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The Life and Times of Agent #4

When life is not extremely busy, there are a couple of shows I like to watch that all involve FBI (or other glamorous government law enforcement types) agents. One of the things I've noticed is that the stars of the show don't need as much protection as the two-bit guy who is still trying to get a break into show biz and is playing the role of Agent #4. For example, whenever there is a raid on some abandoned warehouse where an atomic bomb is suspected to be armed and ready to go off, guarded by fifteen bad guys heavily armed with grenades and large-caliber automatic weapons, Agents #1 - 15 are all decked out in body armor, helmets, face shields, gloves, protective suits, etc. But, the main characters and stars of the show Ace Goodguy, Biff Hero, and Raquel the Ravishing rush in with only a bullet proof vest that says "FBI" on the back and a really cool looking pair of safety glasses that could easily pass for $500 Ray Bans. I guess their star status gives them protection the other agents don't need.

Our faith journeys will be filled with times where it feels like we have to storm a warehouse full of bad guys. Or, more accurately it will feel like a warehouse full of bad guys has stormed us. It helps to have some type of protection to protect against the assault.

You could apply this to your faith journey in two different ways. On the one hand, you could say that the longer you have been on a faith journey, the more able you are to handle the troubles that come along. That's true. You don't need as much armor. You've reached a certain star status. That's NOT true. I'd advise against it. It's a mistake everyone makes, probably many times, in their journeys. The less protection you have, the more likely you are to fall and get injured.

A more appropriate application would be to always dress like Agent #4. Put on the whole suit and every bit of protection. In the book of Ephesians, Paul called this the armor of God. Our attitude should be more like that of a football player. None of the great stars of the game say, "I've been playing long enough that I can wear less equipment since I am so good." To the contrary. Because they have become so good, they know they need MORE protection because the opposing players are going to be trying even harder to take them down. The enemy of your faith journey is going to be working even harder to take you down.

Just in case you need more evidence to convince you, think about all the faith journey "stars" that have fallen from grace. In every case, they didn't wear the whole suit. Now that you have your assignment, go out and do well Agent #4. Just a thought.

Lessons from Winston Churchill and Jimmy V

"Never, never, never give up" is a famous quote by Winston Churchill. "Don't give up. Don't ever give up" is also a famous quote by someone who is probably more well known in this part of the woods - Jim Valvano. This past weekend, the ghost of Jimmy V could be seen at the ACC Tournament as number 10 seed NC State played their way to the championship game against favorite to win University of North Carolina. They played a great first 17 minutes befoe falling apart. With around 11 minutes left to play, they were down by sixteen points.

I ALMOST turned off the game. Nobody really expected State to win. Everyone acknowledged they had played far beyond expectations. Honestly, their bench really was not deep enough to beat someone like Carolina. But, State had beaten this same team earlier in the season. With 9 minutes left to play, the lead was cut to single digits. By the 5 minute mark, it was a game. The Tarheels were clearly concerned they might not win. The Pack was clearly aware they just might. In the end, UNC was crowned tournament champs. They got to cut down the nets. But NC State came away as the winners to many because of the great effort.

"Never give up" is found throughout the Bible. We're told to never stop doing good. We are given assurance that our faith journeys are being continually refined by God. When trouble comes and tries to derail us, we are given encouragement that God will help us through. We are told of the good things that come when we never give up.

Faith journeys are all about never giving up. If we gave up, they would be "faith trips". If we look back on our faith journeys, we will discover times where we did things we never thought possible. There will be moments when we realized our responses even surpassed what others thought we were capable of. At times, we may feel like the 2007 Wolfpack. We don't necessarily win the championship, but we get a lot of credit for our effort. Our championship will come one day however, as long as we never give up.

Board Rooms and Basketball Courts

In my part of the world, basketball rules. In thirty minutes or less, I can travel to the campuses (campi?) of traditional basketball powerhouses UNC, Duke, and NC State. Yes, I know, NC State's powerhouse is more historical than contemporary, but as an alum, I have to have hope! The big news last night was the flagrant foul of Gerald Henderon of Duke that resulted in the bloody nose of Tyler Hansbrough of UNC with only 14 seconds left in the game. I watched the video several times. I really don't think he meant to do it. Henderson will not be able to play in Duke's next game, round 1 of the ACC tournament against NC State (go Pack!). Even if he didn't mean to do it, the referees ruled it was a violation of the flagrant foul rule.

As I turned off the sports news last night, I did one last channel surf before heading to bed. I got to watch Donald Trump fire a couple of folks in the board room of the show The Apprentice. I may have seen three of four episodes total in the six seasons it has been on. The board room is definitely the highlight. As I watched Trump wield his corporate power and mercilessly grill the losing team, I have to admit I was envious for that type of power. In the world of corporate America where the bottom line is the driving force behind decisions, there is no excuse for failure. At least not for Trump. As a guy, I would love to be able to wield that type of decision making power. At least I think I would.

