What the h--- is going on

Good Samaritan

2008-04-21T18:46:00.000-07:00

The other day a man from the community that i didnt recognize wondered into the neighborhood. Kinda strange how the local pack of mutts never bark unless there is someone in the area who seems like a threat. They see hundreds of new mission workers every month, and every week in the summer. But they always seem to know when there is a trouble maker in the midst. The guy who wondered into our neighborhood was drunk as a skunk. And then some. He came into our building looking for help. He was too wasted to even receive the help we were trying to give him. After a while he wondered away, reclaimed the beer he had carefully hid in the bushes and started down the road. My mind quickly fixated on other things. A few minutes later my buddy greg who lives accross the street from my office hollored over "Hey, theres a guy layin in the ditch by the road down there". Funny, its not something you hear every day and yet it didnt phase me much. I walked upstairs to a big window in my bosses office to see if i could see him. THere he was. I could only see his head sticking up and his right arm was laying in the street. The rest of him indeed was in the ditch. Somehow he looked pretty comfortable there. Before my boss and i headed out to rescue him from the ditch we decided to first call the local shelter to see if there was room for him. As i waited for my boss i sat and stared at the poor soul. I thought.... wow.... now thats the bottom of the barrel. His life is so sucky that he is literally laying passed out in a ditch in one of America's poorest communities. Of course the Good Samaritan came to mind. I watched two or three cars come by, see him, slow down, move out of the way so as not to runover his arm and keep on going. The UPS guy was the first to stop. He didnt get out of his truck, he called someone on his cell phone and moved on. Sad part is that since he is a stranger, no one knew who he was. They didnt know he was a drunk who deserved to stay there and suffer a while. For all they know, he could have been hit by a car. I actually began taking pictures of the whole scene. I excitedly snapped photos of passers by and yelled to my boss. Dude!, this is just like the good samaritan. He laughed and shook his head at the fact that i was way more excited about recording a visiual aid than was anxous to get to the rescue. As we started out the door, two of our staff folks had finally stopped and helped the guy. He was angered by the fact that we asked him to get rid of his beer if he wanted to get in one of our cars. He refused. He stumbled away. What was his name? Where was he from? Did he have a wife or kids somewhere? Did somebody love that guy? His parents? What had he been through? Did he go to college? Did he have a job at some point? Im not sure ill ever know. But i do know this. This guy is one of the people that Jesus came to see. Its this guy that the servant of the rich man throwing the banquet said to invite to the party when the rich, religous right stuck their noses up at the gift of grace. Hes the reason Jesus came. This guy and the hors on the corner are gonna enter the gates before and or instead of the religous right who have placed themselves on the highest wrung on the christian ladder. Unless of course they all join Joel Osteen and think positive thoughts and concentrate on their best life now.

Kill a Cat, Save a Child

2008-03-27T19:03:00.000-07:00

At the risk of alienating all of you cat lovers out there i thought i might put human life into perspective. Last year (07) Americans spent approximately 1Billion dollars on pets. Not farm animals and livestock. Cats, dogs, snakes, hampsters, rabbits, etc. As i dog lover and owner of two great dogs, the word Billion hit me between the eyes. Why did it hit me? Because in the time of one day that elapsed as i considered this blog, several thousand children died of preventable disease or were orphaned by parents with HIV/Aids. Using World Visions latest statistics, Africa will have 25 million orphans by the year 2010. $36 a month to sponsor a child gets close to $400 a year. This $400 a year saves a life through food and clean water, provides basic medical and dental care. Grade school education is also provided. For $400! If we kill every domestic pet today, a year from now that 1Billion dollars that we spent on pets would assure the food, clothing, care, and schooling for.... are you ready... 2,500,000 kids. That means that you litterally exchange the lives of your pets for 2.5 million human lives. I challenge you to figure out what your monthly budget holds for pets. For $36 a month you could save a childs life. Dont want to kill your cat? Could you sacrifice something else in your budget to make that amount available? Lower your cable package, Cell phone package, starbucks budget, clothes, etc. How could you spend less on your pets? Once the ones you have head off to the big zoo in the sky, consider not replacing your pet and commit the funds to saving human lives. If you are interested in saving a real human life today. Go to www.worldvision.org.

2008-01-02T11:22:00.000-08:00

I've been preaching about the Kingdom of God for a long time. I recently ran accross this description in a Bryan McClaren book and thought it was pretty tight.

