Have you ever not been able to sleep?

I am away from home in a hotel room and can't sleep. So I got to thinking...
If you knew what you know now, do you think that you would have gotten married in the first place? I know I probably would not have...

Now wait a minute, it is not about me. I think if my wife knew all the stupid decisions I have made, how much I hog the covers and mess up the bed, how sometimes I zone out and don't listen to her she might have decided not to marry me in the first place.
Now me on the other hand, I am so lucky I got her to say "I do" before she found out all the things that "I don't"!!

I love my wife!!

Convertibles...

I just love convertibles!! I happened to get a convertible Mustang on my last trip and decided to go "topless" for a little while running down the highway.
Here are some rules for running with the top down...
1) Everyone will look at you. With the top down it is like a traffic accident, everyone wants to see who is driving that car. So prepared to be stared at, thumbed at (as in good thumbs up) and notived wherever you go.
2) If you have a bald spot, it will get burnt. Trust me on this.
3) Bugs will fly into your car with the top down. Hey they are interested too in the convertible and will fly in for a closer look. Note, if you are above 6' plan on a few finding your forehead as they miss the top of the windshield.
4) if you have loose papers laying around, well you will lose papers.
5) You can not put the top up while traveling at 60 MPH no matter how fast the rains are coming in. Keep an eye on the sky and be aware for raindrops at 60 are no picnic.
6) You are not protected from bird droppings with the top down. Just so you know.
7) All those smells that you don't smell with the windows up you do with the top down. Like the ocean salt smell as you cruise down the beach hiway. The wild flowers blossums as they bloom in the fields, and the pig farm you pass by none too quickly.
8) Did I mention that sunburns on the bald spots really hurt?
9) Did I mention that if you are above 6 feet and wear a hat, that said hat will disappear at approximately 53 miles per hour.
10) Enjoy yourself. No one hates to see someone riding around in a convertible with a frown on their face. Come on, have you ever seen that grumpy person and think what must be wrong with them when they have a convertible and they are STILL not happy...
Peace!

I been everywhere man, I've been everywhere...

Johnny Cash used to sing that song. I am living it.
I have been seeing a lot of this beautiful country the month of June. It amazes me the complexity of creation. Can you imagine putting all of this into order? Can you imagine that all of this just happened?
There will be arguments and conversations about how life came about, but I find the more I try to rationalize and explain it, the more I find that I do not know.
You know, I have decided that not knowing everything is a good thing. I don't need to know everything, some things I really don't want to know. But the more I know, the less I seem to grasp, and the more I grasp, the less I know.
So it is OK not to know everything. But one thing I do know, we sure live in a pretty country!

Improving?

Are you improving? I was thinking of this the other day when I was discussing basketball with my daughter. Are you improving in every aspect of your life?
In school we are always improving so we can go from one grade to another, slowly climbing the ladder till we reach graduation. Then some people go onto college and further their educations while others learn a trade and improve in their careers.
But some people cease to improve. That bothers me. You see we can always get better at everything in our life. There is nothing that we can't improve on.
So are you impoving? First you need to set goals, just like in school, look at your grade, determine where you want to be and work toward it.
So improve, what do you have to loose.

Hi there!!

I know you are reading this right now. I jus thought I would say hi. To those I see on a regular basis, well I can't wait to see you again. To those that I don't see on a regular basis, well I miss you and can't wait to see you again.
I am amazed at how many people stay connected through the blogs. It is an avenue to share and stay a part of something even though you are so far away.
So be well and I will see you...sometime.

An Ear of Corn

This had to be the biggest ear of corn I have ever saw... I almost wrecked when I saw it as it appeared to be eating this house. I got to thinking about genetic engineering, remember the attack of the Giant Tomoatoes? Well this is the attack of the 50 foot tall ear of corn.

That is a bunch of water, in Pensacola Bay. Crazy thing about this, we were on a bridge to go the Hemmingways restaurant, and had to cross about a mile and half section of water to get back to the mainland. And about halfway across from both sides there are these unfinished bridges. They do not connect as they stop probably a half mile from each other but they parralel the main roadway most of the way. It is a fishing bridge. Now I started thinking, what would be more practical? Making a seperate bridge to fish off of, or expanding the original bridge to make a fishing lane? I would think one bridge would be cheaper than two... Sometimes we are like that in life, we complicate things more than they need to be. Just remember, should the Lord tarry, no one gets out of this life alive... Be Blessed!

Must be Canadians, eh?

I am in beautiful Pensacola, Florida today. Got to go eat at Hemmingway's on Pensacola Beach. You know, Earnest Hemmingway's place... anyway, the waves were rolling, the the wind was blowing and I would say it is in the high 70's and there were people in bathing suits on the beach. As we were looking out the window eating lunch, I thought, they must be from Canada!! Too chilly and too windy for my taste. They would probably try to roll me back into the water anyway thinking I had beached myself.
A shout out to all our serving military and to all that have served. Pensacola is a hot bed of Naval Activity, on my flight down I sat next to a young Marine, had two young marines directly behind me and a couple across the aisle. Weren't nobody taking over our plane I will tell you. Although I did kind of realize that I am so far out of touch half the stuff they were talking about I could not understand. What I did understand is that Marines on leave do some pretty crazy stuff and that I am too old to do crazy stuff anymore!!
Heading to Minnesota, where there are no Ts and everything has a D in it.

Somtimes...

I wonder about random thoughts...
Roller Coasters, why do they not have vomit shields on them? You know we have all been there where we get sat next to a youngster who hasn't taken Dramamine and you just know that you are going to get thrown up on.

Will we have cars in heaven? I mean I really want a '63 Impala convertible, and will GOD allow burnouts on the streets of gold?

When the rapture takes place, what will happen to all the stuff that we leave behind? Will it be a free for all to come and get out possesions or can we leave a "rapture will"? To my unsaved cousin Vinny, I leave my stamp collection and my 78 Pacer.

Can you move when you get to heaven? What if you don't care for your neighbors? Can you go to GOD and request a different mansion if your neighbor is playing loud worship music all the time or doesn't keep his yard mowed.

Have you seen the commericals we have on TV now days? It is embarrasing enough when you have to discuss with your kids what Viagra does and what ED means. But now there is this new stuff that, well, uhmmm, let's see, how do I say this? This new stuff that makes your "ego" bigger. Savvy? So what's next? Get taller pills?

Twitter? I used to get into trouble in school because I would twitter with my thumbs. Who knew I was about 20 years ahead of the times.

I deleted my Facebook account on accident. So all these new friends who used to be old friends, do they show up as new friends or as old friends? Can I count them twice? And is it bad to not add friends that turned out not to be friends in the first place when I reset my friends? And do I have to be everybody's friend. Where is the button that you hit that says, "I really do not like you and don't want to be your friend, so there!" ?

Why can't a major leauge pitcher throw a strike when he really needs it? It is only 60'-6" to the plate and you do it for a living? Come on, throw that meatball down the middle!!

If Baseball is 90% mental, why wasn't Einstien an all star?