As we go through life on our faith journeys, there are things we really don't mean to do. They are a result of bad habits we have formed over time. I remember having a conversation with someone after church one Sunday. We were still in the church and at times he would get excited. Once or twice he would have a slip of the tongue and say some things we usually avoid saying while in church. He was young in his faith journey and really didn't mean too. These words were part of the habits he had developed over time.

When we slip up, its very easy to become defeated. It is easy to believe that our faith journey has somehow become derailed permanently or that we need to go back to square one. We may believe that God borrows an idea from the Trump toolbox and says, "You're Fired."

Reality is probably closer to the Henderson/Hansbrough incident. He may not have meant to, but the penalty has to be paid. He can return and keep playing like he always did. So, stay in the game. Keep playing. Be glad life isn't like the board room. And Go Pack!

Not what you thought

I saw something the other day I never thought I would see. As I was pulling into the parking lot of a video rental store, I could hear the music blaring from one of the only two other vehicles in the parking lot. It was hard core gangsta rap. Imagine my surprise when I discovered the source. It was coming from the pick up truck beside me. The surprise began when I saw that the only person in the truck was an approximately fifty year old white male. I dropped my videos in the return slot, got in my car to drive away and the surprises kept coming. On the back window of the pickup truck were all the usual adornments - a rebel flag and several NASCAR related decals. I can't remember what they were now, but I know there was a third category of decals of the type usually found on a pick up truck in the rural South.

I'm still trying to reconcile all these conflicting images. I live in an area that is rapidly growing. Most of the economy is driven by the information technology and biomedical fields. People are moving here in droves from all around the country. Several years ago, one of the cities in this area was jokingly (and accurately) referred to as a containment area for relocated yankees. Despite all this, many of the people who live here state with pride their redneck heritage (their words, not mine). Our rap-listening friend fits the bill for this latter group, with the exception of his music of course.

I have enjoyed my own moments of not fitting into someone else's preconceived notions. On more than one occasion, people have been shocked to learn I'm a pastor. It's usually because of my appearance. I don't wear a suit, or even a tie, except on very special occassions. Once I was getting a haircut and all the stylists freaked out about half way through my cut when it became known I was a pastor. "You don't look like a pastor" was their response. "Good" was my response. I then pointed out how differently they treated and talked to me because of this new knowledge. I actually preferred it the other way.

There a lot of preconceived notions about people on a faith journey. They usually don't involve rap of any kind ;-) They do involve a list of do's and don'ts. Or they involve a list of things that will start happening and another list of things that will stop happening. Then the surprise moment comes when we realize that 2/3 of either list turns out to be bogus or yet to be fulfilled. It rocks our world. We don't know how to reconcile the situation. Was all we believed wrong?

Probably. Usually it's wrong because we were focused on the wrong stuff. A faith journey is basically about following God. We tend to add a lot of requirements or expectations of blessings to that. The trick is knowing exactly what it means to follow God. I'd like to hear what you think that means. Think about it and post your thoughts while I go look for that young African-American man driving the pimped out ride while listening to Hank Williams Jr.

Peanut Butter and Salmonella

I've always said that George Washington Carver is my favorite scientist of all times. Besides seeking God's wisdom for everything he did, he is generally given credit for inventing the absolute best food in the world - peanut butter. (Actually George Bayle is recoginized as first person to sell the stuff )I love peanut butter so much that I will sit down with a jar and spoon and eat to my heart's content. I'm pretty picky about my peanut butter though. There is only one brand that I will eat like that - Peter Pan Reduced Fat Crunchy. For those of you wondering, I have received no compensation for this endorsement.

Imagine my dismay last week whenI read about the salmonella contamination in my favorite brand of peanut butter. I quickly emailed the story to my wife who checked all our peanut butter jars. Every jar we had, including the off brand, came from the infected lot. Interesting thing is that we have eaten out of every jar and no one has gotten sick. Since we have consumed a fair amount of the creamy crunchy nectar of heaven already, we are assuming that we have a safe batch to eat. We're going to finish it off anyway.

You are probably wondering how I'm going to relate peanut butter to our faith journeys. First, I do not recommend that any of you go out and buy peanut butter that MAY be infected with salmonella just because I did not seem to be affected. In fact, it may have been reckless and inappropriate for me to even tell you I'm okay doing it. If you have any misgivings about eating potentially lethal peanut butter, you should continue to avoid doing so.

Many times, we set standards of behavior on our lives once we begin a faith journey. Some behaviors are clear, others are not. What is permissible for one person on a faith journey will not be permissible for another. Back in the days of the Apostle Paul, the hot topic of debate was whether to eat meat that had been sacrificed to idols.

These are waters that should be entered into very carefully. If there is something that you are hesitant to do because you don't think it is appropriate, then don't do it. If you think it is appropriate and have a clear conscience that it will not lead you away from God or down a path that eventually takes you to places clearly inappropriate, then go ahead. Either way, people must be careful about their decisions and how they judge people who disagree.

I'm one of those people who believes if it is questionable and causes more controversey than good things, I'm not doing it. But that's me. You have to decide how you want to handle your faith journey. Just remember that the decision is not one you should make alone and on your own counsel. You need to pray, search Scripture, and even ask the others around you on a faith journey.