The Kingdom of God is available to everyone, starting now. When Jesus refers to the Kingdom of God, He doesn’t mean something that happens after we die, far off in heaven; He equates the kingdom of God with Gods will being done on earth as it is in heaven. So the kingdom of God is life as God intends it to be – life to the full, life in peace and justice, life in abundance and love. Individuals enter the Kingdom when they enter into a relationship with the Liberating King, when they trust Him enough to follow His ways. But make no mistake, the Kingdom is about more than our individual lives; it is abut the transformation and renewal of all God has created. It may start with our individual responses, but it doesn’t stop there.

centered

2007-12-29T17:27:00.001-08:00

I'm not sure what the ocean does for me, but somehow it centers me. I realize that sounds a little new age-ish, but its true. Maybe i get centered because its the end, per ce. Maybe, and more than likely, it puts me in perspective with the world. Its so big. I think big should be qualified by the fact that you can't see one end. Like the Empire State building is big, but you can see the end. The Grand Canyon is big, but you can see across. Either way the ocean reminds me of how small i am in relationship to everything, God in particular. You cant see the end of the ocean of the Mojave desert or Lake Ontario. You cant see the end of God, or His Son or His Spirit, or His creation and thankfully, His grace. The ocean centers me somehow. It prepares me to face my problems which quickly seem small. It reminds me that His power is unlimited. It reminds me that He is in charge. It reminds me that He created me with the same care and creativity that He created the ocean and every weird thing that lives in and under it. There are some really weird things down there. When my children play on the beach they tend to play with more abandonment. They run with greater freedom it seems. They laugh louder and scream with a higher pitch. The salt water and air clears thier sinus' too. What centers you? Where do you need to go? What do you need to do? What or who pushes you back to the center; that place where you find yourself well connected to God and at the same time recognize your relative place in His Kingdom that has no end.

Travel

2007-12-19T06:43:00.000-08:00

Excited about some time off. We are headed to Easton, PA. For Christmas. We will celebrate with the Miller family. Then its off to the beach! Well, sort of. We cant wait to join our friends the Samuels and Elliots in the great town of Pawleys Island, South Carolina. The temps wont be hot, and there wont be any swimming. Although i distinctly remember skinny dipping in the Atlantic at the stroke of midnight, New Years eve, 199-? in Pawleys Island a few years back. Garry , Matt, Jayson, Johno, etc. Buck naked and freezing. Talk about shrinkage. Not sure we still have the energy for those kinds of highjinks. But im sure it will be plenty warm for strolling along the water and some great golf.

snow

2007-12-06T15:43:00.000-08:00

There is snow in the hills of West Virginia. We recieved about 3 inches on Tuesday and about 5 or 6 more yesterday. No school for the girls!!! Sled riding in our yard (trecherous). Had to bust out the Ford 1310 to pllow the 1/2 mile driveway. Gotta love my sexy tractor. Its been very cozy by the fire, enjoying our view, coffe, tea and our christmas tree from the Christmas Tree Capital of the World (Indiana , PA) We are off to Virginia tommorow for a speaking event for the National Presbyterian Church of D.C. Pray that God moves in the lives of the young people who will attend. Come and visit!!! bring your sled.

Best Wedding First Dance

2007-12-06T11:22:00.001-08:00

Best Wedding First Dance

2007-12-06T11:16:00.000-08:00

im not a big utube-er but this one was too funny and makes me laugh out loud everytime i see it.