Rain rain go away

Come again some other day. Remember that childhood rhyme? Well I am saying it today. We are in a perpetual flood for the last couple of weeks. It has rained almost every day and I am not talking a little bit. But do you know what?
The rain sure does make all the plants grow very nicely. The old dead bushes, seem to sprout up with renewed green. The trees seem to just glow, and the flowers, well they glisten in the morning.
Life is like that, we go through storms in our lives, but in the midst of the storms we grow stronger, we sprout up and sometimes we glisten with the washing that comes with the storm.
So lift up your heads, drink in the storms, for sunshine will surely come!

Busy

You know sometimes we get just too busy. Busy with work, busy with church, busy with family and busy with just things.
Sometimes we can get so busy that we forget the things that are important to us. That is the time when we should just set back and make sure we have our priorities right. We might need to re-organize some things. We might need to just say no to some things. We might need to let some things lay for the time being.
Many times we are the ones responsible for our own overloaded schedule, so we have no one to blame but ourselves.
So when you feel overwhelmed, step back, evalauate and make good choices to take care of all the things that are pressing us each day.

Emergency anyone?

Yep I am in Huntsville Alabama today. Flew in this morning, and on the way realized I had no car rental set up. No problem you say, just call and make a reservation? Well not since there was a tornado down here that wrecked a bunch of cars and everyone who had insurance has rented them. Not a one available. Nada. Zilch. So what am I to do, I have a meeting an hour north of here and four hours south. What did I do, I became a slug and asked my client to haul my carcass around. Yep I am a freeloader. At least till we get to Mon-gum-ry (Montgomery for you nautherners) where I will get my own wheels. Talk about a little stress to get your blood pumping in the morning.
It was almost as stressful as listening to my wife tell my teenage daughter that she could not stay up all night washing clothes. Actually she was going to sleep for two hours, then change out the washer and dryer, sleep two more hours and then change out again every two hours till morning. My wife said, "you will not do that", She says, "I have no choice". My wife says, "Absolutely not", My daughter says, "I have too!". Well she said she had no clothes to wear to school. Now did she really have no clothes or did she not have the clothes she "wanted" to wear? Well her emergency could have been adverted if she had taken care of her needs over the weekend when she was laying around watching movies. And I guess my car needs could have been taken care of if I had made arrangements earlier. So cut down on emergencies, plan ahead!!

Viva Las Vegas...

What is so good about Las Vegas?
I mean it is cool to see the architecture, all the lights and such but I just don't get it. To get to anywhere you have to travel through a maze of casinos and meeting rooms. Probably three times I got so turned around I thought I was not going to find my way out.
The people are not that friendly really, the city not that clean, and the airport isn't that great.
So is it all about the gambling? I saw person after person throwing money down on the tables and inserting into the slots but those people looked as poor as I.
I guess the attitude of my cabbie summed it up. He retired to Vegas in 1991, had a nice retirement account and such that he and his wife decided to live there. So I am thinking to myself why he drives a cab? And he answered and said that he drives a cab for the insurance and for his gambling money. So I am thinking to myself, you know if he saved all that gambling money, the things he could buy for him and his wife in their old age.
I guess it is the age old question, do you think if I let it ride I can get it all back at one time?
They don't have those polished marble floors, the nice architecture and the big TVs because everyone is a winner. That town was built on a whole lot of losers!!
It is good to be home!

Chicken, its not just for dinner...

Have you ever met someone who is just plain "chicken". I find myself sometimes feeling like a chicken in some senses because I want to avoid conflict. Does lack of courage lead oneself to becoming a "chicken"? Does avoiding conflict make you "chicken" or wise?
I have thought about this and have decided that avoiding conflict because you are scared makes you a "chicken". But to avoid conflict to keep someone from getting hurt does not make you a "chicken" but makes you a good friend.
See there is a line that has to be crossed in each situation, just as you would not let a toddler "toddle" onto a highway, you should also keep your friends from getting hurt. But when you allow your friends to get hurt because you would not speak up, you are a "chicken".
A good friend is not just one who will tell you the truth, but will also tell you the truth when they know that it is not what you want to hear.
So don't be a "chicken", be a good friend.

Politics

Now I hate to get involved in a political discussion as everybody's views and opinions differ about as much as humanely possible. But here goes.
I believe we are in a dangerous position in this country today. What I see is a total shift from the foundation that was laid by our founding fathers.
Take a quarter out of your pocket, or a dollar, or a penny and you will see that all of them have one thing in common. "In GOD we trust" is inscribed on each of them and all of our currency for the United States. But is that really true today? I don't think so.
We see the US giving Billions (with a B) of dollars in bailouts to companies such as AIG, GM, CitiBank, subsidizing banks who made risky lendings, and securing employment to scores of people who have bilked the system for the last ten years, I think it is time to indeed to take "in GOD we trust" off of our money as it is not true anymore. At least for most of America.

We should replace it with, "in the Congress we trust"... well that may not work. How about "in the Senate we trust"... uhm no as well. How about "in our elected leadership we trust"? Well that probably is not true either. "In the Treasury Department we trust"? Well they have made a mess of things too. So maybe just "in the US we trust". Well I could see that twenty years ago, but today probably not. Many people of this country have put their trust in our new policy makers and leadership and I am afraid as things get worse that trust will erode. And then where will we be? I think that we will continue to have some trust issues till we put our trust in the one that is indeed trustworthy. You know the one that is mentioned on our money for at least today.

Forward Thinking...

How much forward thinking do you do? If you are like most, we think more of what we have done or what we need to do in the next small segment of time that we never get around to thinking long term.
You see we can get so caught up in the moment, we loose sight of the future. Or we get so focused on the past that we can't catch a vision for the future.
I was asked in a job interview once, "where do you see yourself in five years?". It was a good question and as a hungry job seeking individual, I answered, "as a valuable asset to this company". I got the job but ended up staying 20 years.
When we think, where do we want to be in 5 years, 10 years or more, do we really chart a course to get there or do we just pipe dream it and kill the vision just after it has been birthed?
So start dreaming of tomorrow and the next day and chart a course to get you to that place in life. Be forward thinking!!

Kids...

Man they are a handfull sometimes, cost a lot of money to raise but I think worth every dollar.
I wanted to brag on my kids for a bit, we don't do that often enough. Really we probably spend more time criticizing them than we do encouraging them.

My oldest was born on Father's Day and it is appropriate since she is almost just like me. She is so talented, in many different areas. She plays every sport that she can in school and is looking to possibly continue athletic endeavors at the college level. I pray she does as we can use every scholarship available. She is talented musically as well. She plays bass guitar and drums and is good at both. She recently went to competition where you have to play a drum solo. Well she kept trying to back out and she did not put her best foot forward to practice and at the dress rehearsal she played for one minute fifteen seconds or something like that. At competition they give you FIVE minutes which is a long time to play a drum solo. So she takes her prepared minute, and at competition decides that is not long enough. So she starts with what she prepared and then played another FOUR minutes off the cuff. Yep, just made it up and kept playing. She rated superior with her spur of the moment effort. I din't have to wonder what would have happened had she prepared a five minute performance in the first place. She would have blown people away. She is so good sometimes, she allows her talent to carry her, when she starts applying that talent to some practice and puts her mind to be the best. Watch out!! Oh and she is a straight A student as well taking college courses as a 15 year old. Brains too? It is not fair one girl should be so blessed.