While you search for those answers, enjoy some peanut butter. That's what I do.

Body Rhythms

My leg is doing some really weird stuff. For no apparent reason, it will go numb. Or, I will get a very warm, almost hot sensation on the outer part of my leg and I can feel it move down my leg and into my foot. I don't mean my whole leg gets warm. I mean I can feel this spot about one inch in diameter of warmness move around. When it gets to my foot, it stops and the bottom of foot just gets hot. The really really weird part is it has been doing this for about three years, but only in late January and February.

When it first began in 2004, I freaked out. I thought I had some sort of blood clot. So did the doctors. Bloodwork was done and appointments with various specialists were scheduled. After an ultrasound ruled out any circulatory problems, they sent me to a neurologist. After sending electrical impulses all through my leg and taking pictures of all sorts, the diagnosis was "Nothing's wrong with you." By the end of March, the weirdness stopped. My physician had no good answer. It was ruled out as stress. Especially since it had stopped.

The stressor that shouldered the blame was the death of my father. He passed away on Feb 27, 2004, only seven weeks after being diagnosed with cancer. Calling those seven weeks stressful is an understatement. It also coincided with drastic change in our ministry appointment. There were many other minor factors involved. When all these things were added together, they equalled one big honkin' ball of stress.

I was satisfied with that answer. Until January 2005. The weirdness in my leg began again. I did not revisit the doctor for more tests. I felt pretty sure my body was reacting to memories and emotional anniversaries. As before, it was gone by March. January 2006 came and so did the weirdness. This past Christmas I wondered aloud to my wife if January 2007 would be a repeat. A few weeks ago it became official. I had my first bout of weirdness. (Well, my first bout of weird leg sensations. Weirdness isn't really new to me.)

I told my wife about it last week. Her first words were, "Is this about your father's death?" I wish I knew. By now I'm fascinated with the process. How does my body and mind work together to create this cycle? Twenty years from now, will I be able to predict the onset of weird leg sensations? Seventy-five years from now, will there be some sort of local tradition that springs up to commemorate this annual occurence, complete with weather predicting myths and the like?

As long as I can be assured there is no real health problem, I'm not worried. I'm assuming it's some type of pyschosomatic response triggered by the emotions of the anniversary of my father's passing. In my faith journey, there are probably similar cycles of high and low times. If I analyze it, I'm sure I can map out the cycle and identify the triggers. If I'm smart enough, I can emotionally manipulate events to avoid the low triggers and maximize the high triggers. Or, it may be hopeless. I may be a prisoner to the cycle. Trying to avoid the low triggers may be like telling someone not to think about hot fudge sundaes. That's ALL they will think about.

Plus, faith journeys are more than emotional events. There is a spiritual element that can act outside of our emotional states. Many times our spiritual response is actually contrary to the norm for the current circumstance. For example, joy in the midst of suffering, love in the face of persecution, etc. But there are things we CAN control and should control. Are there things we know will trigger a downward or reverse trend in our journey? Avoid them. Some cycles should be broken.

I have to also be careful to not write off those low moments as "just part of the cycle." There may be a real spiritual health concern present that I should address. Nor should I take for granted the high moments either. So take the time to assess your rhythm. Meanwhile, I need to walk around and wake up my leg.

The Road to Here

I don't know if your team won tonight or not, but the Soul Bowl - I mean the Super Bowl - is over. It's been called the Soul Bowl by some because there was finally a black head coach on the sidelines of the Super Bowl. Not just one, but two. Tony Dungy coached the Indianapolis Colts (the winners BTW) and Lovie Smith coached the Chicago Bears. It was historic for those reasons and several commercials even made note of it.

During the game, several of us were talking about this particular situation. The subject of Doug Williams came up. Williams was the starting quarterback for the Washington Redskins. In 1988 he became the first black quarterback to win the Super Bowl. I shared my particular memories of that event as a white person. I was a college sophomore and I remember thinking it was no big deal. Williams was a great player and he deserved to win and to be awarded the MVP trophy. I also remember how important it was for my roommate and other suitemates, all of whom were young black men. It was a memorable event for many different reasons.

Nineteen years ago, I was just young enough to have missed the struggles that many of our brothers and sisters of color endured. I did not know of a time when an otherwise gifted person was denied a position solely based on skin color. College sophomores today of all colors struggle to know what the big deal is about the Soul Bowl because for a majority of them, the struggle for civil rights is history. And I think that is mostly a good thing though we cannot forget how we got Here.

I have been part of several online and offline discussions lately about matters of Christian theology, faith journeys, and the stance on particular issues by particular churches. There are some changes that need to be made because we are now Here, not Back There. However, some of these changes and the supporters of these changes almost appear to want to demolish the road behind them. They want to forget how we got to where we are.