The Kill

2007-11-29T11:06:00.000-08:00

Since 1981 i have hunted the white tail deer with my brother Clay, my pops, and occasionally uncle Pete. We have hunted the same tiny, now abandoned, apple orchard in the Parkwood area of Indiana, Pennsylvania. I cant tell you how many deer ive killed there, i cant even recall the number of buck that ive killed. I can tell you that i have streak of 6 years running with a buck, on the first day of each season. Two years ago was my largest buck, an 11 point with a 13 inch spread (thats the distance between the furtherst point of the left side to the right. This year was a wet one. I was in my tree stand by 6:30am (still dark) and it poured rain all day. By lunch time Dad and I were depressed. We were soaked and had seen very few deer and no buck. With the rain still falling after lunch we actually discussed calling it a day. We have never had that conversation before. Im sure Dad agreed to sticking with it only because i wanted to. At his age, he has given up on hunting in inclement weather. He hunts all the time, so there is no reason to suffer. By 1:30 with my stomach full of food we hiked back to our spots. I sat and soaked, until 3pm. It had just stopped raining and i spotted 3 doe running through a field over 100 yards away. I surmized that a buck might soon follow. I wondered however if i would take such a long shot. After another 20 minutes or so i stopped scoping the area where i saw the doe. I began looking elswhere. After 5 more minutes passed i caught some movement out of the corner of my eye in the field where the do were. By the time i realized it was a buck, got my gun in position and the deer in the cross hairs of the scope the buck was now at least 150 yards or more away. This is not a recomended shot, through woods, up hill, etc. But, it was now 3:30, i was wet, cold, tired and hungry and so i figured, what the hell. I pulled the trigger and to my amazement the buck dropped to the ground, intantly. Its leg moved some, as i watched it in the scope, and it looked as if he was trying to move. To no avail. I waited a few minutes, not as long as you are supposed to, and unsafely, hurried out of my stand. When i got to the deer and surveyed the rack i screamed, OH YAAAA! This was my biggest buck yet. While it only had 8 points, the points were long and high, and fat and the spread was almost 17 inches. And the bullet hole? Right behind the ear in the jugular. Ive told some that i aimed there for a quick kill. It was lucky that i saw it, lucky that i decided to shoot, and most of all lucky that i hit it. To add to the luck, it dropped in an old gravel road that was easily accessed by dads truck. No dragging! Sothe streak is alive, the tradition of hunting the first day of PA buck with Dad is still in tact, and my manhood gets another needed stroke.

sick

2007-11-21T17:07:00.000-08:00

I feel like pooh, i have the flu, my nose runneth over.
My nostrils are crusted, my head it feels busted, i just wanna start over.

The snot is thick. The snot is brown, it doesnt want to come out.
My cough is deep and dry, Its made my temps real high, i just want to sit and pout.

I want to sleep, my dreams are deep, i wake up with bad headaches.
Drugs make my heart race, My sinus hurt my face, shot of whiskey i should take.

When will it end, Is it over, when will i feel like normal?
When the mucous runs out, when my ears stop popping, the end of the flu turmoil.

rest

2007-11-15T08:03:00.000-08:00

im ready for a break. Thanksgiving is lurking around the calendar bend and im ready. Im ready to sit around, eat, watch football, hunt, and play with my girls. Its not that work has been super hard or stressfull, but constant and lots of major changes. My job is changing quite a bit from a Local program manager for children and youth programs in West Virginia to a National position of training and capacity building in the area of rural community development. All that to say that my boss and i are moving up and out. We are staying put in our office here in Philippi but are being promoted to take what we have done here and implement in rural areas nationally. Right now our targets are a community in Mississippi that we have a realtionship with and one in the Navaho nation in New Mexico. Its all very challenging, but thier have been quite a few hurdles to get to this point and a direct impact to my local staff. Pray that the transistion works well for all. The girls an i will be in Indiana,PA for the holiday with a short stop at Childrens Hosp of pitt. Mia (who suffers from a minor epileptic condition) has a video eeg scheduled for Friday. Pray that it goes fast and that Mia is patient. Pray that my stomach stretches between now and thursday so i can fit more of my moms food!

sad

2007-11-11T19:10:00.000-08:00

A little elementary school girl that attends our church was recently hospitalized. Her mom is a single mom, kinda strung out, out of control, young girl herself. They recently hospitalized her daughter because she was diagnosed with pschytsofrenia (sp?). On top of that she was hearing voices. Scary. The good news is that after a few weeks in the hospital, she is much better. The pschytsofrenia has leveled and the voices have gone away. The sad news...she said she misses the voices because they were her only friends at school and she wont have anyone to talk to. Heart breaking! The last shall be first, and blessed are the meek, those who mourn, and little girls who are so alone that they would rather be mentally ill to cope with the lonliness of life. These our the greatest in His upside down, inside out kingdom, where He came to die for little ones such as this.