My daughter number two is so different from daughter number one. Number two athletically was not as big, but really was a good athlete at her age. She got hurt early on and decided that sports was not her thing. So she gets into music. She can sing, play the guitar, pick around on the piano, she is a runway model and getting paid (products and discounts at the places she models for, that is getting paid as far as I see it) to do it. She is a cheerleader, leader and also is a straight A student as well. She is so respectful, polite and a joy to be around. And she has a handicap. She was born with heart problems, had open heart surgury at 8 days old, had a pacemaker put in and had a heart surgury procedure earlier this year and yet nothing slows her down. You forget she even has the issue until you see the scar and are reminded of the surguries. She will end up at college somewhere, either as a cheerleader, or as a brainiac or on some TV show or fashion show. Who knows, the world is definately her oyster, and I don't even know if she liks oysters!!

My oldest son. Well he is so sweet. He looks like a model, plays middle linebacker and has dimples that when he gets older will probably get him in trouble. He is still a little shy, and he doesn't realize how good looking, how smart or even how good he really is. He is at that age where his voice is starting to change, his feet are getting bigger and he is starting to fill out. He also is a force at wanting to get better in sports and will work to do it. He is going to be a beast when he gets older, I just hope his sweet spirit stays with him. I think he will be a football player that will knock your block off, then reach down and help you up and pray for you as you wobble back to the huddle. Oh and he is a BRAIN also. He reads like a little widow woman, always a book in his hand, he and his Quiz Bowl team are some of the best in the state and he has a ton of knowledge stored in that head of his. He is a lot like his Dad in that aspect. He remembers everything. One day he will either be playing middle linebacker and smacking people, running a corporation or spending eight weeks on Jeopardy schooling Alex on who the first century warlords of east Asia were.

My youngest son. Where to start. Well from the beginning he wasn't supposed to be here. My wife and I tried to quit at three kids. She had a tubal and ended up pregnant with number four. I remember thinking he was going to cost me a lot of retirement funds and at least three more years of kids in the house when we found out about him. He has yet to start sports, he would rather set around playing video games. But he personality is so bright he just about makes everyone laugh as he comes into a room. He is musical like the rest of his family, taking piano lessons, and is a natural comedian. He is still so sweet that he likes to set next to me and has no problem showing affection for his family. He is smart as well, not book smart yet but he can figure out a way to take most anything apart, and then put it back together.

So all in all I am blessed with the kids I have been given. Everyday I thank GOD for the days I have been blessed to have them and I know that I will miss the days when they are not an every day part of my life. So I will enjoy them as long as I have them. Love you kids.

Music

Wow it has been a week since I shared. That is what I think of blogging, sharing ideas, dreams, fears and such with one another. We are all in this together.

Music is a big part of my life, I play it, write it, dream about it and fear it. Confused yet?

You see music is hard work, and I am not just talking about learning to play. Music is hard because it takes so many things working together to make it sound good, let alone great. Take last night for instance, we kicked off this band. Well we have practiced like four times, which is really not enough for us to gel and know exactly what each other will do. We had our ups and downs, but all in all in was not too bad. But in those times where we were struggling a great point was made to me. When we had a little issue with tempo, ALL the instruments tried to fix it, at the same time. Yeah it was ugly, the drummer got a little off, the guitar tried to play louder to get the drummer back on the right beat, the other guitar then got lost trying to decide to follow the other guitar or the drummer, the bass player (me) then got really loud trying to get everyone to follow me and the leader was snapping fingers trying to get everyone together. Can I tell you that an eletric guitar or two, a bass guitar and a drum set are all WAY MORE LOUD than a pair of snapping fingers? But guess what, the LEADER was the one snapping the fingers and if all of us had taken a deep breathe, quit trying to do our own thing and melded into the tempo of the snapping fingers together, we would not have gone two or three measures where it sounded like chaos.

GOD is like that sometimes, he is snapping off the tempo, but we want to march to our beat, or the beat of our friend, and life becomes chaos until we settle into the groove provided by the Father and everything works out...sometimes I wonder if it would be better being a one man band... but then I see a picture and think, I don't want to look like that!

Define; Great?

I am having a hard time defining great. Yeah, I know but great just doesn't seem that great anymore. It appears more and more like good is masquarading around saying it is great when it really isn't. What is even worse is people are beginning to recognize good as great and it is really starting to upset me. So I tried to put some limits on great but found that great had no limits and then I tried to put some standards on good and found out good has no standards either. It seems what some would say is good, others call it great, and still others call it bad.

So I told someone we had a great service. Well we did, the Spirit of GOD was moving and challenging lives, we were basking in the presence of GOD and I left thinking we had a great service. But what accounts for a great service? Is the presence of GOD the clincher? Well then I have had great services in the car and in the shower before. Is it when someone gives their life to GOD? Well we have had dull services that people have responded, and we have had great (there I go again) good services that people have not responded.
So I am needing some help in defining great. Abraham Lincoln said the enemy of great is not bad, it is good.
Lord, help me be great for you. Help me be great for the people I lead and teach. Lord help me be great for the kingdom.
And make me really good at golf, because other than Tiger, it seems no one is near great.

Are you up to the Challenge?

Challenges are all around us. Some are dealing with financial challenges, others with physical challenges, still others with challenges of other natures. But one thing is certain, we will have to deal with challenges in our lives.
Most people look at a challenge as a negative. But I am choosing to look at a challenge as a positive. It is when we are challenged that we rise up. We might not rise high enough to get above that challenge we face, but we do indeed rise up to meet it. So we are definately higher than when we first started. Challenges should be faced, relished and if we do our absolute best, respected as they bring out the best, or the worst in us.
It is when the worse is brought out, when a challenge is failed. I may challenge myself to run a marathon in under 6 hours. If I ran a marathon in 8 hours have I failed? Well I did not meet my goal but I did finish the marathon. It is a matter of perspective.
So in this troubling time, are you up to the challenge to keep your perspective on the positive side?

dealing with disappointments...

You know I was thinking the other day that life would be so much better if we were never disappointed. If everything went exactly how we wanted wouldn't the world be a better place?
I mean what if everything we ever tried to do came off without a hitch? Learn to play the guitar, be a computer genius, make a bundle of dough on Wall Street, make some great dough and be a great chef, start a new business, whatever we decided to do, instantaneously we become really good at it. Wouldn't that be great?
Well I have come to realize that it would not be so good. For you see we would not have to work for anything, it would all just happen naturally. We would not have to practice, it would just automatically happen without hours and hours of hard work. What good would it be then to be able to play the guitar? You could not impress your friends because they too could play like you in two easy lessons. You could not impress anyone with your computer skills, because everyone could be a computer genius.
The differences in people are what makes us unique and our disappointments shape our differences. There are things that I get disappointed in all the time that do not work like I would like them to, but through those disappointments I am shaped and molded into the man I am today. Sometimes those disappointments lead to more effort on my part to get better. Sometimes those disappointments show me that what I am trying to do is really not in my "giftings" and I should look at other avenues. And sometimes disappointments are just that, disappointments which we should get over and move on.
So bring on the disappointments, not just all in one day...

