient gods were actually based on the band members of Metallica.

7) The Book of Revelation- It was actually a glimpse of a Metallica show that John saw.

8) Chuck Norris- He had to be inspired somewhere along the line to be as awesome as he is right?

9) The American Revolution- And you thought it was just taxation without Representation...we've already talked about the Metallica time machine.

10) The extinction of the dinosaurs- They just really rock that hard man...and there is that time machine again.

There you have it. My list of things that Metallica is somehow linked to. Peace and Love y'all.

The Search for God and Guinness by Stephen Mansfield

Have you ever wondered where Guinness got its start? That is the question that author Stephen Mansfield seeks to answer in his "biography of the beer that changed the world." This is not simply the story of a great beer , but of the family behind it that believed it to be their duty and calling to use their wealth to make a radical difference in the world in which they live.

I will admit that for me, the majority of my knowledge of the Guinness brand of beer came from the animated figures the Guinness brew masters dancing and eating hot wings and exclaiming things to be "brilliant!" This year however is the 250th anniversary of what Arthur Guinness began in Dublin, Ireland at the St. James's Gate Brewery. This piqued my interest in where and how this all got started.

For a non-beer person, I found it hard to put this book down as I delved into the story of Arthur and those who followed him. Not only did the family brew a beer that changed their world, they were committed to doing what they could to follow the will of God and to serve him. Mansfield takes his readers through the 250 years of history of a beer company and makes it interesting and intriguing even to those who know very little about the subject. It is inspiring to learn of a family and a business that is committed to more than simply making a profit. Many businesses today could learn from the Guinness business model and do well with it.

This was a book that I found hard to put down as I read and would gladly recommend it to others. For those who know and enjoy Guinness already this is a worthwhile read to expand your knowledge, and for those who, like me, know very little of the beer, it is a great book for learning not just about the beer, but about what a family dedicated to using wealth righteously can do to change the world.

You Decide

I don't really know how I want to start this particular blog. In fact, I'm not even 100% sure that I know what this is really going to be about. I have a couple of thoughts floating around in my brain like drift wood in the gutter after a thunderstorm has swept through. I have been thinking though and that is where this has all started.

I've been thinking about the difference in some of my friends. I have a couple of friends that have made changes to their belief systems. Both were people that, when I was in more regular and constant contact with them, were deeply devoted to following and serving Jesus. Now, I can't say that really about either one. One is now an agnostic and the other is...well I'm not sure. Both however have turned their backs on what they once professed to believe. One is the child of a pastor and one was once a campus ministry intern, youth pastor and missionary.

I have questions for them, and yet at this point they remained unasked. I want to know what it was that brought about the changes in their lives, what made them turn their backs on that which they once professed to believe so strongly. What kind of experience did they have that led them to this place and point in their lives. These are the things that I would like to know, to help me understand.

I mention this because I was thinking about one of my cousins today. He and his wife were supposed to have their first baby this coming February, and yet have found out that there is something wrong, that the baby, a girl, has a rare disorder which will steal life from her and joy from her expectant parents.

I mention this because I have a friend who lost his baby boy only minutes after he was born. He held him in his arms for mere moments before he was gone, back to eternity, back to the arms of Jesus.

I mention this because I have other friends who have gone through multiple attempts to start a family and have just now in the last few months seen this hope of blessing come to pass.

I mention this because through all of these experiences, the faith of these people has been shaken no doubt, but it has remained. They have chosen to lean further into the arms of Jesus for comfort and peace (even when it seemed that they would not find it, even there)...they have not turned away.

In this end I believe that it comes down to a choice that we make. This thing we call faith, it is a choice that we make. And the thing about it is, we must make this choice each and every day, to walk with Jesus, trusting in him and in God, believing that even when there seems to be no obvious evidence of his presence in our surroundings and situations, that he is there. We choose to believe, even when God is silent in our lives.

It is a daily choice that we make. It is a choice that we make not only in the times when things are good and easy. No, we must make the choice even on the days when it seems that all hope is lost, or was never there in the first place.

Joshua 24:15 says to "choose this day whom you will serve." As I have thought about that I see that everyday is "this day" and we must choose whom it is we will serve. There will always be times that are good and there will always be times that are hard or even seem impossible. We must choose each day whom we will serve. Will it be God, even in the times that he seems to be silent? Or will we choose to serve our circumstances and situations and bow before them and let them lead and guide us through the day?

Hebrews 11:1 says that "Faith is be sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we can not see." Will we choose each day that sureness and certainty, or will we choose to fall away into hopelessness and uncertainty? The choice is ours. Peace and Love y'all.

4 Years and Counting

So Wednesday was Puck's 4th birthday. That simply floors me to think about. She is such a wonderful, beautiful, sweet, funny little girl. I really truly honestly can't imagine my life without my Puck. She makes us laugh all the time and she is so sweet. I know this seems to be getting mushy, but dude, it's my baby girl, what do you expect?

Ok so in honor of her birthday, here are a few Puck stories that I thought about.

1) Wednesday afternoon she asked me what it was that I had done with the handle to her Littlest Pet Shop wagon that she had brought into the living room. I told her that I hadn't done anything with it. She then informed me that I had taken off the handle to her wagon-and I am quoting here- "Duh!"

2) Before I started writing this tonight I went in her's and Boo's room and said a prayer over the two of them while they were sleeping. As I turned on the bathroom light so I would be able to avoid tripping over who knows what and walked to the bed I noticed something about Puck. As my baby girl was sleeping there with no blanket and curled into a ball, her hand was once again stuck down the back of her shorts. Even in her sleep she seems to have a fascination with her booty.

3) I'm sure this has been mentioned before, but she has a saying when she toots. When asked what she should say she responds by saying "Excuse me booty" as though she has just done something to offend that area of her anatomy.

4) The girl talks more than any human I have ever met. From the moment she wakes up she begins talking. It is as though she has been storing up all the words through the night and her little brain can no longer contain them and they must burst forth into speech. She continues to talk just about every waking moment that she has, even if she is playing peacefully by herself. She talks right up to the moment she falls asleep, and sometimes even then. I guess that is why she wakes up talking...it is simply a continuation of where she left off when sleep finally overtook her.

5) There is a reason that her nickname is Puck. In the play A Midsummer's Night Dream the character that opens and closes the show is a hobgoblin named Puck. Puck is all about the mischief. This is why I call her Puck. From the time she could crawl, she has been being ornery. I remember the house we lived in in Sweetwater when she was born. The hallway was pretty long and at the end was a bathroom. Once Puck started crawling, that bathroom was one of her favorite places to go. She would head down there and if the lid happened to be up on the toilet she would pull up and splash around in the water. Of course her momma and I didn't want her to do this, so we would return her to the living room. It all became a game for Puck. As soon as we set her down she would head for the hallway again...only this time she would check over her shoulder to be sure you saw her going that way. As soon as you made a move toward her, she would take off crawling just as fast as her little arms and legs would carry her laughing all the way.

OK, I'll stop there. It's late and I'm tired. Again, I'm blown away by the fact that my baby girl is 4 now. The time has flown by me in such a blur. God has blessed me greatly with two beautiful daughters, a handsome son and of course a beautiful wife. Peace and Love y'all.