on the road again

2007-11-09T19:22:00.000-08:00

Last week i was in Seattle, next week (wed-Sat) ill be in Hot-Lanta. Cool city Atlanta. This weekend im in High View, West Virginia in the Shenendoah mountains, on the Virginia boarder. Im speaking at a middle school retreat. They look so little. Anyway i was invited to speak by a good friend and former intern of mine Tim Habecker. Perhaps you remember Tim. Originally i was going to bunk with the band. These things keep me humble. Im not a rock start......yet. But to my surpise the camp was too full and Tim booked me a sweet room at a nearby B&B. Check it out at thecountryinnathighview.com. Im in the Pine room. Its pretty fem, as most B&B's are, but its way cushy, so im diggin it. Way better than bunking with the band in some smelly, old, cold cabin. Maybe i am a rockstar. Na, once a roadie, always a roadie. Im not really sure what that means. Random thought: On the way hear (3hour drive through the mountains) i was jamming to The Essential Bruce Springsteen. Cool disc cause it covers some of his older and less popular stuff. Two songs that i hadnt heard caught my attention . The one was something like, This Train. It describes a train that is like a grace train that takes everyone to the promised land, drug addicts, hors, and the righteous too. In another song (didnt catch the title, i was driving too fast) he sang a line...."id ask for forgiveness but sin is all ive got". A paradox maybe that he realizes that asking for forgiveness will take it away, but then he'll be left with nothing in return? Cool, huh?, for Bruce i mean. Anywho....peace out from the gorgeous Shenandoah Valley.

The mouse and the motorcycle

2007-11-08T16:39:00.000-08:00

Do you remember this story? The mouse and the motorcycle by Beverly Cleary, i think. She also wrote all the Ramona the Pest books. Those titles always cracked me up as a kid cause my moms name is Ramona. That was and still is my favorite childrens book. Mia and i have read it a couple of times together. At our house here in the country, we always have mouse issues to deal with. We trap them, throw them away and forget about it till the next little pile of turds appear. The other day i was putting on a pair of low cut leather boots that i havent worn since early spring. As i picked the first one up i noticed that there was a tear in the padded part around the ankle area. As i pushed my toes into the boot i felt something odd at the bottom near the toe. I reached in and pulled out a dead mouse and the remnants of its home that it had built in my boot over the summer. Thankfully it was dead. Love it.

Happy Adoption Day Serena!

2007-11-06T17:03:00.000-08:00

Yep, 4 years ago today Serena Marie was officially deemed our daughter for ever and ever amen. We were looking at the pictures today of the very chubby, Michellin Man looking, brown girl. The rolls! It was the same judge in the same court room that also presided over mia's adoption. Yes the same man who was arrested at 230am in the East Liberty section of Pittsburgh, soliciting a prostitute. Of course one of his fellow judge buddies let him off the hook, as he swore he was only out shopping. Hmm. Any who, we are trully blessed by Gods gift of Mia and Serena. If you have a chance in the next week or so, you really must come visit the hills of West Virginia before all the leaves are gone. A little view from our yard.

The Ghost of Orville Redenbacher

2007-11-06T16:48:00.000-08:00

So im in the Denver airport the other day, waiting for my connection to Seattle. With only a half hour layover and a hankerin' for some grub, i decided to buy a box of popcorn (move theatre style) and a coke. As i managed my carry on in one hand, my coke tucked between my elbow and my side, i began munching away. I wasnt sure, but i assumed that i was probably dropping some popcorn on the floor. Due to my procarious position, i didnt dare lean over and look down to check. I noticed a young man, in his 30's, approaching me. He had a pull along carry on like mine and was talking on his cell phone. As he approached me, he bent over towards my feet. As i backed away i noticed he had bent down towards my shoes and began picking the popcorn that i had dropped, off of the floor. In my embarassment that i had littered (trashing, as my daughter calls it) I immediately stuck out my hand to take the hand off of the litter and finish the job by throwing it in a near by garbage can. To my utter amazement, he did not dump the droppings into my hand, but rather popped some into his mouth. As he walked away (just as casual as he came) he continued eating until it was all gone. He never looked back. When asked if i gave him the rest of my box; i said no. I was so shocked at what had happened that i didnt move till well after he faded away into the sea of impatient layovers.