Two steps forward and one step back...

Or is it, one step forward and two steps back. I am in the middle of a remodel project, and it seems that everything that I am doing has to be done over again each and every time because of some change that effects everything. By just changing a bathtub, I have had to change my framing, the flooring and a couple of other things to make it work.Life is kind of like that. By the choices that we make early in life, they affect us for a long time after as we keep having to fix things that were caused by those mistakes.I remember thinking that the decisions that I made as a young adult would not last forever. But how wrong I was, some of the decisions that I made still haunt me today. But thank GOD I did not do anything that really drastically affected my life like I have seen in the lives of others.So life is like remodeling a bathroom. It takes careful consideration, detailed planning and dilligent execution to make it all fit together and work.Now hand me that hammer, I got to make this thing fit...

Green Acres...

Is the place to be...

Farm livin' is the life for me...

Yep, got that song caught in my head. For that person who was singing that, I asked you please not to, because I knew what would happen.

Yep, I am driving home humming that theme song. So what to do? Watch the original Lone Ranger series on TV.

How different TV was back then. Everything was about honor and truth and justice. The Lone Ranger would only shoot to wound, not kill. Tonto was bound to his "Kimosabe" because his friend had saved him when he was a child and now Tonto returned the favor and became his side kick and friend.

You knew who the bad guys were, you knew who the good guys were and life was so much simpler...

Da Dada Dum Dada Dum dada dum dum!! The Lone Ranger, Hi Ho Silver AWAY!!

Our surroundings...

I witnessed a softball game yesterday that made me think about our surroundings. My daughter and her team had a home game scheduled, first of the season and we were talking about it during the weekend that it should be nice as the high was going to be in the 70s. Well it was around 10:30 then the tempature started to drop. By game time it was in the low 40s and the wind was howling out of the north about 20 miles an hour. Well you can guess it was a bit cold out there. Many of our girls were not prepared to play in cold weather, I heard over and over that it was not that cold this morning. We we played a sloppy game at the first, finally got into it in the last inning, tied it up and eventually lost in the 13th. Now here are my reflections on it.


1) Some of the girls were prepared for the cold. I don't know if they looked ahead or had stuff stashed in their car but they had the right equipment to play in the cold. As leaders of the Faith, we need to be prepared for everything and be aware of our surroundings, looking ahead and prepared for the things that might come.


2) Some of the girls ignored the cold, others did not. What I observed was that there were some girls who just forgot about how cold it was and played the game. What I noticed was these girls made the plays that they had to make, while the others that let the cold affect them failed to make the plays that they normally make. As leaders, we need to not let the conditions surrounding us affect how we perform. Conditions are going to change, that is part of life but our performance can still be at the highest level if we commit ourselves to it.


3) Strength comes in numbers. The first part of the game at least for our team it was every man (or girl in this case) for themselves. What I saw was that when they came into the dugout between innings, they were all individuals. Sitting or standing by themselves. By the 7th inning, when they came back to tie the game, they were so cold they started huddling together. It was pretty funny to see two or three girls all wrapped up in one blanket or sharing a coat or just standing side, by side, by side. All of the sudden instead of being a bunch of individuals, they were unified and I believe they drew strength from that. We draw strength from those around us, so when we are feeling down the last thing we should do is draw away from others, we should lean in and let them warm us up.

Chuck Norrisisms...

I am amazed at the things that I find funny that other people do not find funny at all. I was telling my wife yesterday these great ChucK (you have to spell his name with a capital K for KICK!!) Norrisisms that I thought were hillarious. My wife, well she looked at me like I was one of those special needs kids that ride the short bus...
I mean, "ChucK Norris doesn't fall in water and get wet, the water gets ChucK Norrised"
"the boogieman gets up in the middle of the night and checks his closet for ChucK Norris"
"Waldo is hiding because of ChucK Norris"
And my favorite.
"If you can see ChucK Norris, he can see you. If you can't see ChucK Norris, you may be just moments from Death!!"

So what is it that keeps a person's sense of humor from developing? Did they get to much Humorglanized milk growing up. Did they grow up around large eclectic plants? Did they not get enough kugs and hisses growing up?
I still think my wife's funny bone was broken when she was younger and it never got reset...
ChucK Norris probably roundhoused kicked her!

Greetings from Iowa

Wow,
It is flat, brown and not very pretty.
And it is a long way from home. But I am heading home today and am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed and being in my own home.
Got me thinking about home...
Home is where you feel safe, where you feel comfortable. Home is where you can be yourself and share yourself with others.
Home is where all the cares of life can disappear, where the heart can soar.
Home is a place of anticipation of which I am waiting for.

Washington DC...

I am in the nation's capitol this week working away. But how cool is it when you can see the Washington monument and the Capitol Building while coming over a bridge into town? It was way cool. All those things that you have seen on TV, in movies and to see it in real life is way cool. I am hoping to do some sightseeing while I am here. Hope to check out Ebenezer's coffee shop, it is an outreach of Mark Batterson's church in the DC area.
Got kind of weirded out though, I was getting a bottle of water at the store and noticed that they have first family water. Yep a bottle of water with the President and his family on the label. That was a little too weird, I guess they have to do all they can do as well in this struggling economy.

Are you Managing?

Many people are just barely managing in this tough economic time. There are layoffs, job less rates are increasing, people are loosing their houses, and loosing their jobs and financial worth... Sound familiar? It is all over the news every night.
But take a look around you. Do you see people not eating out anymore? We did last night in Tulsa and the place was packed. I ate out with my brother in Wichita and we had to wait 10 minutes for a table as the place was packed. I was in Sam's club the other day and there were a ton of people there and don't get me started on the number of people at Wal Mart.
I think the economic situation in this country is going to get worse before it gets better, so you need to start managing your resources now instead of later.
The Bible says the wise man stores up for winter where the fool does not plan ahead, or something like that. We need to make sure that we are planning ahead, so we don't become a fool at a later date...

Say what?

Have you ever wondered...
Why we drive on parkways and park on drive ways?
Why is kidnapping a crime but cat napping a luxury?
If you are traveling at the speed of light, and you turn on the headlights of your car, do the lights come on? I would ask this question, what did you do to your car to get it to go that fast?
If a tree falls in the woods, and no one is there to hear it, does it make any sound? The real question is who cut down the tree? And did he use an axe, a chainsaw or a rubber chicken?
Why is that old saying a penny saved is a penny earned. Didn't you have to earn the penny in the first place to save it? So would it not be a penny earned and then saved is the same penny earned in the first place?
Do some electric trains really blow smoke?
Why is a touchdown called a touch down? Players are touching down every play of the game and during the play and after the play. And a field goal? Why is it not just a goal like in soccer. Do they have to make sure it came from the field? I mean did someone kick one from the stands one time and they said it would not count since it did not come from the "field".
See when I travel I have a lot of time to think...
speaking of traveling, why is it when you take too many steps in basketball it is called traveling? You really did not go anywhere, you are still there to hear them yell at you.
America, now wonder we are so confused as a nation.

Being Blessed...