Rick & Bubba's Guided to the Almost Nearly Perfect Marriage by Rick Burgess & Bill "Bubba" Bussey

What do you get when you take "the two sexiest fat men in America" and let them write a book about marriage? You get Rick and Bubba's Guide to the Almost Nearly Perfect Marriage, that's what. The title seems to really say it all here. These two radio hosts from Alabama have offered up a guide for having "the almost nearly perfect marriage" whether you are thinking about marriage, engaged, or have been married for years. They offer advice on such topics as communication, apologizing (for men) and even the art of finding lost car keys.

Drawing from a total of 30+ years of marriage combined, these two men have written a book chock full of their personal experiences when it comes to being married. The book is full of funny stories about each mans marriage and how they handle things within it. One of the things that I would like to have seen would have been for the book to have been broken down into topics with stories that related to such things. As it is, there are great stories, but the moral behind those stories is sometimes lost (at least for me). Although I did not find any necessarily new advice in the book, (save for a Top Ten list here and there) I still felt it was a worthwhile read. The humor, honesty and sarcasm laced throughout the book make it well worth the time to sit down and read what Rick and Bubba have to say on the topic of holy matrimony. I would recommend this book to couples I know who are thinking of becoming engaged, almost engaged, or even newly married. So if you have a chance, check out Rick and Bubba's Guide to the Almost Nearly Perfect Marriage.

Peace and Love y'all.

The Dash and the Spread

Couple of sports related thoughts this eveing.

First I just read a blog on Yahoo! Sports Dr. Saturday about the Florida vs. Charleston Southern. This is Florida's big time "cupcake" game to start the season. No big deal right? I mean Kansas State did (does) this kind of thing all the time and blows teams like McMurry and Hardin-Simmons out of the water. It's just a standard part of the game of college football now adays to have that kind of game early in the season. Here's the thing that caught my attention: it seems that it was being reported via blogs and tweets through out the morning that Florida was a huge favorite in the game. The question though is just how big of a favorite are they? What would you guess? 40? Maybe even 50 for a season opener against a I-AA school. No the reports were that Florida was favored by...wait for it...73!!! That is a 10 touchdown difference. Let that sink in for a second...that's right, 10 touchdowns. And that is just to say that Florida will score at least 73 points more than Charleston Southern, even if Charleston Southern does manage to score.

Now let me say that this line is not accurate. Yes Florida is favored to win and win big, but not by 10 touchdowns. Instead they are favored to win by no more than 9 TDs, or 63 points. I have to say that regardless of what the outcome is, to be favored by 63 is incredible. If you are wondering, the line is from today's (Thursday) issue of USA Today.

The other thing that has captured my attention this week in sports is Usain Bolt. If you aren't sure who that is, or you have heard the name recently, but still can't quite place it, let me refresh your memory real fast. Bolt is the Olympic gold medalist and world record holder in both the 100m and the 200m. Not bad right? Here is the thing though. Bolt this week broke both of his own records in those two events.

First, on Sunday Bolt set a new 100m world record with a time of 9.58 seconds. Think about that for a second. This man, who is 6'5" ran 100m in less than 10 seconds. The fastest person in college track is a guy at LSU by the name of Trindon Holliday. He is a sprinter and a kickoff returner for the Tigers. In June he won the NCAA 100-meter dash title by running that distance in 10 seconds flat. That is dang fast let me tell you. Yet Bolt beat that time this past weekend by nearly a full half second. I know it doesn't sound like much when you just read it, but in a race like that half a second must feel like forever. Bolt, who is the size of some NBA guards, ran 100 meters-the straight section of the track-in less than 10 seconds. He was covering more than 10 meters PER SECOND.

Then last night (Wednesday) Bolt set a new 200m record, again breaking his own previous record. In the Olympics he ran the 200 in 19.30 seconds. Last night he ran it in 19.19 seconds. He was able to shave a full tenth of a second off his already world record time. The guy that finished second in this race ran a shade under 20 seconds. He was over six tenths of a second behind Bolt. That is a split time in the 200 of nearly 10.1 per 100m. Pretty dang fast. Basically, Bolt could beat me in the 100 (or any other race to be honest) running backwards, blindfolded and giving up a 10 meter head start. Incredible. It will be even more so to see if he can once again break his own records. Peace and Love y'all.

The Great Vick Debate

Something that I have been thinking about in the last few weeks and days, especially as football season is fast approaching. It is a topic that I'm sure has been covered and then covered a bit more, but it is something that I spent some time thinking about in the last few days in particular. That subject is Michael Vick.

Now I will assume that pretty much everyone who might happen upon this here post will know at least generally what the deal is with Vick. In case you don't....Michael Vick was the quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons a couple of seasons ago. He was convicted of bankrolling a dog fighting ring and sentenced to 23 months. He served 20 of those months in prison and the last three under house arrest. He has, in the last month or so, gained his full release. This of course brought about questions concerning what he would do once he was again a free man. Would he be able to return to football? Would there be a team out there that would be wiling to take a chance on young man who was such a phenomenal athlete before missing out on two full seasons in the NFL? One thing was sure, the Falcons would not be welcoming him back.

There was and is still great debate about all of this. Most of the debate seems to center on two things: 1) What team would be willing take a flier on him knowing that it could upset their fan base, and 2) does he even deserve to have another chance in the NFL after what he did?

The first question was answered on Thursday when the Philadelphia Eagles signed Vick to a one year deal worth $1.6 million, with a team option for a second year worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $5 million. Vick was introduced as an Eagle on Friday. So that answers that question in the debate. The other question is a touch more, well, touchy. Here are my thoughts about if Vick deserves a second chance.

1) As a man- As a person, I would say that yes he deserves a second chance. Let's face it, we have all made mistakes in the past...and will continue to do so in the future. What if every single time we made a mistake, it was held against us from that point on. There would not be a one of us who would be able to say that they deserved anything. With that in mind, how is it that we can look at Vick and say that he does not deserve a second opportunity as a person? What he did, what he was involved in was wrong. He lied about it in the beginning, but he has come to realize where he went wrong. That is the important thing here. Without repentance there is no hint of change. Many people will look at this situation and say to themselves "He has been sufficiently humbled, I suppose he can have another shot." I thought about this last night and what an arrogant statement it seems to be actually. We think that we can decide how much humbleness is a sufficient amount for someone? That if they are not as humble as we think they should be that they don't deserve that second chance. What I notice with Vick is that he went into jail seemingly an arrogant kid, and he has come out as a humble man. I serve a God and a Savior who has given me plenty of second chances. I believe that we are called to do the same in these kinds of situations.

2) As a player- I think that he also deserves to have an opportunity to do what he seems to do best and that is to play football. In all of our lives, we would like to have the chance to do that thing that we are best at and to get payed for it. That is the situation with Vick. What he does best it appears at this point is to play the game of football. Why should he be denied that chance to once again do what he is best at? He has served his time, paid his allotted debt to society, and now it is time for him, and us, to move on.