The oldies station

2007-10-19T10:41:00.000-07:00

So Mia and i are driving home the other day, listening to our new favorite radio station. Its an oldies station that plays 60's and 70's. Insulting isnt it? Anyway, we heard Celebration by Cool and the Gang, then Grease is the Word from the sound track, then right before they played the StarWars theme song with disco drum beat inserted (which by the way was a #1 on Bilboard in 1977) they played Lionel Richie and the Commodores "Sail On". "Turn it dad; its too slow" she yelled. "No", i said, "I want to hear this one". "Why do you like this slow song dad"? "Because it was very popular when i was little". She picked up a cold steel dagger and as she stabbed me in the back with it she remarked... "and they still have that song"? I turn 39 on Monday, it doesnt seem right that songs 39 year old used to jam to qualify as oldies.

Winters story

2007-10-18T04:41:00.000-07:00

Its absolutely beautiful in West by God Virginia right now. The leaves are starting to turn and the temps are still very warm. As Serena and I sat on the porch staring at the mountains the other night, she said something very postmodern, that i though id pass on. There was a cool breeze and she asked, "is winter coming Dad?" i said, "pretty soon" and she responded; "i guess its time for winter to tell it's story". Im not sure if she read something like that or heard it, but Betsy and I were not familiar with it. Maybe that is how she sees it. That each season, each day, month, year, or person has a story to tell. The postmodern peek at theology sees the Kingdom of God as just that; a real life story. Its Gods story, and we have a page in it. Its time right now to tell our story. So.... whats your story? How is your life being read? When others read or hear about your story when you are dead and gone, how will they describe it? A tragedy, love story, mystery, Horror, feel good, suspense? Just like any good movie, i dont want mine to be slow and have too much diologue. I like deep, meaningul scripts, but some great suspense and action always floats my boat. Are you telling a story? Im looking forward to the holidays and winters story. Come and visit and sit on the porch with me and Serena as we watch, listen and live Gods story.

The crappy team

2007-10-08T10:41:00.000-07:00

So we played the crappy team ("the not so very good team" mia's words) last night. She scored 4 goals! She nocked some poor boy on his ass to steal the ball. I laughed out loud. Perhaps a little too loud.

Mia (Ham) Belgie's scoring streak continues

2007-10-04T17:45:00.000-07:00

Mia was off to an average start in soccer this early fall. She always seems to be the type of kid who needs clear direction and a goal of some sort as an insentive. As a sports junkie ive been interested in Tiger Woods openness of his personal goals for a season, a match, a year, etc. So i decided to give Mia and Serena some goals before they start each game. For Mia its goals. We had a crappy team one night and she and i decided she could get 3 goals if she tried really hard. She was posessed! She did indeed score 3 goals. With Serena we decided the number of touches on the ball was a good start. Mia set a goal tonight of 2 goals. She got one right off the bat. She never scored a second goal, but she was a completely different player because she had an objective. She so passionately went after the ball, unbelievable. She knocked boys and girls out of her way as she tried desperately to ge the ball. It was amazing. I wish i was so aggresive with the goals of my life, marriage, job, faith, etc. Serena stops along the way during the game. She will come right off the field, give me a high five, and then run right back in. Right during the middle of the game. Or if she hears us cheering, she will slow down, glance over, suck in the adoration, then (with prompting) gets back to the action. Greys Anatomy is on tonight, but the local satelite company just lost ABC, goes along with the grocery store being out of bananas yesterday. "We may get some in tommorow, maybe saturday". Ugh.

snot...a life saver.

2007-09-12T08:02:00.000-07:00

I have a cold. I always think its weird to have a cold when its summer. I have a former student that i worked with years ago explain snot to me once. Snot is actually a life saver. When your body gets a virus or infection its always potentially lethal. Your body (sinus) produces the liquid snot to fill the sinus passage ways. This prevents the infection or virus from entering your brain. If it enters your brain it could damage your brain or kill you. Once the virus or infection is no longer a threat, your snot drains out. Sore throats are sometimes a result of the draining, and inflamed sinus passages from the work can result in a sinus infection. The throat and sinus infection however are minimal side effects when you consider the possibility of brain damage or death. So the bottom line, while snot is nasty and annoying, its a life saver.