Faith in general is like that. So much of what we believe and say about our faith journey is the product of 2000 years of Christian history, thinking, and sharing. Before that you have another 2500+ years of Jewish history, thinking, and sharing. The things we believe as Christians were not all formulated during a two week retreat and then posted for the world to see. They took years to develop. Most of us have no idea that for 300 to 400 years, there were constant debates about who Jesus really was and how he worked, etc. Some things got Here a long time ago and so we forget the development of those ideas. We then neglect to give ourselves to develop some of these ideas or fine tune some of what we believe today.

Faith really is a journey. Wherever you are on your journey, celebrate the Here where you are without forgetting the There where you used to be. Look forward to the place you will be in the future. Yet rejoice that you might be able to forget that you weren't always like this. Just a though.

Getting There (eventually)

Last night I headed over to the home of one of the teens in our church. All the teens were gathering there for the evening. They were allowing me to crash the party with my video camera. The purpose was to film some Super Bowl party commercial spoofs. I can't wait to see Stara Wars Episode 7.

I headed down the road from my house, lost in thought. I made the first of about three turns to get to his house. Still lost in thought, I noticed that I passed the house of another teen from our church. Still traveling and lost in thought, I began to notice that the scenery did not look like I expected it to. The landmarks were unfamiliar. I came to a stop sign as expected. But it was the wrong intersection. My first thought was, "I didn't know Buffaloe intersected Ten-Ten!" That's when I realized that Buffaloe doesn't do any such thing. While lost in thought, I turned one road too soon. I eventually got to my destination, just not as quickly or directly as I would have liked.

In our faith journeys, we sometimes don't get to where we want to be in the way we planned. There's a negative and a positive side to that. From the positive standpoint, the little detours and unexpected surprises bring a depth of insight or an a-ha that we would not have encountered otherwise. Sort of like getting off the main trail and discovering that hidden waterfall.

Negatively, we can take a detour that never leads us to where we want to be. Remember the family on the west coast that got lost on a logging road and stuck in a snowstorm? The wife and two small children survived in the car. The husband unfortunately did not survive his attempt to go find help. Sometimes we make decisions that either take us out of the journey completely or at least so far in the other direction that it feels like we are out of it completely.

Sometimes those decisions are deliberate. We know the potential outcome, but something inside of us desires what is on the wrong road so much that we are willing to risk it. Sometimes it happens by accident, sort of like driving down the road lost in thought. Whenever and however it happens, there are always signs to warn us to turn back. The author and director of our faith journey has mapped it out pretty well and he wants to keep us on the right road. Those warning signals will be obvious. There will always be a chance to turn around.

While your are journeying, be sure to read all the road signs. Just a thought.

Marlboro Man II

I finally bought a backpack. I decided to go to the Army surplus store and buy a used ALICE pack. It has a huge amount a space (enugh room to stow a Bradley tank) and was very inexpensive when compared to all the other new packs I have looked at. Plus, I figured if the military issues these, then they must be of some value.

As a side note, I was struck with some very somber thoughts while searching through the used bin. Many of the packs had small holes that had been patched. You couldn't help but wonder how many of the holes were created by schrapnel or bullets.

Back to the pack. For all the gains that results from buying a large inexpensive pack that is also durable, there are some cons to the purchase. It's not as comfortable as I would like. Keep in mind that I have spent the last few weeks trying on backpacks at various sporting good and outdoor stores. Some of the major selling points of these packs are the comfort features. When you are carrying anywhere from 20 to 35 pounds of gear on your back for possibly 20 or more miles a day, you appreciate the features of padding in the straps and other places in the pack. The military pack that I purchased has minimum padding. And the frame for the pack is one of those "one-size-fits-all" which means "all" but guys like me with a disproportinately long torso.

Yet I purchased it anyway. Here's why. If I'm going to be the Marlboro Man, won't I have to toughen up anyway? And if it is good enough for the men and women who put their lives on the line everyday for my freedom, can't I do them the honor of sharing in their discomfort a little? My "new" used military issue large ALICE pack awaits for my first Marlboro weekend in a few weeks.

Have you ever thought that a faith journey required a little discomfort or suffering along the way? Maybe you haven't, but have you met someone who did? Some folks take it to the extreme. History is full of stories of people who denied themselves everything but basic food (hard bread!), water, and very itchy clothes in their quest for holiness along the route of their faith journeys. Many of them lived in caves and probably went a little crazy due to lack of social contact. Just think Tom Hanks and Wilson the Volleyball.

Others have still denied themselves many of the things we think necessary for normal life, at least here in the US. For them, it is not as much about suffering as it is about avoiding "contamination" (think allergens).

Ask many people what it means to be on a Christian faith journey and they will immediately give you the list of things you can't do. It's almost like a list of the discomforts that must be endured. If I want to be a good Christian, I can't get too happy or comfortable. And for many people, that's why they never consider a faith journey. It's like saying I can't be the Marlboro Man unless I suffer a whole lot.

There are positive and appropriate ways to experience discomfort on your faith journey that actually benefit you. In the two months leading up to Easter, Christians all over the world will enter a period of preparation where many of them will deny themselves something as a means of growing closer to God. It is a type of spiritual discipline. They may fast regularly during that period or refrain from various other activities. The purpose will be to use those times to reflect more on their faith, God, and their journey in general. It's a good practice and people historically have testfied to its effectiveness.