3) As a quarterback- Ok, so this is where my grace runs out. This is an opinion that I hold that has nothing to do with Vick's crime or the time that he has been away from the game. I have just always thought that he was an awful quarterback. He has a strong arm, and can launch the ball like nobodies business, but that really doesn't mean anything if you can't actually hit your receivers. Granted, he showed some flashes of what it is (old school) to be a QB. But those flashes were few and far between. Vick would be better off, in my opinion, as either a running back or a receiver. With his speed, who would be able to keep up with him if he were to break away? It has always been my feeling that Vick decides to run too soon from the pocket. As soon as he seems to think that he feels pressure, he bolts. With this in mind, I feel like he would be better served at a different position, maybe even as a return man what with his speed.

All in all, I do feel that Vick is more than deserving of his second chances in life, as a person as well as as a football player. I don't think that taking a chance on him as a quarterback at this point (or any other point really) is the greatest idea that a team could have. Peace and Love y'all.

Bits and Pieces

It's been a couple of weeks since I last had anything to write about. I guess that happens. I don't want to write stuff just to be doing it you know, so I don't write as often as I would like to now it seems. On top of that, I've been really busy. I'll try to do better now that things are slowing down a bit.

As I sit here at 12:15am, I can still hear Puck in her room playing and talking. She takes after me too much in that regard I suppose. Roni told me last night when I was driving home from McKinney that she heard her in her and Boo's room crying. When Roni went to check on her, she found that the light was off (as it was supposed to be) and Puck lying in bed crying her almost 4 year old eyes out. When Roni asked her what was wrong she responded by saying that Boo wouldn't talk to her implying that she was being ignored. As it turns out Boo wasn't talking to her for good reason...she was asleep.

The boy is waking up for some reason. I can hear him fussing in his bed, and I know that I should go and see what he needs, but I don't want him to end up in my bed again. Too late for that as I just went to check on him and he is now going back to sleep next to his moma. Puck also informed me that Boo wouldn't give her any blanket. Again, Boo is asleep, not being mean or spiteful.

Thank you to any and all that may have read the last thing that I posted. I really enjoyed that book, and I hope that maybe someone else will pick it up now and give it a chance. Fair warning there will be another book review coming in the near future. This one will be over the book "Rick and Bubba's Guide to the Almost Nearly Perfect Marriage." So far it has been a pretty entertaining read.

Not much else is going on really. I'm writing now just because I wanted to write. I do greatly enjoy doing this kind of thing. Thanks for taking time to peruse it...or at least to give me a hit on here. I know that this post seems rather random, but I needed to take a little bit and just do that. Peace and Love y'all.

Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl by N.D. Wilson

Do you ever wonder why in the world you are even here? Why is it that you are here at this time in this place? How does God (if He is even there) view all of this craziness? Is He paying attention? These are questions that we all struggle with at times and wonder about as we slog through this crazy world. In this book, N. D. Wilson lays out what he sees as God's design for us on the crazy, spinning sphere that we call Earth.

The questions that each of us has probably asked at one point or another are laid out here for us to consider. Wilson looks at each of these from the point of view that God is the Creator, the Artist, the Author, the Painter and the Poet. So many times it is easy for us to get lost in the questions that threaten to consume us, and yet this is a fresh point of view of who God is and how He feels toward us, His creation. Wilson doesn't quote a great deal of Scripture, and yet he is Biblically sound in his presentation. The style of writing, although seemingly random at first, holds you fast once you catch the rhythm of it. Reading this, I begin to realize that there are unfathomable depths to the Infinite Creators love and desire for His creation. This is a book that I would recommend to those who feel they have heard it all, and are looking for a new way of relating to God.

Peace and Love y'all.

Dance, Dance

A friend of mine had this posted on Facebook today and I thought I would share it here as well for anyone who hasn't seen this:



Roni and I watched this and both had the same thought: "Grandad would have flipped if we wanted to do this kind of thing." That's ok though, he was just a little more old school when it came to weddings.

I look at this though and it brings to mind thoughts of being the Bride of Christ. On that day when He comes to claim us it will be Forever (the song in the video). I can't wait to go dancing down the aisle with as much joy and laughter and fun and desire as the wedding party above had. Peace and Love y'all.

Pass the Cheetos

Got in today from a day spent in Tyler with the family and came and checked my email and such. As usual I looked at the head lines listed on Yahoo's front page. This story just seemed to stand out for some reason.

Tenn. couple accused of assault using Cheetos

Fri Jun 26, 3:19 pm ET

SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. – Authorities said a couple got into a fight using Cheetos. The Bedford County Sheriff's Department said a 40-year-old man and 44-year-old woman became involved in a 'verbal altercation.' Somehow, the orange puffy snacks were used in the assault.

Deputies said they were charged with domestic assault. No one was hurt.

According to the Shelbyville Times-Gazette, both posted bond of $2,500.

___

Information from: Shelbyville Times-Gazette, http://www.t-g.com

That's right, they were fighting not over the Cheetos, but with the Cheetos. I feel that the line "No one was hurt" might have been a bit much. I mean I don't about you, but it seems to me that really the only way that a Cheeto is going to hurt someone (other than in the waist line perhaps) is if the "cheese" powder gets in their eye.

Imagine being the deputy called to the scene though. You get the call from dispatch that there is a domestic dispute going on so you make a beeline to the address. You get there, enter the house to the surely horrifying scene of orange dust all over everything, the couple covered in most of it, the crumpled bag that once held the snack food on the floor, its contents scattered all over the floor. And you have to call it in to dispatch.

How does that call sound do you think? "Uh, this is Unit 123. We are at the scene of that dispute you called in. Yeah, it seems they, uh, they were heatedly throwing Cheetos at each other as they were yelling....that's right, right the ones with Chester the Cheetah as the mascot....No, they're not the Puffs....those wouldn't fly as well, you're right...No, they're just the regular original style of Cheetos....yeah, we're gonna go ahead and bring them in....what do we charge them with?....Would it be with a weapon you think?....Ok, we'll be there in 20....Yeah have some wet wipes ready to clean their fingers."

As the deputy, when you show up at the door, how do you keep a straight face as the story is unfolding before you? They were arguing and it escalated to throwing Cheetos at each other. Man you know they had to be laughing on the way back to the station right? I know I would be. The sad thing is that they went to jail for all of this. Amazing. And they had to post $2500 each for bail. $5000 for what was basically a food fight with yelling. Goodness (shaking my head). Peace and Love y'all.

Various Things

It has been a long time since I have written anything on here. Did you miss me? Let's see what is there that has happened in the time since I last posted? Here are a few things:

1. I spoke at the 6th Grade Graduation Ceremony here in Quitman. Doesn't sound like such a big thing, but it was one of the hardest speeches that I have ever had to write. And on top of that, I was far more nervous about it than I usually am with that kind of thing. The pressure of being accepted by a bunch of 6th graders I guess.
2. We went on vacation. It was great to actually get to take a real vacation. Last year we weren't really able to, even though we did get to hit the beach. This year we went to Colorado Springs. It was nice. Made it really hard to come home to the heat and humidity, that's for sure.
   
3. Boo turned 7. Crazy to think that my baby girl is 7 years old. It doesn't seem like it has been nearly that long since I first held her tiny body in my arms and realized: "Holy crap!! I'm responsible for the little person!"
   
4. Did VBS. We had our VBS right after we got home from vacation. It was a good week, but I didn't have a very big part in it so I was kind of glad.
   

So I guess that it has been a little bit eventful since the last time I wrote anything. It has been such a good year for us here in Quitman. We just feel like we fit with this place, you know. That is such a great feeling after the 15 months we spent in San Angelo knowing after about 6 of those that we didn't fit, but trying desperately to do so.