You know, GOD has a way of taking care of his kids. Now I don't want you to think that I can snap my fingers and a million dollars will appear. Yep still didn't work. But GOD can bless us in so many ways. I have over the last month, had people just hand me money and say, "GOD told me to give you this". We have had unexpected income come in, I got a raise in pay in January, and we got a check in the mail last night. GOD is good. But he blesses us with more than cash, I have tires on my car that have lasted way longer than they should have, we lost our gas furnace, but I think our electric bill isn't much higher than what our gas bill would have been. I just know that even when we don't seem to have anything, GOD still has given us even the little we have. So Glory to GOD, the provider of all of our needs.

Friday the 13th...

It is Friday the 13th and this new movie called, "Friday the 13th" is coming out...

Well actually it is not a new movie, it is like "Friday the 13th part 33". I remember when the first one came out. Me and some buds were staying up all night watching movies and one of them pulls this one out. Now I hate scary movies, I got scared of the cartoon "The Legeng of Sleepy Hollow" and the headless horseman as a kid and just don't like them. But watching this movie with a room full of guys turned out pretty funny. We started telling the poor fools to look out when they did stupid stuff to keep from getting killed. So I thought on this scarry night I would enlighten you so you can make it through the night.

10 Rules never to break if you are in a scarry movie...

1) never go off by yourself...
This is a recipe for disaster. Usually it is the big, strong, tough guy or gal who says, "you guys stay here, I will go get some help". That is Stooooopid. The bad guy is waiting for you to leave the group so he can kill you all alone. Remember the banana that leaves the group gets peeled!

2) Never go investigate a sound in the basement...
If you hear something in the basement, DO NOT go down there! Especially if the light does not work when you flip the switch. Go and shut the door and deadbolt it! Under no situation are to go to the top of the stairs; open the door and say, "Hello, is anyone there?". That is a sure sign you are about to be killed. And if the light does not work when you try to turn it on, run away! There is nothing worse than getting killed by something you can't see.

3) Never investigate a sound outside an open window...
If something is moving outside the window, go across the room as far away as possible from said window and cower in the fetal position. That thing moving by the window is waiting for you to open it and stick your head out to look so it can grab you. Don't be stoooooopid. Send your dumb friend to check it out first!

4) For those romanticly involved...
When there is a serial killer on the loose, it is not the time for the two of you to go off by yourself (remember rule #1) and get all mushy on each other so you don't hear the bad guy walk up on you. It is like a blue light special in the mind of a killer, "Two for one special over on aisle 4!!!"

5) Never try to reason with a killer...
Don't grovel, don't try to talk them out of it, they are insane, that is why they are killing people you moron!! When face to face with the killer, run away as fast as you can, you might be able to outrun a killer but you will never convince them to not kill you, that is what they do!

6) When running, look out for sticks...
Granted if you run away there will be something that trips you up so you fall down to give the slower killer a chance to kill you. Look out for rocks, sticks, logs, canoes, dead bodies, and other things laying around that will trip you up. And if you fall, make sure you don't break something, if you breaks something, that is a sure sign you are not getting out alive!

7) Never go outside and say like... anything...
Do not go outside and start gabbing when there is a killer in the area. Walking around saying stuff like, "is anyone out here?" or "I am calling the police", that just leads the killer right to you. If you go outside, be like a ninja; stealthy and don't make a peep and you might just get away without the killer noticing. Going out and yelling at the top of your lungs is a good way to get dead!

8) When frightened, as hard as it is do not scream...
Oh, this one gets them all the time. Adrenalin is pumping, they are all keyed up because out there somewhere is a killer. So they are making their way through the woods, or the old spooky house, or the amusement park when all of the sudden, WHAM! Something moves or something gets knocked over and you scream at the top of your lungs. Usually it is a cat, who is not in cahoots with the killer, but the cat knows he can't get away with killing you so he alerts the killer to your presence to accomplish his fiendish task.

9) If you find a weapon, hold onto it...
It is kill or be killed baby. If you find a gun, make sure it has bullets in it and that it works. If you find an ax, for heavens sake hold onto it, don't just use it to bash open a door and then lay it down. Get anything that you can hold, shoot, fire, throw, burn, bash or mash that might deter a bad guy from making you his next victim.

10) And the most important rule...
If you get invited to a party, at a place where there are known serial killers residing in the area, just say NO! Find something else to do that is less risky. Something like paragliding, or surfing with sharks, or eating glass. When your girlfriend says, "lets go to this spooky old haunted house where 75 people were killed by some serial killer who has yet to be caught", grab her by the shoulders, and use her as a human shield to get out there in one piece. She may not appreciate it then, but she will the next morning when she reads the news about all the people who did not heed these rules.

Have a great night!

Modern Marvels...

Remember Dick Tracy and his phone wristwatch? Dick was the detective back in the comic strips started back in 1931!! A cell phone wristwatch back in 1931, AMAZING, but now we are like, "hey Dick, does it have GPS? Does it play MP3s? Does it have a calander and day planner? Does it make Lightsaber sounds (for all you Iphone people)? Oh, it just makes and recieves calls? (eye roll) that's nice.
Dick Tracy had it going on in 1931, but today, those things are old news.

Have you thought of the modern marvels that have happened in your lifetime. I am just over 40, born in 1968 and since I was born the following things have come to pass.


1969 - Smoke detector and ATM - ATM fix everything!! (for $1.50 for non account holders)


1970 - Digital Music - whaaa? Its been around how long? Kind of like developing the cart before their was ever a horse to pull it.


1971 - Waffled Running shoes - Yep the originator of Nike started making running shoes out of waffle iron. I am sure his wife was as upset about it as ours are when we use their stuff for a "project".


1973 Cell Phone and the MRI- To look where no man or woman has looked before and to call from where no one has called before.


1978 - GPS - where are we? Well let me look at this little screen right here.


1978 - In vitro fertilization- giving babies to those who could not give to themselves.


1979 - Sony Walkman - your music, with you in a encyclodedia size case.


1984 - DNA fingerprinting - much better than regular fingerprinting.


1987 - Prozac - now everyone can feel... groovy.


1998 - MP3 Player, a new way to listen to old music.


2002 - Wireless Metropolitan Network, allowing long range users to connect to a computer network and get more work done for the same amount of money.


That doesn't count TV Remote and the microwave oven (1955), Jet Ailiner, the laser beam and super glue, still sticking people's fingers together for 50 years now(1958), Pacemaker (1960) cordless tools, industrial robot (1961), Computer Mouse and LED's (you know that really small yet brite lights) and the first computer game "Spacewar"(1962) see there were nerds back then too, Unmanned aireal vehicles (remote controlled planes and such for military use, why do they get all the neat toys first) and the music synthesizer (1964), Kevlar Bullet resistant material (1965) which all were developed before my birth.



So my question is, what can we expect in the next 10-40 years? Imagine the possibilities.
Watches that tell time, make calls, do GPS, MP3s and keep our calanders, but will also monitor our vital signs, tell us when we need to get the doctor BEFORE we get sick, and allow us to search the internet without using a stylus, a mouse or a finger.
Eyeglasses that will not only get darker when the sun is out, but will magnify, zoom and enhance the images that we are viewing.
Cars that drive themselves? And get good gas mileage or run on water instead.
Houses that are interactive, make meals, wash clothes and vacum the floors for us.
It is beyond comprehension what might be available to us in the upcoming years. So imagine what we might be talking about in 40 years from now... just a thought.