Ode to the Shark

2007-08-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

The Shark is a spiritual man. He has spent his adult years a'sail in the wind of the Holy Spirit. He moves, lives and breathes when ever and where ever the Lord blows him. The Spirit led him to ministry in the Appalachian Hills of Philippi, West Virginia a few years back. He came to pray, i believe. He came and prayed, and preached and taught and discipled, but i believe the Lord sent him here to pray. And pray he did. His obnoxous style of worship will be missed. His jovial presence will be a loss. His infectous spirit is gone. His impromptu interuptions of worship "this is either a God thing, or a Shark thing, either way...here goes" that were always right on target will be missed. Random "Shark shout outs" in the form of little notes or emails will be gone. A hug will be gone. A dance in worship, which i believe he would do in his underwear if the law allowed, will be seldom seen, unless Viola steps up. The Medallion will be a different place. Philippi will sense the loss of the man, and a spiritual presence. The Shark: wild, unpredictable, aggressive (in all the right ways), full of love, grace, puffy clouds and butterflies. May the Lord bless him and keep him and set his ship asail with strong winds.

Mennonitis

2007-08-28T12:04:00.000-07:00

My wife told me i swear too much in blogs, so ill try to keep this one clean. I was asked to preach or "share" at a local Mennonite church's church retreat this past weekend. Ive known some of the folks for quite some time. Not your stereotypical long skirts, bonnetts, plain blue, quasi-amish types that you think of. In fact they readily describe themeslves as liberal. Im not exactly sure what that means in thier context. Anyway, they meet at thier church weekly for worship. They meet in an average looking home on man street. They are very active in local ministries, such as Heart and Hand, a local outreach of clothing and food and housing. They also host a sepearate home that houses 4 recent highschool grads for a whole school year of service. Pretty socially active bunch. Thier retreat was at a random campground in the middle of Cheat Mountain here in WV. It was beyond chilled. On the schedule next to breakfast for saturday morning is had.... ?... too cool. Worship was some scripture reading, praying, sharing, singing of hymns and me "sharing" for 20 minutes. It was small (25 adults, 10 kids) and intimate. After the sharing time there is a respond time, for reflections or questions concerning the message. Other than a few questions for clarification on thier theology, it could be a cool place to "worship". As scarry as it sounds, some of the families live in neigborhoods together. Communities, they call it. But they have two communities where there is shared property, but individual homes, some shared farming things if you want, but mostly taking care of each other. Sounds kinda Biblical. Damn, oops, sorry hun.

Ameri-centric bastards

2007-08-24T19:23:00.000-07:00

Ive been thinking about some of the disasters of late around the globe. The massive quake in Peru, Hurricane Dean in the Atlantic and Gulf, and oh ya, whats that place called again; Darfur? I couldnt help but think in light of the path of Hurricane Dean, Americans, particularly Texans, sighed a huge sigh to know that the category 4 storm wasnt gonna hit the US. Whew, thank God. While no one said it, it was there, it was in the unspoken air....better them than us. We never have even heard of the mexican towns that were hit, and no one really cares. The other day i was listening to news about all the rain and flooding in the US midwest. ABC news radio interviewed some random women, she couldnt stop talking about how afraid her cat was during the terrible ordeal. Dont get me wrong, i love my dogs, but Americans spent somewhere in the neigboor hood of 30 Billion on pets last year. And how may kids starved to death? We are sick. We cant help it, i spose. We were born here. I think i spend about 40 a month on dog food. How many kids could i feed with that? Peruvians are still uncovering folks, and we are on to Mike Vick and Lindsay Lohans next stint at the Hollywood penitentury. Met an old man tonight who lives in the woods, in a home that barely stands against the wind. At my presence he jumped to his feet for an opportunity for conversation. He lives alone. I should have stayed for hours and chatted, but seemed a bit bothered by his presence. I hurried along and made convesation end, politely of course. But now he's still sitting on his porch, as his hot house is too much to bare. Ill try to go back tomorrow. His story must be heard. He is eager to share. Who knows, he probably invented something cool, or fought for my lazy ass's freedom somewhere along the line. All we care about is ourselves, our well-being, our damn country and how tragic it is that we have to pay $3.00 per gallon of gas.