July is nearly here and that means that I will have a lot going on. Starting July 5th I will be gone for about 3 of the 4 weeks that month. I will be gone for two straight weeks starting on that date, with about a half a day to be home and do laundry and such. Here is what my July looks like, in case you're interested.

1. July 5th-11th- U.M. Army Mission Trip to Porter, TX. That is about 4 1/2 hours from here, not too bad, but the kids here are a little spoiled when it comes to travelling...they think that is so far to go. They should try living in Snyder, Texas where you have to drive at least an hour just to get to a place with an actual mall, then driving 4 1/2 hours doesn't seem so bad.
2. July 12th-17th- District church camp at Lakeview. I'm on the director team this year, and got to help write the curriculum. It was some of the hardest stuff that I have ever had to write.
   
3. July 17th-19th- 15 year semi-reunion in Midland. At least those are the last dates that I have heard.
4. July 20th-25th- Home for the first time really since the 4th. Ahhhh.
5. July 26th-30th- Mystery Trip to a mysterious place. Should be fun, especially since we will have some of the newer youth on the trip with us. It's a chance to get to know them and (hopefully) build some unity.

Then August gets here and I have one weekend trip to Rock the Desert the 7th-9th, and then we end the month with youth weekend the 28th-30th. It's going to be a crazy next couple of months, but really I'm looking forward to it. Please pray for me and my family for the next couple of months, especially in early July when I will be gone back to back weeks with only a few hours to spend with them. Peace and Love y'all.

Fear Itself

I have one huge fear. It's kind of strange really I suppose when I think about it. As a youth minister however it is a fear that seems to make sense really. There are times when I jerk awake with this fear trying to push it's way into my waking moments. It takes a moment or two usually in fact to remember that the fear I'm feeling is nothing more than a dream.

The fear that I experience in this line of work is that of being afraid that I am supposed to be filling in for the pastor and that I have forgotten and missed the early service at the church and then I don't have anything prepared when I come rushing in late. It is something that nags at me. It gnaws at the edges of my brain at times when I wake up on Sunday mornings. It is my nightmare that lingers even when I wake. Thankfully it has been only that, and has never become an actuality.

Last week however I took it one step further than just a nagging, lingering feeling. I knew that I had responsibilities on Sunday morning in the early service with the scripture that was supposed to be done via DVD. It was something that I had done before, but for some reason this particular weekend, I was extra nervous about the set up.

I woke suddenly and looked frantically for the clock which, upon seeing and focusing on, read 8:13 AM. At this point all my fears seemed to race forward into my consciousness as I literally leaped from my nice comfortable bed, throwing my covers aside and exclaiming to Roni "CRAP!! I am supposed to be doing stuff in the early service!!" I was about to make a beeline to the bathroom in order to hurriedly brush my teeth and throw on clothes when from the bed beside me I hear the voice of my loving wife say "What are you doing? It's Saturday." At this point I immediately collapsed back onto the bed, pulled the blanket back over me and went back to sleep. Crisis averted...for now. Peace and Love y'all.

Shapeless

We have been going over Revelation during our Wednesday night youth time. Last Wednesday (April 22), we covered chapter 4. If you're not sure what is in that chapter, it is where John has a vision of the throne room of God in Heaven. He describes God in terms of color and sound rather than with shapes and forms. I had never thought about God like that before.

We seem to get caught up rather often on God being not just a man, but a white man, or an old man or a man in the clouds, or the man upstairs. Really when you think about some of those things they are kind of limiting. We tend to make God in our own image rather than realize that we are made in His image. When we start putting all these terms on God it can begin to put limits on what we allow Him to do in our lives.

(Now, don’t misunderstand me on this. For our minds to be able to understand and grasp God we have to use terms that we can understand in order to comprehend Him [by the way the male pronoun is really more generic than anything]. We refer to God in terms of gender I believe more from a relational aspect than from an actual gender designation. If we referred to God as It, that would take all the relationship out of things. Think about it, when we refer to our possessions, we call them “It”, when we refer to a person, we use a descriptive gender pronoun. That has as much to do with our relationship to that person as it does anything else. Granted we will call an unborn baby an it when we don’t know the sex, but that is due more to the fact that we don’t yet have a relationship with that baby. Once we know the sex, we refer to the baby as he or she him or her.)

Ok, I say all of that to say that in order for us to understand God, we first have to personify God in our minds. However God is not limited by the ways that we personify Him. It should be our goal to realize that even though we have a need to think of God in such ways, God is actually beyond those limits, and if we try to confine him to just those limits that is where we begin to have problems in our relationships with both God and others.

So here is my challenge to you: Begin to think of God, as John says in 1 John 4, as Love rather than as just a personification and remember that Love, as it is laid out in 1 Corinthians 13, is limitless and really has no set form or boundary or gender. When we can do this we will begin to see our relationships differently and we can change begin to change the world. Peace and Love y’all.

Not A Man

Here is a music video that I saw/heard today. I think that it is pretty great. Pretty straight forward it would seem. It is by The Michael Gungor Band. I hope you enjoy and that the words will speak some Truth to you as you listen and watch.



Peace and Love Y'all.

Just a smidgen

Do you ever feel small? I mean, have you ever really stopped to think about how small we really are in the over all scheme of things? When you think about it, it can be a little bit daunting really, especially if you consider how big so many other things are.

I got a tweet earlier from one of my favorite authors, Don Miller. Granted I am just one person who happens to be following him on Twitter, and I for sure don't know him (but I do think it would be dang cool if I did), but it still is cool to get updates from him. Anyway he posted something about the entire cosmos that made me start thinking tonight. Check it out, cause it's really pretty cool.

Anyway, he added this verse to it: "What is man that you are mindful of him; the son of man that you care about him?" (Psalm 8:4) That is a question that I first heard nearly 13 years ago. I was listening to the song "God" by Rebecca St. James and that was in the lyrics. It made me stop and really think about it. What are we that God is mindful of us? Then of course when you look at the picture from that link there, you start to really wonder about our place in the cosmos. We think that we are big, and yet the images clearly show us just how small we are as a planet, much less as inhabitants of that planet.

So what is all of this? I am just going on about how little we are? No. See all those years ago as I listened to that song in my car (in cassette form to be sure) I asked God that same question. "God what am I that you are mindful of me, that you care about me?" I was curious, especially when you consider the size of everything. And as I drove a little further, I reached a point that I had to pull over on Interstate 20 between Big Spring and Stanton in order to write down the answer that I heard that day.

I felt like God spoke to me telling me that what made Him mindful of me was the simple fact that I was his creation. He had created me, and in the same way that an artist does not create something and then just turn away from it, that is what it is like with Him. He has invested himself in me and because of that he cares for and is mindful of me. I admit I can understand that so much better now that I have children. I am invested in those children...I could never not care for and be mindful of them. God, the same one that I believe is responsible for all the things in that picture, CARES FOR ME. Wow. I mean really, wow. As I sit here and think about it, it blows my mind.

So even though we are really very small in the over all scheme of things when it comes to created things, we have tremendous value to the one who created us. God is God of the huge things of the (seemingly) eternal cosmos, and yet he is also the God of the small things, like me. Peace and Love y'all.