As you go along on your faith journey, there are going to be all sorts of time of discomfort - physical, emotional, and even social. They are part of the process and they do have benefit. Just don't fall into the trap of buying a pack that is intentionally too small, has too little padding, and will never work anyway just to prove your point.

Now, how can I add some extra padding to this frame?

Allergies

We learned something about our youngest child yesterday. He was running around like a normal kid, into trouble, being too loud for indoors, saying he was hungry - you know, all the typical six year old stuff. During lunch, he ate a decent helping of all the foods he liked. He took two small bites of a muffin, then stopped because he didn't like it. Within a minutes, he began complaining about his stomach hurting. He was tired and wanted to go home. His eyes began to look puffy. Our oldest son had a flu-like virus recently that came on just as quickly, so we assumed it was something similar. Within twenty minutes, he had hurled twice. We quickly got him home, where he slept for over two hours.

After his nap, he looked like nothing had happened. You would have never known he was the same kid who was so sick just hours earlier. We began to think, "Hmmm.... I wonder if he was allergic to something in that muffin?" He even said when he first started feeling bad that he thought he was allergic to it. We called the person who made the muffins to find out what was in them and see if there was anything "new" in them. We discovered the muffins contained finely chopped walnuts.

We don't know of any real allergies our son has. We know that when he was young, he reacted adversely to peanut butter, so he hasn't had any of that since. By his choice, he avoids all nuts because in his words, "They are yucky." For obvious reasons, we are now seriously contemplating having him officially diagnosed.

If you know anything about nut allergies, you know just how life-threatening they can be. Entire school districts have banned nuts in any form from their schools. In some places, kids cannot bring the good old standby of a PB&J for their own personal consumption.

If we were only so wise on our faith journeys. Sometimes there are things along the way that spell certain death for us, at least a spiritual death. They need to be avoided like the world's worst nut allergy. Many times it is much more subtle. They allergen to your faith may not be something you immediately recognize, but it is close enough that maybe you should avoid it all together. My son's peanut butter reaction five years ago leads us to believe walnuts are also a no-no.

The trick becomes how to recognize those allergens that bear a family resemblance. Nuts are easy. What about allergens to our faith? No one would argue that pornography is definitely bad for your faith. What appears up for debate though is what other types of movies fall into that category. Will Saw III lead to some type of allergic reaction, just not in the same way? Or even harder to discern, what about Arthur and the Invisibles or perhaps Desperate Housewives? (PERSONAL NOTE: I am not lobbying one way or the other for any of these titles, but would be glad to if asked)

Allergens pop up everywhere - not just the usual suspects like movies, tv, and music. What we do with our leisure time or how we spend our money can bring allergic moments. Avoidance is the best policy. Of course, there is a prescription strength antihistamine that is available over the counter. If a faith journey is your desire, put your faith in the power to keep you on the journey. That power only comes from God himself.

Just a thought . . .

Becoming the Marlboro Man

This is the year I become a real man. Or at least start the process. By "real man" I mean that I become the great outdoorsman. I will be the Marlboro Man (without the cigarette of course!). I will be able to head out into the woods for an indefinite period of time and survive because of my great hunting and wilderness skills. It's a goal that deep down, every man strives for. We all want to be the Marlboro Man.

Because I have lived the easy life for so long where the only hunting I've had to do for my food is to figure out which aisle it's on, my goal is probably quite a ways off. I figured I'd start by equipping myself with everything I'll need. I'm going to start by learning some camping skills. My boys are in Cub Scouts now, so I have to stay ahead of the curve. If you had looked at the presents under our tree this past Christmas, you would have noticed two distinct themes - laser stuff of one sort or another and camping stuff.

I've almost got all the important big equipment I need. The missing piece is something to put it all in. How will I haul it around? As I am wandering through the wilderness, how will I get all of my man-gear where I need it to be? The answer is a backpack. I've been shopping for backpacks. I never realized that buying a backpack could be so complicated. There are all types and styles of backpacks. The biggest hurdle for me is my torso. Eighty percent of my height is in my torso. Of my 6'2" of height, approximately 5 feet is my torso. Yes, I'm really ill-proportioned. And in my shopping, I've discovered that finding a pack for a circus freak like myself is really difficult. At least to stay within my limited budget it is.

So what do you? First I had to purge myself of the dream of looking like the Marlboro Man, trudging up the mountain in that really cool looking pack with all the gear strapped on the outside to see, setting up his really cool looking campsite that looks like it came straight out of scene from Rawhide. As I've done some research, I've discovered that you really don't need a backpack that will hold 300 cubic feet of storage. A lot of the little gadgets that are designed for camping, etc. are really just extra weight you have to haul around and then later wish you did not bring along. The budget thing is still an obstacle though. It's amazing what a backpack costs. And if I admit it to myself, how uncomfortable am I really willing to be? I keep asking myself, "What would the Marlboro Man take along?"