Are your things in order (do you have your shit together)

2007-08-13T13:19:00.000-07:00

I can remember my first contact with a "born again" Christian. I was in Highschool. I traveled a couple of hours to Geneva College to see Petra in concert (i know, im dating myself). I was standing on my chair, shaking my head and fist, pointing my index finger in the air to a God I had not yet really come to know. A young, preppily dressed (is that word) young man was working his way down the row. He was walking where those of us on chairs should have been standing. He looked up at me and said "are your affairs in order?" Supid question to ask a teenagers. "huh" i said. "Are you born again?". "Ya dude", I quipt. I knew what he meant. He was asking if i had a personal relationship with Jesus. We will leave the "saved" lingo for another blog. "What the hell did he mean" i asked my friend, " about having my things in order?" He tried to explain, and my father later told me that he was referring to a secular question that often accompanies those who are close to death. It ask the questions: do you have a will? Do you have life insurance? Are those papers in order if something should happen to you? As the last kid in the house my parents would often show me "the box". It had all those papers in it that i would need if something happened and my parents died while they were traveling. People would always ask me if that creeped me out. Actually, it actually got me wondering how much mula my tight wad dad had squirled away. My affairs are in order. I do have a personal relationship with Jesus. Im not sure its something for the light hearted. IF you are a wimp in life, dont even try. Its one of the hardest things youll ever do. But the grace is as sweet as high quality joint dipped in the sweetest honey. My life would be a complete disaster without that grace. And a bleak future would cast me into the darkest depression with no return. My other affairs are in order too. I have two life insurance policies. The paper work is tucked away in a fire safe box next to the computer. My friend Matt had some things in order. Just a few months ago he joined our forces at work. When i met him i was scared. He was huge, dressed like a thug, tatoos from head to toe, cut off sleeves, ball cap, huge dip in his lip, and not much to smile about. 80% of his last 15 years were spent in Juvenile lock ups or prison. His beautiful wife Tiffany and He were just getting used to thier methodone doses to ease them off thier addiction to Heroin. They were both showing up to work. THey were joining our family. In the midst of some in depth conversations, "they got saved". I would have never put it that way. But what they understood was the Grace of Christ. In spite of thier life, thier incarceration, thier drugs, thier neglected daughter, they got it. They came to understand that we all stand equal in the site of GOd and helpless. They got the grace. With in a week our Baptist heavy staff had them down to the river, Matt, Tif, and 9 year old Sierra for a full emersion. They were coming to church. Sierra came to VBS. Matts special ankle bracelet kept him close by and he was an amazing spirit of joy and jocularity. His presence was pervasive. One of the side effects of the Methodone that we noticed right away was drowsiness. Matt and Tif would fall asleep at the drop of a hat. This past Friday morning it happened again. Unfortunately matt had the cruise set well above the speed limit. The State Trooper new he had fallen asleep at the wheel becasue thier were no skid marks at all following his car, crossing the median, and head on into a van. As you could see on the news, Matts body under the sheet, He didnt have a chance. He was crushed. Tif survived. Sierra was not with them. Left alone in her emergency room to deal with the pain of 2 breaks in her pelvis and a broken heart we found her sobbing out of control. " I saw him, i saw him laying there, i can get it out of my head, help me get him out of my head. What am i gonna do. What am i gonna do with out him". What do you say to that? What do you do? We all just kinda cried together. Im not sure i would have felt (doped up with anit-depressants) the true pain had i not seen Tif, or Matts Mom. She was broken, vomiting, falling, confused, faint. We all felt lost. As family members poured into the hospital, any judgement i had towards Matts lifestyle went away. He didnt have a chance in Hell to make it to heaven. I have never seen so many dregs of humanity in my life. Wrap sheets, tracks, tats, crack-teeth, crack-frames, illiterate, selfish, drama-addicted, products of Appalachian poverty. Matts one and only chance of a full life was grace and is eternity. TIf's is grace and grace now as she muddles through. Sierra's? Not sure. Maybe her life will be better with out a Dad, who as cool as he was, his environment and uprbrining would undoubtatly have put him back in prison. I think the Judge was right at his last hearing, "Matt, i think prison is the only place you can survive". He gave Matt one more chance. Why? cause we stepped in and asked him to. Maybe Matt would be still alive. Maybe he wouldnt. His dumbass grandfather blames his death on me/us, the Judge and police for letting him out. Who knows. We will bury him Thursday. The way it works here is that family and friends arrive with shovel to dig the grave. Its a reponsibility of those closest to him. My job? Get over it, move on, and put more effort into building a better world for children, like Sierra, who with all things constant would follow closely behing her mom an dad. We must build bridges out of poverty. We must build bridges made of grace. Is my shit in order. Yes, but i still wanna show my wife exactly where the papers are and the phone numbers of the people she must call that her shit can be in order when my shit is dead and gone. "my grace is sufficient for you". good thing, grace.