So Sweet

Ok, I am laying on the floor of the living room this evening watching the end of LOST and Puck comes walking in. Not a big other than the fact that she is supposed to already be in bed and hopefully asleep at this point. She however is not, but she is so very sweet about it. She walks into the living room carrying a blanket with her and talking (she is always talking). Roni and I tell her it is time for her to go to bed.

Before she goes she drops the blanket near me so I pick it up. Within about 5 minnutes she is back and standing in the doorway from the hall to the living room. We are talking to her, telling her that it is time to go to bed, she has school in the morning and she didn't take a nap, things like that. I roll over and take the blanket that I have wadded up and playfully throw it at her. It hits her in the chest and she looks at me and in her sweet, innocent 3 1/2 year old way says "Hey F@*&%er".

I lay there not sure that I have heard her correctly. Roni jumps on it however. She is sitting in the rocking chair hear Puck and immediately says to her "How about calling him a silly head instead." So Puck says "Yeah...silly head" with all the 3 1/2 year old attitude she can muster it seems and we all laugh. She finally heads to bed. Roni wants to know what I think of her recovery and reaction to hearing such a word come from the mouth of our sweetly innocent little girl. I tell her that she did a good job to not make it a much bigger deal than it really was. She was afraid that if she made too much of it, Puck would continue to say it, much like she does with Shut-up.

Earlier this week. either Sunday or Monday, I was standing on the porch. I was minding my own business really talking to Roni a bit. Puck has a stick and is pretending that it is a snake. She proceeds to poke me in the butt with the stick, just on the right cheek, and tells us that the snake just "bited Daddy's butt." Roni again corrects her and she changes it to booty for the next time, but by now it doesn't really matter because Daddy is laughing so hard that I would not be able to correct her if I tried.

I have no idea where it is that she has picked up these words. Well, ok, she has heard her daddy use the word butt before. In fact I've probably called her a silly butt or some such. However it is strange to hear a 3 1/2 year old use such a word correctly. I am convinced that at times however, kids just figure out words. It's not that they are always taught them, or hear them and repeat what they have heard (if that were the case, my kids would have said some other things by now that they shouldn't). I really believe that sometimes, they just take a sound they have heard and they add a letter to it that they shouldn't and it comes out as something not nice.

Or perhaps she really doesn know what that word is and that is how she feels about me sometimes. Peace and Love y'all.

Ask Not...

I have been reading a book lately that I really like. I should actually say that I am re-reading a book that I really like. The book is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and I think it is just about my favorite book of the entire seven book series. This is about the fifth time that I have read it. Roni has always wanted to know what it is about this book that I seem to like so much. To her it is one of her least favorites. It's the longest book of the series and to her it just takes a while to really get going.

For me it has the character that I despise more than any other in the entire series...even more than Voldemort and he is THE bad guy. The character is Delores Jane Umbridge. She is from the Ministry of Magic and comes to Hogwarts as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. The thing is that she is horrible and not just as a teacher. Overall, she is just bad. On top of this, the Ministry is horrible in this book as well. They have decided that it is time for them to take a more "active" role in what goes on at Hogwarts in this book and do so by implementing policies that take away from the students and other teachers. At one point, in a DADA class, Umbridge tells one student to just do her work and don't ask questions. Much of this is based on the Ministry refusing to admit that Voldemort has returned at the end of book four. In the end, a group of students decide to form a "club" and learn defense on their own. It's a great book in my opinion.

The reason that I bring this all up is because it makes me think of the Church in some ways. Don't take this the wrong way, I don't mean all churches by an stretch of the imagination. But being from the Biblebelt and all, I have had some experience with the kind of churches that come to mind. It's the kind of place that doesn't like it when people as questions about faith. It is the kind of place where you are not encouraged to really figure things out for yourself. It is this way and that's it, just accept it and go on. As I read The Order of the Phoenix the other day, this is what came to mind.

First there is the Ministry of Magic. By all accounts it has lost it's focus. It is no longer doing what it was created to do, which is to help guide the magical world. They have lost their focus but they don't want to hear this. When they are confronted with the truth, they turn a blind eye and a deaf ear and do their best to make others the target. They have become power hungry. Those who have gold to give are able to receive a certain amount of influence. This reminds me of the stories that we hear in history of the Church. Priests reaching a point where they believe themselves to be a bigger deal than the Bride of Christ; rich people and nobles gaining special favor in the church because of who they are and what they are able to give in terms of money. This is the problem in the fifth book.

By the middle of the book, a group of students who believe the truth have decided to split off and form their own defense group. They are going against what the Ministry says that they can do, and yet they are doing and thinking for themselves. They will no longer just take what the Ministry says they have to do. It makes me think of when Martin Luther split from the church, when the Wesley brothers chose to do their own thing. Throughout history there are groups who break away from the company line and follow what they know to be the Truth. They realize that it is ok to ask questions and to think for themselves and to figure out this thing called faith. After all, faith is our first line of defense against the dark arts (sorry I knew that was dripping in cheese when I wrote, but I bowed to the temptation anyway).

Here is the comparison that I come up with for all of this. In this book, the Ministry is like the Church in Ephesus from Revelation chapter 2. The Risen Christ tells the church there that they are doing all the right work, but they have lost their focus, lost their forst love. This is how I would compare the Ministry. They are doing some things that they should be doing, but they have lost their focus which is to protect the people of the magical world. At times we as the Church are the same way. We lose our focus and forget the reason that we do the things we do. I pray that now, in this season where we celebrate the power, love grace, majesty and authority of the Risen Christ that we will remember why it is we do the things we do and for whom we do them. Peace and Love y'all.

Limping In

Well the NBA season is winding down. Most teams have only about 6 games to go and there were no games this evening due to the NCAA Men's National Championship game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Tar Heels of North Carolina (Carolina won the game).

The thing is, the NBA playoffs start in a little over a week I believe it is and right now the team that I will be rooting for is limping into these playoffs. The Spurs seem to be having a spot of difficulty right now, which isn't good at this point in the season. This is the time of year that if you are a playoff team you want to be gelling and really hitting your stride as a team, not tweaking the line up to find the best fit.

They call the Spurs a "veteran" team, but really that's just code for old. Look at the team: Tim Duncan is in his 12th year (and has been in the playoffs every single season and won 4 championships) and is dealing with sore knees that tend to keep him from playing on back-to-back nights; Tony Parker is in his 7th season and is only 26, but can he bear all the load in the playoffs?; it was discovered today that Manu Ginobili has a fracture in his right ankle and is out for the rest of the regular season and the playoffs; Michael Finley is still a good player, but he is getting old and playing heavy minutes in his earlier years seems to have extracted some kind of toll on him; Bruce Bowen is a great defender and three point shooter, but the guy can't make a free throw usually for anything. Roger Mason has had a fantastic season, but he has been something of a journeyman in his NBA career, so he is an unknown as far as the playoffs go.

When you add up all the parts what you seem to get is a team that is good and can still compete for a fifth title this summer based on experience alone, and yet they are limping in. They have dropped from the number two seed in the West to the number 3 or possibly worse (depends on how these last 6 games shake out). Teams in the conference are getting younger and adding talent to their rosters. The Spurs, to their credit, don't get to make lottery picks in the draft (consequences of always being in the playoffs). In fact the last time that the Spurs picked in the Lottery, they got Tim Duncan (they haven't picked that high since then). They make it work with foreign players and former lottery picks from other teams. It is amazing that they are able to do what they do. They have never failed to win a Finals series that they reached.