This journey to become more like the Marlboro Man can be compared to our faith journeys to become more like Christ. There are so many questions. How do we get started? Where can we get our answers? Is the goal too high and lofty, more of an ideal than something we will ever really achieve? Will I find that this journey really doesn't fit me, at least the way it seems to fit everyone else? What things do I really need to get me along on this journey to Christlikeness? Is the cost too great to pursue? How uncomfortable am I willing to become on my journey?

These questions need and deserve answers. Maybe in the next few weeks we can answer some of them together. I'd like to know what you think. I'd like to know what questions you think need to be answered. Let me know. Until then, I need to go buy some more flannel shirts.

Just a thought.

To Do lists

Today is officially my first day back in the office since the holidays. No, I did not go on vacation last week. I was out of town on a business trip. So, as I sit, here looking at everything to do around me, the "to do" list is getting pretty long. To top it all off, I received an email from a friend this morning telling me that today is National Clean Out Your Desk Day. I wonder if she is trying to tell me something? And that was after my wife asked me if she could start a new honey-do list for me.

When I examine my own list of things to do, I am amazed at how many of them are piddly little maintenance tasks. Yet, if I don't do them, a lot of important work isn't going to get done. I need to order toner for the copier. I need to order a new bulb for our LCD projector. I need to order some materials for several of our small groups. And yes, it's time for that bi-weekly desk and office clean up so I can find what I need when I need it.

At some point today I need to prepare for a board meeting. At some point today, I need to study and prepare a sermon, a Sunday School lesson, as well as do my own personal study PLUS prepare for a small group. Then there is the important need to sit and plan the schedule of all these areas for the next few months. Oh yeah, did I mention coordinate the Super Bowl party? Then there are the several meetings or visits that are scheduled for this week.

Lest you think I'm complaining, I'm not! I know that everyone experiences just as hectic a lifestyle. Nor is this a post about the tyranny of the urgent, time management, giving priority to what is important in your life, etc. This is actually a post about how important it is to have toner in the copier, a bulb that works in your projector, a clean desk and office, and a bunch of other things that don't seem to add value to our lives but are yet "necessary evils" to be dealt with.

Life for most people is pretty ordinary. Contrary to Andy Warhol, I don't think everyone gets 15 minutes of fame. Most of us go about our regular lives, dealing with toner, bulbs, and general straightening tasks. These aren't the things that get us excited. They don't fuel our passions. We don't come home in the evening excited about that new package that arrived from the copier supplier. Yet without any of these, we would not be able to do the really cool things.

A lot of times we want our faith journeys to only be about the really fun things. We want our journeys to be filled with excitement and passion. Despite the appeal of these times, we have to do some of the piddly things for our faith journeys too. Praying when we feel like we have nothing to say to God. Reading and studying that passage in the Bible we've read a gazillion times already. Showing up at the local rescue mission or food bank to sort donated items. Waking up and accepting that nothing miraculous on the calendar for the day and our only task is to walk forward in the journey.

The good news is the toner has already been ordered. Now if I can only find a supplier for that bulb.

The Year of . . .

I hereby declare 2006 the year of change. I know, I'm about 365 days behind. But it is so much easier to look back and see what happened instead of trying to guess at what might happen in the future.

Looking back on 2006, our family went through several changes, most of them related to one particular circumstance. We moved to a new city, a new house, a new church, and a new job. The kids even got two new schools - we decided to homeschool right before Christmas. We initiated other changes that will hopefully make our family life together much more fun, loving, enjoyable, and even productive.

All of us changed in some way. The boys lost some teeth and got new ones. They're a little bit taller, a little bit more mature, and a lot smarter. I'm a little bit heavier, despite my goal to run a marathon. I'm hopefully a little bit wiser. I even love life a little more.

The old cliche says that the only thing that is constant is change. Every year is the year of change. Not all changes are welcome ones, but everyone changes in some way every year. Those people who do not change are usually the least alive. They are usually the least amount of fun to be around. The ones who absolutely refuse to allow room for any change are even less fun. And I think it's because their spirit is slowly dying.

My faith journey changed. I still serve the same God. I still have the same type of commitment to spiritual living. I'm still heading in the same direction. Everything is the same, but I'm closer to my final desitination. Even though I may not feel any different, I'd bet I'm somehow stronger spiritually. Change will do that for you.

Change can send you the other way. Change can cause you to change direction in your faith journey. You will be closer to the end of your time, but you may actually father away from your desired end. Some event can happen to cause you to abandon your faith journey. Those aren't good changes.

So what'll you do? If change is indeed inevitable, let's be prepared for it and make it good changes. Instead of complaining about the lemons, make lemonade. It's your choice. You know, I think I'll choose to make 2007 the year of change also. I can't lose - it's a sure bet. Just a Thought.

Confessions of a Geek

DISCLAIMER: If you came looking for something to encourage you on your faith journey, this post probably won't be it. If you came looking for someone to laugh it, this is your lucky day. I'm taking a break from the usual today in order to love life.