Metro-verted

2007-08-09T10:30:00.000-07:00

I sat in on a seminar today. It covered in short detail some of those annoying personality test things. It was based on a national personality test thing called "colors". Those things always annoy me because i never seem to fit into one box. Others struggle because they havent had or dont have the ability to analyze themselves, so they tend to score themselves incorrectly or they score themselves as they want people to perceive them. When i try and answer the questions honestly i tend to fall mostly on the introvert side. I find that im extroverted in different settings, though. At work i think im extroverted. As a public speaker/teacher, i display mostly extrovert qualities. I want to be an extrovert, without the obnoxious qualities that typically accompany the type. On the inside, i much rather enjoy being alone, being quiet, thinking, analyzing, and avoiding small talk with new people. I think, bottom line, that i am both, can be both, but left alone without the challenges of work, society, etc, im an introvert at heart. Or does the recent lack of serotonin play a role. When its firing, im extrovert, when its not, im most comfy, at home, by myself, with my own thoughts? Perhaps im "bi" or a metro-vert.

contemporary is passe'

2007-08-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

After my last blog i got in a conversation with some folks who are desperate to get kids to come to thier church. They wonder why thier congregation is old, gray and dissapearing. I had to hold back the lafter when they asked if i thought adding a contemporary service to thier offerings was a good idea. She assured me the question was probably mute, as she was sure the congregation would not vote in favor of the change. I guess to me, a gen x er, Contemorary worship (feminie looking 30 something guy up front in a golf shirt, jeans and clogs playing acoustic guitar) is the new traditional. The emergent style, experiential, tactical, relevant, sensual worship is perhaps the new contemporary. For those that dont read about the emergent movement, its totally foreign. Its scarry that churches are still debating contmporary. While debating if they could handle the change, or if the new music was offensive to God, or if they thought that worship should be relevant to each person, they missed all the 40 and 50 somethings who have teens. The 20's and 30' and thier toddlers will never dawn the door. THey have failed in the call to go to all the world and make disciples of all men. So thier stubbornness and closedmindedness actually pushed 4 seperate generations from the church. And now, transisition from Traditional to experiential is not even on the radarThis church will shut down in 10 years or less. I often wonder why so many church plants of the emergent style are popping up? Ive often wondered why so many? Why are they competing with the present churches? I guess the answer is that all those traditional churches are done in 10 years and those who think they are hip in thier jeans and clogs are done in 20. THe connection to my first blog is somewhat of an answer of the issue. The church is not supposed to be a big place with lots of peoples. THe small house or community church can easily flex to the needs of the group, and the purpose never changes. Celebration styles will need to change, but can be done just as easily as the transition of horse shoes to lawn jarts.

worship gripe

2007-08-06T07:58:00.000-07:00

An age old question that has plagued my mine since i was a teen whose brain and heart were open to worship, by GOd. What is it for. Whats the purpose? What is supposed to happen during worship? Are there rules? God doesnt seem to have many for us other than to pray, sing, dance, adore, and live in community with one another. Where the hell does the concept of a sermon even come into the picture? The Catholic Church has it right i think. THey read through scripture and then a breif HOmily is shared. I really cant stand that fact that an average worship service is one hour and we spend about half of that listening to one person talk at us about what He (typically) thinks God meant when he spoke or acted. With regards to a worship service. I think 90% of what we do in worship today is man made. Im thinking the Sunday morning one hour gathering is completely man made. Church is the people, worship is building of the kindgom. Fellowship is when the Kingdom builders gather to share, pray, encourage, meditate, become aware of the needs of the community and act upon them. So as far as church? Its any community of believers who agree to be in community as the Bible describes it in ACTS. What most denominations call worship is what they created to either appease or gather people. Oddly enough while Willow Creek overshadows the world with amazing programatic "worship services:, if you ask them, thier "worship services" are not worship services. They are celebrations. They would say that Church is occuring all over the region in houses, coffe shops, work places, etc. They share, learn, pray, become aware of one anothers needs and act upon them. they encourage one another in thier role of building the kingdom. So in a celebration, thier are no rules, just celebrate. As much as i though i hated Willow Creek over the years, i think they are actually doing it, well, as close to what Acts records. An who knows, maybe Acts isnt even what Jesus imagined for us in terms of worship. Dont get me started.