That is why it is so hard to see them more or less limping in to the playoffs this season. I love the Spurs-they are possibly my favorite team of all time regardless of the sport-and I am hoping for them to get it done once again. I will say this for them however: no matter how hard it seems right now, no matter how many bumps there are in the road in to the playoffs, Thank God, that at the very least they are not the Dallas Mavericks. Peace and Love y'all.

Play Time

I went in to play with Boo and Puck and earlier. They were playing "school" and were in need of a teacher, so I was the one who was recruited to fill the role. The only problem that I encountered was the fact that all I was supposed to be doing that I could tell was that I was in the Teachers' Lounge rather than in the classroom doing the job of teaching.

All of this seems pretty normal I guess if you don't know Boo. See I went in to play and spent the whole time I was in there being told the set up of what we were doing. I was in the Teachers' Lounge, but I had gotten there by going over the top of the bunk beds it seems to get there which was, of course, the secret way. Boo on the other hand had discovered the way there and sneaked up and saw me in the lounge talking to the other teachers. Not about anything I guess, just talking. She then went back the other way and told Puck, who had gone to bathroom which allowed for Boo to do this sneaking about. While in the lounge, I couldn't go very far due to the imaginary wall that was there (this is why I had to go over the bunk bed I suppose). Boo was also the only one if the room of pretend students who knew about the secret way to the lounge. She was however going to inform Puck about the secret. Keep in mind that during all of the above, all I was actually doing was laying on the bottom bunk waiting to get to play. That was all that I really got to do as far as this time of playing seeing as how Boo and Puck starting fighting soon after that.

This is not the first time either that I have gone to play with Boo and didn't really get much chance to actually play. It used to be that I would go in to play with her, and we would spend the whole time watching her line up her Little People. This was so they could all go to "the" party" or whatever.

Now maybe it's just me, but I really don't remember playing that way. When my friends and I got together to play something, we didn't spend a lot of time setting it up with all kinds of stories and details...we just grabbed what we were playing with and went to it. We might decide on a couple of things before hand, like what the game was we were playing, but I'm pretty sure that we didn't take all kinds of time laying it all out before we played. That would have taken too long for us.

So maybe it's just Boo that likes to play like that. Maybe it's lots of kids that are that age. Whatever it is, it sure makes play time different for me when it comes to them. Peace and Love y'all.

How He Loves

This past summer at church camp we did this song called How He Loves. It was an awesome song. You know how it is when you are in worship and there is one particular song that just really stirs you? That is what this song was like for me. Every time we would sing this song, there was something that would just resonate deep in my being.

I have looked for this song ever since then but I'd had no real luck in finding it. Until last week, a young lady that I know had a line of it as her status on Facebook so she was able to hook me up with the name of the artist as well as the name of the song and from there I was able to find it. Now I would like to share the words with you.

How He Loves
John Mark McMillan

He is jealous for me, Love's a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of His wind and Mercy.
When all of the sudden I'm unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
and I realize just how beautiful You are, and great Your affections are for me.

Oh how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us so.

Yea He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves.

So we are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to Redemption by the Grace in His eyes,
If Grace is an ocean we're all sinking.
So Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest.
I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way...

He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh, how He Loves.
He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
Oh how He Loves us,
He Loves us.

I also wanted to post the video of the song as well. I will admit that it is a little bit long, but the first part of it is John Mark McMillan explaining why he wrote the song and what it is all about for him. I hope that if you watch it and listen to the song that it will move you like it has moved so many others. Peace and Love y'all.

Where the Action Is

As long as I can recall, action figures have been a staple of the toy industry for boys. These have been G.I. Joe, Masters of the Universe, Star Wars, and so on. These figures allowed little boys (and sometimes bigger boys as well) to create and live out adventures in their imaginations. One of the best parts was always the little stickers and such on the packages that would proclaim what the special "action" was the figures could perform. "Kung Fu chopping Action!!" "Weapons actually fire!!" These were the things that would, at times, draw me to the figures that I wanted to play with. These were the things that were so cool about the toys.

Now there are "alternative" action figures for sell at select Wal-Mart stores. These are figures that I'm sure some would call "the original action heroes" and they are, but I just wonder what kinds of adventures and actions people will be able to come up with that will be all that different from the other action figures they have. Starting soon, in the Wal-Mart stores that sell the most Bibles, they will also offer Bible Action Figures. So far there are three that I know of. With that in mind, here is my list of who would be good "Bible action figures" and what their special action could be.

10) Noah- With super hammering action (Ark and animals not included)

9) King David- With spinning sling arm action (Bathsheba and Goliath sold separately)

8) Samson- With donkey jawbone swinging action (Philistines soldiers sold separately)

7) Daniel- With super praying action and lion with non-working jaws

6) Aaron- With staff and miniature golden calf statue

5) Moses- With 10 Commandments and burning bush (Israelites sold separately)

4) Balaam- With talking donkey (batteries not included)

3) Elijah- Alter & sacrifice included (Prophets of Baal sold separately)

2) Paul- Comes with scraps of cloth for healing, and a viper (snake, not car)

1) Jesus- With rising hand (squeeze his knees) "miracle" action (Apostles sold separately)

What do you think? Peace and Love y'all.

And In This Corner...

I think that the MMA is getting a little carried away. I understand the draw of it, but come on. I just read that there are allegations that South Oak Cliff High School in Dallas made some students settle their differences by squaring off in some bare knuckled cage fights.

That's right, the teachers encouraged the students to settle their disputes by locking them in a cage there at the school and letting them fight. No word on if they were hardcore matches or just strait pin falls. Perhaps they had a few tag team matches as well, I'm not sure.

Regardless it is said that the principal knew what was going on. Whether or not he was there for any of the fights I don't know. He could have been a guest referee I suppose. I know that this is really not a good thing, but imagine for a few moments what this could all look like.

In the hallways between classes fighters are giving interviews and calling out their opponents. If one guy was just getting pounded there is a run in by some of his buddies to help. Go all WWE for it.

Maybe the people got wise to what was going on when the big octogon was ordered for the field house. Or maybe they started announcing the matches during the morning announcements. The Hell in a Cell match tipped them off. Regardless of what your view is of punishment in schools and how that should be handled, THIS IS NOT A GOOD IDEA!!! There has to be a better way. Peace and Love y'all.

In or Out

So I was talking to a friend of mine today and we were discussing John 3. He will be preaching on this passage in a couple of weeks and we were talking about the direction that he might want to take with it. After bandying about the idea of using one of the more obscure verses as his sole point of reference, or listing one as the verse to have read and then going totally away from it, we talked about something with some meat.

The question that was posed was about Nicodemus. Nick came to Jesus and questioned him about who he was and what he was teaching. Not that big a deal really, seems that people wanted to know this about Jesus, which would help explain why there were always such large crowds around Jesus. But if you read the first half of the chapter with Nick's story you see will see what it was that had us talking.