Last night, I confirmed to myself what I have known all along. I AM A GEEK! My wife gave me two of the coolest toys ever. The first was a Darth Tater (Mr. Potato Head dressed as Darth Vader). The second was a Jedi light sabre training game. It has a little camera/sensor you mount on top of the tv and a play sabre you hold while fighting bad guys and going thru training exercises on the screen. I waited all day Christmas to get a chance to play it while my kids played with their new video game or I set up all their other toys. Honestly, I was hoping to get them involved in something else so I wouldn't have to share.

I finally got to play. And I did terrible. Couldn't get past stage 1 of my training. To add insult to injury, I finally let my oldest son play and he cruised right along to stage 2. Then I let my six-year old play and it was really quite funny to watch him jump all over the living room. BUT, he too cruised right along to stage 2. Humility is too mild a word to describe what I was feeling. This must be how it feels when you realize your teenage son could kick your butt in a fight and he knows it too. He just doesn't out of respect.

I resisted the urge to play. I nursed my ego all evening. "I think I need to recalibrate the settings for my player" was my excuse. I finally gave in. Once the boys were in bed and asleep, I gave it one more try. For the record, recalibration actually helped. I finished the evening just a hair's breadth from completing stage two. I can now proudly say I am once again better than my 8 1/2 year old and my 6 year old sons. If only my father could see me now.

But that's not what makes me a geek. As I was playing, I found myself speaking to myself as if Master Yoda was coaching me. At one point, I found myself slipping into scenes from the movies. Before I realized what was happening, I was fighting with the light sabre in my right hand while holding up my left, using the force to knock back my enemies. During this display of geekness, my wife sat on the couch, watching, wishing she was video taping the whole affair, and generally making fun of me. That's ok. She can laugh if she wants to. She'll thank me the next time we are attacked by battle drones or some punk gang of Sith wannabe's.

BTW, my kids wanted to watch Episode I the other night. That gave me an excuse to watch the other five when we were done. I managed to get II & III in over the weekend. Maybe I can get Episode IV in tonight.

Gotta go now. I have a training date with Anakin.

A Christmas Wish

Merry Christmas!

May it be filled with the joy, life, light, hope, peace, and love it was intended to bring.

And I hope your faith journey take you places like that everyday :-)

Survivor Part 2 - Beauty that lasts

Ok, here's my second set of thoughts from watching the Survivor finale Sunday night. Imagine how you would look if you spent 39 days on a remote island or in a remote jungle without any basic facilities like showers, running water in general, toilets, etc. Well, that's how these people look too. My wife is so glad we don't have smell-o-vision yet.

WARNING: The next paragraph or two may come off as chauvinistic, sexist, and just plain ol' male drivel. However, read through it and you will see a wonderful recovery at the end.

Every season there are one or two women on the show who try to use their feminine charms to get them through the game. They are usually quite attractive in every sense of the word. The other women often recognize this. The males usually do too, but only if they are over the age of thirty and know they really don't stand a chance with these women. BTW, the attractive women usually target the under thirty set anyway.

Now for the recovery. Remember the fact that there are no facilities of any type. That includes make-up. I am always amazed at how different most of the women look on the finale show. They have had showers, done their hair, and put on make-up. The guys usually don't look much different with the exception of maybe a shave. And almost always, we (the missus and I) agree that we liked the physical appearance of the women on the island/jungle better. It's not that they are not attractive with make-up and done hair, you just get used to how someone looks and that's how you like them.

OK, maybe that not's a recovery in your mind, but I know I'm no chauvinist. Just ask my wife. She'll tell you that I find her the most attractive when she feels she is at her worst.

Faith journey connections - where are they? The real rewards of a faith journey come when you are in the trenches, getting dirty, struggling with life, and when you generally feel like you are at your least attractive, at least in terms of your faith journey. When you come out of those struggles with new understanding, that "natural beauty" shines through and people take notice. When we put on our best face and pretend this is how we always are, it may look good, but it doesn't last. I prefer natural, honest beauty (and faith).

Just a Thought.

Statistics, Schmatistics

Did you hear the good news today? According to a recent study, 95% of all people have engaged in premarital sex. This includes women. Glad to hear that, who else would all those men been engaging with? It also includes people going back to the 1940's. The whole point of the story was to say that we as a society have not been as chaste historically at we would like to believe. It is also being used as "evidence" to discredit abstinence only education.

I don't know what to think of this. Ninety-five percent sounds pretty high. Is this an agenda driven report? Most likely so. But if it's true, if it's accurate, now what? My first thought is this - If a gazillion people do a stupid thing it's still a stupid thing. Having premarital sex is not a stupid thing, but I do think it is an unwise thing. Just because everyone else MIGHT be doing it doesn't mean you have to.

On a deeper level, the debate about all things related to Christian morality will rage for a few days before drifting off into irrelevancy, waiting for the next heat-of-the-moment piece of fuel. People will try to determine what was meant by "premarital sex" and how far is too far before you cross that line. High schoolers, college-aged, and young adults will be the most common participants in this discussion. There will even be the "what about engaged couples" debate. I know this will happen because I used to take part in every one of them when I was a high schooler, college-aged, young adult, and engaged person. The church will shake its head, wring its hands, and cry out in despair and frustration at the declining mores of society and general loss of its young people.