What will you die for?

I had a flight yesterday and each time I think of flying I think of dying... yeah I know. You are more apt to be killed in an auto accident than in an airline crash but I think it is the situation on a plane that you have no hand in your future. You are giving all control to someone you have never met, don't know a thing about, and would not be able to pick out of a lineup. So anyway, I was thinking if this plane goes down, where will I go. Now as a Pastor you would think that the answer would be obvious, right? Well I have not received a letter from GOD saying I was accepted as of yet so I still am not in until I cross the threashold.
So I started thinking of dying, and then we made it into the air and then I thought about what people are willing to die for. I started thinking of the great people in history and I decided that they all shared one thing in common. They were willing to die for their cause. They were willing to put aside their own lives for the purpose for which they strived. Now I don't think that we have to go out and get killed to make our place in history, but I think we have to be willing to die to make our place in history. So what are you willing to die for? Wealth? Fame? Recognition?
Many people are giving their lives for the topics I have listed. But at what gain? Wealth that will surely go away? Fame that fades with 20 pounds of weight? Recognition that recedes when you are no longer relevant?
So when making your choice on what you are willing to die for, make sure you make a choice that will make a difference, be remembered and last forever.

Listen...

I learned a lot from my Grandfather. Well, he was not my real Grandfather; he married my Grandma when my mother was somewhat still young, so he was really my Step Grandfather which makes the things he taught me even more important since he taught me out of love and not out of duty. Anyway, I was thinking the other day that of all the things he taught me the most important one was this, to listen.
NowI am a horrible listener. I love to talk, finish sentences and tell stories. But way back when my Grandfather and I would go check on the cows (he had a ranch) we would be walking and all of the sudden he would stop and then say "listen". And that is exactly what we would do. I would turn my hearing on and try to figure out what he had heard and identify it. We would hear coyotes howling, calfes bawling, and on occasion someone shouting from the neighboring pastures when we focused on just hearing what it was out there to hear. It always amazed me that when we stopped what we were doing and just listened, all the things that we would hear that would go unnoticed most times.
Sometimes I think we need to slow down and just listen. Who knows what might be going on all around us that we never hear and might like to know about...

Music...

I have always loved the guitar. My mom gave me a picture the other day when I was around 8 with a guitar in my hands. I had forgotten that I ever had that guitar. Now I really never learned to play guitar back then, other than "Home on the range" but I do remember being so proud of that guitar back then. Now I went through a time where I did not have a guitar. I played trumpet, barritone, tuba in band in high school, but after school the music dried up. Then one day my wife and I became friends with some people and he kindled the musical fire back into me. It was like turning on a heater that had not been burned for a while, that smell of burning dust was horrible for a while but I got better and the fire returned. Then I got into the guitar. First I started just messing around and then got into the Bass Guitar, then started playing chords on my Dad in Laws old electric. And then I got my first acoustic and started playing in front of people. I was looking at that old picture and saw the same happiness I feel every time I pick up a guitar and strum a few chords. Now I am delving deeper into the music, writing and even playing one of my songs in church. It is a humbling experience, but exciting as well.
I remember an old song called "American Pie", it was popular back in the 70s where it spoke abou the day the music died (the deaths of Richie Vallens, Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper for you music historians). When I saw that old picture of me, I saw the day the music was born, lived through the days when the music died and was reborn and am enjoying the life that music has brought.

Just one mistake....

Remember this guy?

Yep that is Michael Phelps, 8 time gold medalist during the 2008 Bejing Olympics. The most decorated olympic athlete of all time. A man with amazing willpower, drive, determination......

who is now banished from the sport of swimming for a picture of him with a marijuana bong.

All it takes is one little mistake...

I am sure that the people at the party were probably all friends of his. I am sure they were having fun and he never intended for anything bad to happen. I am sure he probably never thought in a million years that the person who was snapping camera phone pics would ever let a picture of him see the light of day. But it happened, and the picture showed up in a newspaper.

All it takes is one little mistake...

Now I am sure Michael is a great guy and he will survive this. But I am sure there are MP posters coming down in bedrooms across America since this has happened. While Mom and Dad where watching the olympics pointed out the all american boy with his mom and sisters whooping it up in the stands cheering him onto victory pointed out to their own kids, see you can do anything if you set your mind to it. You might not be an Olympic athlete, but if you work hard and apply yourself, you can achieve great things. Do you think Mom and Dad are telling little Johnny to make MP his hero today?

All it takes is one little mistake...

MP had endorsement deals from lots of companies. This is a young man who was making 7 figures (that over a million dollars to the unknowing) to be MP. Now some of the endorsers are sticking with the young man, because of contract obligations or other situations I am not sure, but I know that a few are pulling the plug on him because of this situation. You will not be seeing MP on the Frosted Flakes anymore, Kellogs has dumped him. I am sure his agent's phone is not ringing as much as it used to. I am sure others will follow suit when his contract expires they won't renew costing him millions of dollars of income and still others will dump him quietly when the fuss dies down.

All it takes is one little mistake...

I guess what I am saying is, it is what it is. A mistake made by a young man who will pay (literally) for the rest of his life for it. One little mistake that will change his life considerably.

So be on your guard, be viligent as one mistake can cost you so much more than you bargained for.

Shoe Shine...

I got my shoes shined today at the airport. I have always walked past these places and saw the smug men and women sitting up high in the air while they have their shoes spiffed. Well today I had a little time and walked right past. The lady said it would be $6, now that is kind of high for a tight wad like me but I decided to live a little. So I climbed up on that perch and the shoe shine lady shined my shoes. I tried to look smug, and look down my nose at all of the people who walked by. I tried to look important, wave a little as the people walked by and wondered what I did for a living to be able to have my shoes shined by a professional. Well I was disappointed, she finished and other than the new luster on my shoes, nothing changed, it was still the same old me. People did not ask my autograph, stare at me as I passed by, or anything. Nobody noticed, what a waste of $6. But at least my shoes look nice.

Stimulate the economy

I have decided to stimulate the economy myself since no one else seems to know how to do it.
So here is my suggestion...
Each person in the US no matter of age needs to write a check to the US Government for $3500.00. So my family of six needs to write a check for $21,000.00. With each American giving his $3500.00 we will have 800 Billion dollars worth of money to stimulate the economy. Whoops no, that is what the government is proposing right now. Yep this 800 Billion stimulas plan in reality is going to cost each American no matter of age $3500. Now I know that there are some people who don't pay taxes as they don't make enough money, so some of us who do pay taxes will have to take their part. And of those who are under the age of say, 16 who have no income will need us to pay their part until they can begin paying on their own debts. What you say, we aren't having to pay for this stimulus plan, the government is paying for it. Well last I checked the government was up to its eyeballs in debt, so they don't have any money so they are spending money that they plan on getting later, like taking out a loan except it is you and me that is paying the bill. So what do we get with our deposit. Well we get the same thing that we have always got, not much back. No I love this country and it is the best thing going, but I am slowly seeing our spending going out of control and someone needs to step in and save the US not the US saving everyone else.
Now for my stimulus plan, you know that $3500 that every American would need to pay to cover the $800 Billion dollar stimulus plan? Well instead of giving the money to the bankers who can't manage their business, the wall street execs who while going broke spend over a million dollars remodeling an office (you can't make this stuff up!!), give it to the American people. Those in financial crisis with mortgage lenders screaming at them? An American couple would be able to hand $7,000 to their bank and ask them to work with them. Those with a few kids could, like me, hand over $21,000 and indeed pay off my house. I mean no payments everything done, owned. But instead I am stuck with a policy that is going to make me pay off my house and the foreclosed houses of bad banking deals at the same time.
It makes me wonder, if common sense was so common, why doesn't anyone have any of it?
Rant over

Inner Beauty...