Nicodemus was a pharisee you see. So pretty much by this time the pharisees weren't so sure that they liked what Jesus was doing. He was ruffling some feathers and going if directions that they didn't really like. The thing is, Nicodemus didn't seem to be completely convinced that what he was saying was bad. So he went to talk to him about it...at night...when no one would see him talking to Jesus. Seems kinda weird right?

So the question was "Why do you think Nicodemus went to Jesus at night?" The answer seems pretty obvious at first glance, right? He was a pharisee and was afraid of what the other pharisees would think if they knew he was consorting with the "enemy" as it were. I mean, if you don't want people to know what you are doing, you do it under the cover of darkness. So the first thought is that he was scared of what the others would think if they knew.

This is the answered that I posed to the stated question. It makes sense. Damon then posed a different answer to his question. He said "What if the reason that he went at night (other than fear) was to be able to avoid having to share Jesus with any of the crowds? Or some combination of the two."

Now this was an insight that I had never considered before. It was something that had not even crossed my mind as his reason. We always hear about how he didn't want to upset his standing with the pharisees or disturb the status quo. But what if there was another motive to why he went at night? What if it was because he didn't want to have to share his time with Jesus?

It would make sense really when you think about it. The crowds that followed Jesus were huge. Can you imagine what it would be like to try and be able to even get close to him? And as far as getting to ask him a question and get to have some discussion about it? Good luck with that. So going when the crowds are gone makes a great deal of sense.

Aren't we all just like Nicodemus though at times? We are selfish with Jesus. We don't want to share him with others. Or we want to "try out" Jesus but we don't really want anyone to know that we are. We are scared and we want to be hidden...just like Nick. Jesus talks about how things that are done in the dark will come to the light. To this particular situation it's like he is saying that it's fine to start off secretly, but at some point you have got to take a stand one way or another. You're either in or your not.

We have to make a choice at some point...will we continue to go about in the dark, hoping no one knows we are actually into Jesus, or will we step into the light and live our faith for others to see. Nicodemus' story ends (for us at least) with him being the lone voice to oppose the "trial" of Jesus (that we know of) and he is there to help take him from the cross and bury him. Nicodemus was willing to step out of the dark into the light, will we be willing to do the same? Peace and Love y'all.

Found

So I was in Ohio last week and I was listening to this new radio station (for me) and I heard this song on there on multiple occasions. I'm sure that you have probably heard this if you listen to the radio at all. The song is called You Found Me by The Fray and it is incredible. I just really dig what he is saying in his lyrics. If you haven't heard it yet click on the video below and give it a listen real quick.

The words of this song seem to express what we all feel when tragedy hits us. There is that sense of pain and doubt anger and we wonder where was God in all this crap that is happening. We want to have our moment to stand before God-with-skin-on and ask the question "Where were you when this happened in my life?"

The thing is, that's fine. God is able to take that from us. It will not alter our standing with Him if we have questions about where he is in the darkest of times in our lives. That is part of what it means to have faith though, to believe and understand that there will be times when it feels and seems that God is a long way off, yet we believe and trust anyway. It brings to mind the story in Genesis of Jacob wrestling with the angel.

Here is what Isaac Slade of The Fray had to say about his lyrics:

"I dreamt I ran into God on a street corner. He looked like Bruce Springsteen and he was smoking a cigarette. I had it out with him and asked 'Where were you when all this bad stuff was happening to those very undeserving, good people?'" Slade, who's Christian faith is very important to him added, "There were tough times. I was questioning my faith, angry at things that had happened in my life and in the lives of my friends. A friend had suffered a miscarriage, I had lost my grandfather. I was angry and the song felt angry and hopeless too. I imagined what I'd say to God, in the face of all the crap my friends have gone through in the last couple of years." (www.songfacts.com)

I think that is a place that most of us have been. Here is one more quote from Slade about the song:

"It demands so much of my faith to keep believing, keep hoping in the unseen. Sometimes the tunnel has a light at the end, but usually they just look black as night. This song is about that feeling and the hope I still have, buried deep in my chest."

For all of you out there that might be feeling like this right now, know that there is hope. Sometimes you just have to really look to find it. Peace and Love y'all.

I'd Like That Back Please

Ok, I have a post that I have been sitting on for about a week now. As you may know I flew to Ohio last week for a youth ministry conference. Well on the second part of my flight there I had a chance to read some of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer newspaper. As I was reading through it, there was a small story that caught my attention. I thought about sharing it then, but I never really had a good chance to write over the weekend. So I wanted to share it tonight. This just seems to say volumes about the state of our culture (at least to me).

The paper has a section (at least on this day they did) titled "5 Things You Should Know Today." This was the #5 thing in that section, but it seemed to stand out the most to me.

The Associated Press reported Wednesday that a court has rejected a New York surgeon's claim that he should get $1.5 million in his divorce settlement because he donated a kidney to his wife. In a ruling Tuesday, matrimonial referee Jeffery Grob says the kidney was a gift. It was donated in 2001, during happier times in the marriage. Grob says a wide range of items are considered marital property, but donated organs would not be among them.

What a crazy world. So, if you are thinking about donating any vital (or otherwise) organs to a spouse you better be dang sure that this is the real deal because you won't be able to get that back from them. It's not exactly like when you break off the engagement and ask for the ring back. Can you put organ donation in to a pre-nup you think?

Again it just kind of stands out that the guy wanted to get paid for doing something (the right thing even) for someone he loved (at least at some point). I think the funniest thing though is the fact that the "matrimonial referee" had to clarify that donated organs don't fall into the range of marital property. Peace and Love y'all.

Not Here

Man it has been a while it seems since the last time I wrote anything. I'm somewhat debating the amount of writing that I want to do, simply because I don't want to write stuff just to say that I wrote it, but rather I want it to be worth reading and so I want it to be that I have something to say...anyway, that is all beside the point.

I spent this last weekend in the state of Ohio at a youth ministry conference. It was a good conference and I enjoyed the opportunity to learn some new things and see what is out there to help with the field of youth ministry. On top of that I got to hang out with some family that I don't get to see very often so that was just like gravy...only not creamy, or brown or done with gibblets...that is an odd expression then when you really think about it...but I digress. The conference was good, but it is always nice to be home.

All of the above however is not what I wanted to actually write about tonight. I have something else that is on my mind actually that I wanted to share. All that other stuff is just to more or less get you caught up on where I have been as of late. What I wanted to write about is something that struck me last night as I was reading in the Book of Mark.

In chapter two of the Gospel of Mark, there was a passage that really caught my attention. It made me stop and ask the question "When did following Jesus become something that only respectable people can or should be allowed to do?"

Here is what got me started on this train of thought. In chapter 2, Jesus is going along headed back to Capernaum and he passes by the offices of Levi the tax collector (also known as the apostle Matthew). Jesus calls Levi to follow him, and he does. That is all in verses 13-14. Verse 15 goes on to say "Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus' followers.)" There, did you catch that? The next to last line mentions that there were "other disreputable sinners at the dinner", besides just tax collectors, who were bad enough. But the biggie is what we read in the parenthsises after that: There were many of this kind of people among Jesus' followers.

It wasn't that there were a few who tagged along on the edges. No there were many people of this kind among Jesus' followers. It was not the Pharisees who were following Jesus around. It was the rabble, the rough crowd, the people that no one else had much to do with. If you read on in verse 16 and following, you see what the response was of the Pharisees to this. They were appalled by the people that Jesus hung out with. Yet, there were many of them who followed Jesus.