OR, the debates will take place. High schoolers, college students, young adults, and engaged couples will ask the questions. And those of us on a faith journey will answer with this question - What is the place of sex on your faith journey? That's really what's it all about. It's not about looking for loopholes, special permission, or adjusting the meaning to fit cultural dynamics. You can say the same about gambling, slavery, abortion, drinking, smoking, divorce, racism, wealth, greed, war, poverty . . . any issue you would like.

Where do we find the answers? You find them in community with other people on a faith journey. That's not what you thought I was going to say is it? You know, 95% of people asked would have said "the Bible."

When you gather your community around you to determine what place _______ has on a faith journey, make sure your community is made up of people actually on a faith journey. You can't just assemble the people around you who will tell you what you want to hear. If your community is a faith journey community, you will get your answer. The answer will come from their experience, the traditional perspective on the issue, their reasoning, and yes, even the Bible. I don't want you to "go to the Bible" by yourself because a committee of one is pretty easy to convince.

The really cool part of finding answers in community like this is that God, the author of all faith journeys, is usually right in the midst, guiding this part of everyone's journey. He really is one you want to please anyway, isn't it? Isn't a faith journey supposed to lead you to Him?

By the way, 99.9999999999999999999999999999999999999 % of the world's population won't care how you answer the question. But there is One who always will.

Survivor Part 1 - Power, Bitterness, & Games

One of my favorite shows to watch is Survivor. I don't watch a lot of tv, but this one show I will not miss. We tape it every week. In fact, it's a date for the missus and me. We can count on the other person stopping so we can watch it together.

I'm writing while watching the finale. Before I finish writing, the winner will be named and someone will win $1 million. (BTW, it was Yul, the tall Korean?? guy) One thing I always find ridiculous in watching the finale is how bitter the losers, uh . . er. . .I mean the jury is. There is always a group of people who were outwitted, outplayed, just plain outsmarted that cry like a bunch of babies. They inevitably ask the final players questions that demonstrate that they, the jury, now have the power.

The premise of the game is to outwit, outsmart, outplay your competitors. I'm not condoning dishonesty or weak ethics in life, but the bottom line is THIS IS A GAME! I'm willing to bet my 401K that those who are the most bitter would have done the same things had they been given the opportunity. They never got the chance because they did not play as well.

This is a blog about finding connections in what happens in our ordinary lives to what God wants to do in our lives. It's all about our faith journeys. On our faith journeys, there will be a lot of times where we are in the losers seat. Life will not be fair. People around you will take advantage of you and they will use you.

When this happens, we get to choose how we will respond. We don't have to like it, but bitterness is not the answer. Power has nothing to do with how you control others or how you have been controlled. Power can only be used against us when we give it to others. Our response is the real indicator.

What's any of this got to do with our faith journeys? Jesus, whose birth we celebrate this month, modeled real power. Jesus, the son of God, gave it all up to take on human form. Not only did he take on human form, but he obeyed the limits of that form, even unto death. Death couldn't hold him, which is why we celebrate Resurrection Sunday, commonly called Easter. And in the end, his name was made greatest of all. That is real power.

We too can experience that kind of power by entering into a faith journey and losing our self in Christ. Life's experiences will bring moment of potential bitterness. It helps to know that we are on a journey and this is not our final destination. Besides, we are told to count it all joy when trials and troubles come our way. Just like on Survivor, it's how you play right up to the end that determines whether or not you win. Only the prize is worth a lot more than $1 million.

Putting it all on the line

Humility has been my watch word and song this week. There are lots of reasons why, but I'm only going to tell you about one. I joined an online writers group this week. If you've read my profile, you know I aspire to publish a speculative fiction novel one day. BTW, "speculative fiction" is a new term I've picked up in the last few weeks. It is essentially sci-fi/fantasy, but that's not important, at least not here, not today.

On this online forum I've joined, aspiring writers can submit the first 13 lines of their work to receive feedback by folks who at least sound like they know what they are talking about. I spent the first week reading all the other stuff that had been submitted and their critiques. Boy, was I intimidated. I could see the reasoning behind every criticism and suggestion AFTER I read every criticism and suggestion. When I compared these submissions to my own work I thought, "I'll never get published."

I swallowed my pride and my nerves this morning and submitted my first thirteen lines. I received two immediate feedbacks, one not so nice. I wonder if I will ever make it. I submitted a revision and am waiting for the wrath to come.

This whole process is a lot like a faith journey. No really, it is. Most of us want to be something greater and we sincerely try. In private, where nobody knows. If we put it all out there where others can see and evaluate it, somebody's gonna eventually give us some corrective and instructive feedback. We don't always want to hear it. Sometimes we become so defeated after receiving it that we stop altogether.

We should see those opportunities as growth opportunities. We should be thankful that someone is willing to help push us along on our faith journeys. We should never give up, retreat, or just hide. That's not a journey - that's a bus stop. Does it require humility? Yes. Does it bring great reward? Yes. Is it worth it? You know the answer.