I saw part of this show the other day. The premise is they are trying to measure a person's true beauty. Is beauty only skin deep? Well that was what they were trying to prove or disprove. What I have found is that beauty is measured not only in physical appearence, but also in our actions, our attitudes and our relationships with other people. Sister Teresa was not one who would ever grace the cover of a fashion magazine, but to the lepers and homeless in Calcutta, India she was the most beautiful woman they ever saw. I think we should strive to be that kind of beautiful, the kind where the inside outshines the outside every time.

A winter wonderland...

I don't like the cold, I can do without snow, but what do I see outside my window?

Yep Snow and Ice.

Didn't Foreigner used to have a song like that? "You're snow and ice, willing to sacrifice our love" (it actually was "your as cold as ice...) but I had a bud that always sang songs wrong.

And I have to travel tomorrow. I live in the south so I don't have to put up with this mess!!

Praying for a heat wave!!

Welcome to...

What a place. Large city with a small town charm, no wonder it is the country music capital of the world. I saw more guitar cases coming and going out of that airport, it was like a maffia hit man convention was going on!!

They had a Gibson guitar cafe in the airport, all sorts of memoribilia of country legends and at every food court they had a small stage with monitors, one even had a baby grand piano for people to set and play. Made me wish I had a guitar, I could have set up and embarrased myself and made some extra spending cash!!

What got me was on the radio there was a church that was under fire for not praying for the President. Seems they used to pray for the President, and now they are deciding to not pray for the President. Seems to me that when we find ourselves in a situation not to our liking that we should pray more, not throw a fit and take our ball and go home.

I would encourage you, wether you are liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican or Independent, wether you lean right or left or have just passed out. Pray for all of our elected officials that they will rely on the only ONE who has the answer to every question and the supply for every need.

Be Blessed

A historic Day...

Today is the day when we receive a new president. And I have never in my life seen such interest in this specific day when a new president takes the oath of office in all my life. Now I realize that because of his race, it is a historical moment in the history of the United States but the fanfare that is coming with it is a little discouraging.
We are in the midst of a recession, our financial deficit keeps growing and growing and I have no idea what it will cost for all the pomp and circumstance that will go on today, do we need to add to the debt? Do I think we should cancel the party? No, but I do believe that with everything that is going on, we should be looking to the main issues that are facing our country today and maybe use a little discretion? Yes?
But let me get to the point of my post... It is definately a historic day for our country. The election of an African American president means that indeed anything is possible in this country. But what I am concerned about is the bar has been set so high for our incoming president that I am afraid that he will not measure up to the expectations placed upon him. I know many Americans believe that when he steps into office that every issue and problem facing this great nation will evaporate and will be fixed with a stroke of the pen. Can I bring a little reality to you today, that is not going to happen. I am afraid that the millions of people who are standing on Pennsylvania Avenue today may be standing there in a few years demanding the promises of change that they never saw come to pass. For America to change, Americans must change individually. They must make the decision that change is good, and embrace it. Wishing for someone esle to change your life is like wishing that you will loose weight without diet and exercise, if there was some magic pill we would have it by now. So as we look on this historic day, if you are wanting change, then begin with yourself, today is the first day of the rest of your life.

JESUS and sports...

I read an article the other day about GOD'S role in sports. Now do I think that GOD has an interest in who wins the Superbowl or any other game for that matter? No. But I do believe that GOD has an interest in those involved in the game. Kurt Warner and the St. Louis Cardinals ( I still won't call them the Arizona Cardinals, have you ever seen a cardinal in Arizona?) are going to the Super Bowl. Now Kurt does not make any bones about his faith and his trust in GOD but a lot of people make an issue of it. They like to say that GOD guides his passes, that GOD moves that blitzing defensive end a little further out so he can't be sacked. But I really believe that the only thing GOD is contributing is in the makeup of Kurt Warner himself. You see, Kurt believes, and believing is a big part of succeeding in sports and life. Kurt believes that if you prepare, study, work hard and do your best that GOD will bless it. I agree with him, he does not promise us everything if we don't do our part, but he does promise us that when we do things according to his commands that we will see the blessings in our lives. People say that making a Super Bowl is GOD's way of blessing Kurt Warner. Let me put it this way, without ever making the Super Bowl GOD has still blessed Kurt Warner. He has a job that many would kill for, making a ton of money playing a kid's game. He has a wife that has stood beside him when he was a failure and got cut from the Packers, who stood beside him when he said he wanted to play Arena ball in Iowa, and who stood beside him as he was bagging groceries at the HyVee when everything did not work out. He has already been blessed of GOD, beyond what we all and he probably deserves. Kurt Warner is in the Super Bowl because he worked hard, got some breaks and mainly because Kurt BELIEVED that he could make it to the big game.

You go Kurt, I am cheering for you.

Just keep a knocking...

I was reading a friends blog (funny on the internet I have never met him but I consider him a friend, there must be something wrong with that...) about Luke 11. It is the story of the man who goes to his neighbor's house to borrow some bread because a guest showed up unannounced and the man had nothing to feed him. Well the neighbor was already in bed and had locked up his house and told the man to go home. But the man was persistant and kept knocking, and JESUS said that the neighbor would eventually give the man the bread because he knew that he would not get any sleep because of the guys knocking and that he would give him the bread not necessarily out of friendship but because his reputation would be damaged if he did not help his neighbor in time of need.

Well he brought out a point that sometimes we quit knocking too soon and leave before GOD does something great in our lives. I have seen people come to church once or twice, and unless GOD did something miraculous they did not come back. I have seen people come and pray once and just expect GOD to give them what they prayed for and never pray again for it. I have seen people attempt to make a deal with GOD and because things did not go according to the way they thought, they quit on GOD all together.

I do not want to be the guy who knocks and knocks and finally leaves the porch and says, "well I guess it is time to move on." And then moments later the next guy comes to the door and knocks just one time and the door is opened for him and the owner of the house says, "I heard you knocking, it just took me a moment to get to the door".

I think that there are times when we give up to early and we need to persevere a little longer and just keep on knocking on that door.

Fighting?

Not that kind of fighing. Not like Rocky and Appollo Creed.

Fighting with your words...

Take a look at the picture. How many of us would want to hurt any human being like the one getting hit? I mean if I am in the ring, well, I will swing for the fences, but in just a spat or an argument sometimes our words hit as hard as that right cross.