I've been doing youth ministry for nearly 13 years now. There are two phrases that I completely hate to hear from people. The first is "We've never done it that way before." The second is this: "Well those aren't the kind of people that you would want showing up at church anyway." I can't stand to hear that from people. It's not just when it comes to the youth either.

It seems that these would be exactly the type of people you would want in church. These were the very people who were following Jesus to start with. Jesus' response to the Pharisees who said basically the same thing? He told them that he wasn't there to call the righteous but rather those who knew they were sinners in need of his grace.

I heard a story this past weekend of a church in Florida. The guy telling the story is a youth leader who was leading a training seminar at the church. He talked about the servant heart of the people of this church, both youth and adults. After the training was all done, he and his co-presentor went to dinner with the youth pastor of the church. In the course of the meal, they asked about how it was that this church was so loving and accepting and had such a servants heart. The youth pastor replied that as best he could tell it was the result of a prayer that the Senior pastor prayed everyday. What this man would pray was this: "God, send us the youth that no other church in town wants. Send us the adults that no other church in town wants."

So my question again is this: When did it become that it was only the respectable folks who could follow Jesus and come to church? Peace and Love y'all.

With Authority

That's just dang impressive to watch. And the girl actually dunks it with some power and authority. Regardless of if she is 6'8" or not, the most impressive thing about it is the fact that she is a SHE. You don't see it very often. Peace and Love y'all.

Questions about Judas

This year at Easter our church will be doing a small dramatic production as a Holy Thursday service. The production is called "Two Faces in the Shadows" and it deals with a dialogue going on between Peter and Judas. I think it will be very interesting really. I will be portraying Judas in it (thanks to Roni volunteering me at a worship committee meeting). Actually I don't mind playing that part. Besides, someone has to do it right?

Actually I have thought about Judas a lot in my life. Honestly there is a part of me that wants to be sympathetic to the guy. He was just doing his job right? Of course according to what John says about him in his Gospel, he was also stealing from the purse and was more concerned about money and power and prestige than he was about what Jesus was really teaching. He is a dark figure in the light of what Christ was and is.

The question that always comes to my mind is how in the world he could spend three years as a disciple of Jesus and not be affected by what he saw and heard on a daily basis. Yeah he was interested in his own power and prestige, but so were the other disciples. They argued about who was the greatest and who would have the seats of honor in Jesus' kingdom. But they eventually got it. If Judas had stuck around for a while longer, would he have gotten it too? I once heard the difference in the reactions for what he did and what Peter did was that Peter came back a broken man searching for forgiveness while Judas was overwhelmed with his choice and hung himself rather than awaiting the return of his Master.

So the question surfaced in my mind this morning about Judas. I have long wondered about where he ended up. Was he sentenced to Hades for what he had done, or will we see him in the Kingdom when that day comes? I have thought about the doctrine that Jesus descended into Hell in order to free the captives...those who didn't have an opportunity to know Him and his healing, freeing Grace and Love. And I have wondered if Judas could possibly be among those who were set free. It is a great thought to have really. Judas, the scoundrel, the betrayer, forgiven and released from what he had done. It was something that had to be done after all.

But the new question that played in my mind this morning was this: Is Judas perhaps an example of what Jesus tells us is the unforgivable sin, blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? From what I have understood of this, it is to be presented with the evidence of the Christ, of His Grace and Truth and to simply walk away and harden your heart and say that "I don't need this." Judas, it seems, fits into this understanding. He was there for three years with Jesus. He saw the miracles, heard the teachings, experienced the Grace and Love that were embodied in Jesus, and yet he turned away and betrayed him for 30 pieces of silver. He made a choice to do this.

Truth be told there is a little bit of Judas in all of us. Granted it may not be that we turn our backs and walk away from Jesus. Rather we make the choice to betray Him by attempting to conform him to what we want rather than conforming our lives to what He desires for us. That is what Judas is guilty of. He sought to bend Jesus to what he wanted the Messiah to be rather than submitting himself to what the Messiah wanted him to be.

So will we see Judas worshiping and praising the Lamb who was slain when we finally reach that place? I have no idea honestly. It is just something that we will have to wait to find out. But until that day, I hope to live my life in a way that when I do find out the answer, people won't be pondering the same things about me as we do Judas. Peace and Love y'all.

12 Feet

This past weekend was the NBA All-Star Weekend in Phoenix. This is always a weekend that has some cool stuff that happens. Plus the game is usually really high scoring because no one cares too much about playing D. Of course the highlights of the weekend usually seem to be the various individual contests that go on, most notably the Three Point Shoot out and the Slam Dunk Contest.

The video below is of Dwight Howard's second round dunk. The rim is set at 12 feet. In case you didn't know already, the regulation height for the rim is 10 feet.



He made it look too easy. That is how I am able to dunk on an 8 foot goal. It's nice and easy and not really a reach. He even tried to get them to go higher after the one dunk, but they either weren't able to, wouldn't, or he ran out of time. It would have cool to see him do 13 feet though. Peace and Love y'all.

Performance

So there is a lot of talk and such right now in the world of sports about the use of PEDs (Performance Enhancing Drugs). It seems to be focused primarily on Major League Baseball, but the NFL has also been looked at in the last few years. Really the NBA and NHL are the only "big" leagues that you haven't heard much about as far as PEDs go.

Now, all of this did get me thinking. In some regards I can understand the thinking behind taking these drugs. You are looking for an edge, something to be able to continue on at a high level. It got me to wondering though: what are some professions that we should start testing for PEDs? Here is a list of 10 that came to mind (with a nod of thanks for the contributions from R-Dub).

10- Administrative Assisstant- Think about it. Who would ever think to test an Administrative Assisstant for PEDs? What would the signs be? They answer the phone faster, make copies more quickly and their typing ability soars through the roof. Things to be on the look out for if you suspect your Administrative Assisstant is juicing.

9- Female Fashion Models- Signs that maybe there is rampant use of PEDs in the modeling world: They actually look like normal healthy human beings, they are able to get into and out of their turns on the runway with greater fluidity.

8- Journalist- Mainly print journalists here. Look for stories that are better and acurate quotations of what was said by those who were interviewed and deadlines reached on time.

7- Author- Less confusing plots and the number of books written to sky rocket.

6- Artist- Paintings make more sense and sculptures are of things that can be recognized.

5- Scientists- Look for experiments that go faster and yield more immediate results. Also look for better calculations and formulas.

4- Photographer- They will do better getting young children to not cry and to look at the camera. Also the pictures will be composed better and the process will go faster for everyone.

3- Seamstress/Taylor- Sewing ability and stats go through the roof. Thread flying off the spools.

2- Preacher- Sermons become more concise and to the point. It would seem that one side effect of PEDs, the "roid rage" has been around for years in the pulpit--we have just always called them Southern Baptists.

1- Librarian- Look for books to be back on shelves quicker and new books to be in earlier. Also look for threatening late notices warning of more than just a "fine" for overdue books.

So that's it. These are professions that have never to my knowledge had any history of testing for PEDs, but with the obvious explosion and expansion of their use, it may now be time to consider testing these very professions. Peace and Love y'all.