The damage done is sometimes irreparable and can cause serious injuries to a person's trust, loyalty and commitment. We are studying in our small groups on how to fight fair. So I thought I would drop a few rules; kind of like the referee at the beginning of a boxing match.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

Referee: OK guys and gals, I want a goood clean fight.

No rabbit punches (which means you have to take time to listen and quit swinging all the time. Listen to the other side, evaluate what they have to say and then form your opinion. Don't just swing, swing, swing).

No hitting the back of the head (which means when the fight is over, don't throw that last cheap shot in to get the last word, don't feel like you have to land the last blow to win the fight, especially if it is a cheap shot when the others back is turned).

When I tap your shoulder when you are in a clinch, let go and back up, without throwing punches (which means, if it starts to get physical, take a step back, regain your composure and let some space come between the combatants).

In case of a knockdown, go to your respective corners (which means if one of you falls down, the other should not jump on them with both feet, that is being a bad sport).

And NO LOW BLOWS (ouch! which means you can't dredge up something that happened 20 years ago, or 10 years ago or 5 years ago and throw it in the face of the other fighter, that is definately hitting below the belt and that type of foul is usually done by the person losing the match and in trouble).

Referee: Understand?

Fighter #1 - (nods)

Fighter #2 - {grunts}

Referee : OK! LETS GET IT ON!!!

DING! DING! DING!

;-)

Who do you look like?

I have been told that everyone has a twin. I mean not a biological twin but someone that really resembles someone else. They look so much alike that sometimes people will pass themselves off for the rich and famous.

To walk a few feet in someone elses shoes must feel pretty good. Can you imagine if you looked like some movie star? I was once mistaked for Christopher Reeves (before the accident that took his life) when I was in Atlantic City. The guy at a cafe says, "hey your that dude!". I replied, "Huh, what dude?" And the man says, "you are that Superman guy in the movies!". I kind of laughed and said, "No, you got the wrong guy." And he comes back and says, "Its OK, I won't tell anyone. I know you just want to eat in peace." And he did leave me alone the rest of the morning. But I could feel his eyes on me and the eyes of everyone in the kitchen on me till I left and said goodbye. I was so uncomfortable that someone was going to come and ask for an autograph and what I was going to do if they did that I did not enjoy my breakfast. Now I have no delusions that I look like Superman, of course back then I was somewhat buff so who knows. But that man saw me as Superman and in his eyes I was that famous Superman dude.

You know it gets me thinking of what we really see in people. We see the rich and famous and think it must be great to be them, until we walk a few feet in their shoes or set on their barstool through breakfast. I think we should wait to pass judgement on how great it is to be them.

JESUS loves me this I know...

for the Bible tells me so?
I have been debating about posting this for some time. I know many people who do not feel that JESUS loves them, and some who do believe that JESUS loves them do not believe that GOD cares for them at all.
Well I was doing some reading the other day and came to a heavy realization.
GOD loves me just as much today, as he did when I was not living for him. GOD doesn't love me any more today that I pastor a church than he did when I first gave my life to him. He does not love me any more less than when I was doing my best to ignore him than he does know when I know him more.
Isn't that Whacked?
You see we try to put GOD in a man suit. You know make him out to be like us. But GOD is not like us. You see we really do not believe that we can "love" anyone that we have not met. And if we were truthful, out "love" is conditional. Which I mean that if you treat me well, if you are nice to me, if you do things for me, I might "love" you. But if you cross my path wrong, if you treat me wrong, if you disagree with me, I might not "love" you. GOD is not that way. He loves us even when we don't love him. Try that for a while, loving someone who does not love you back... yeah GOD is definately not like us.
Now to the JESUS versus GOD love thing. Many feel that JESUS loved them because he died for them. But we need to realize that GOD the Father, is the same as GOD the Son and GOD the Holy Spirit. They are the triune GOD head one and the same. So GOD the Father actually died as GOD the Son on the cross of Calvary, giving up himself for his creation. Confused yet? Yeah I know.
But just as JESUS loved mankind and was willing to give himself up for it, GOD loves us just as much. Even when we are yet no in his "family" his love for us is the same.
Oh that we could treat the brothers and sisters in the Lord the same way. Love unconditional with no strings attached.
For all of those that might read this, I want you to know that I will do my best to love with the love of Christ. Even if I haven't met you and even if you have been ugly to me, I will choose to love.
Be Blessed!

Recession

Recession. You know how everyone has been talking about a recession. Well I have not seen it. Everyone is talking about how people are saving money? Really, it seems to me that everyone spends what they bring home every week. Everyone is talking about how the housing market is bad and you can't sell a house and if you do have to sell you will sell at a loss. Well I know someone who bought a house four years ago, and it sold for 15% more than the purchase price back then. Everyone is talking about how the unemployment is out of control and I can show you just about every fast food joint and contractor are trying to hire people.

Now I know that we live in an area that see very little ups and downs, not like the two coast. But I also know that some people around here have common sense.
Like they live week to week, paycheck to paycheck but some do put a little money aside every so often just in case. They hav all bought houses but most have bought within their means, not buying a house three times too big for them with a mortgage to match. And most in this area are willing to go to work if the need arises. McDonalds is not below us if we have a mortgage payment to make. Digging ditches is fine if we can feed our families.
I guess what I am saying is that recession is like that bald spot growing on my head. It is there, it is not pleasent, but it doesn't really affect me to much other than I wear a hat a lot more now...
we do what we have to do.

Take care of it...

I was working on a song the other day and pulled a guitar down off the wall to get some chords. It was a guitar I bought to be a "beater" guitar. You know the one that doesn't get to stay in the case, gets thrown in the car, thrown on the floor, thrown down the stairs. It was inexpensive as guitars go and since it was "cheap" I felt no remorse at taking it apart, doing some modifications and adaptations on it. Now let me get where I was going.

I took that guitar down, plugged it in and it literally sang in my hands. Now I would say it was singing a step low and a little off of pitch, kind of like my singing, so together we were perfect. I was amazed at how well that little guitar played. Then I remembered the work I did on it. I took a cheap inexpensive guitar and made it into a player.

I can tell you, if you will take a little care and work a little on the small things in our lives, who knows what we may find out about ourselves. We might actually be a gem in the rough, which only needs a little care and effort to turn into a shining jewel.

Fun Fun Fun...

Took a little family vacation and just getting back into the swing of things. We took an entire week of and planned on doing.... NOTHING. I just hate it when you go on vacation and you have more things to do than when you are working. Got to be here, gotta do that, and on and on. I come back more frazzled than when I left. It is so good to just go and do nothing. Although I will say that time does seem to move faster when you are doing something, but it moves pretty fast when you are doing nothing as well.
Went to the Dixey STAMPEEEEEDE!! as well as to TITANIC. Man that was a big ship for its time. I did get to find out a lot that I did not know and no I have not seen the movie. But what was amazing was the arrogance of all the crew and the people on board. They were CERTAIN that this ship was unsinkable. They took a path through an ice flow where most ships avoided. They were warned of icebergs in the area and the radio operator told them to stay off his channel. And they were going 17 knots through the ice flow in the dark of night and did not have time to turn in the 30 seconds it was from the time the lookout saw the berg and impact.
Amazing how people can ignore the warnings in so many things of life...