... and working on some changes... help me...

I just thought it was time for a change to the ol' bloggy-thingy. Things went well until... I have always disliked when making a change on the computer it gives you the ultimate warning: "Do you really want to permanently make this change you dufus, cuz you'll lose stuff if you do?" I know, it's not really like that, but I have a hard time. I get stuck. This time I thought, Oh I'll make the change, I'll go through with my changes even after the warning pop-up. So, as a result, all my links went away and I can't get them back. Hey, I'll just start a new list o' links. Hey if you have a blog and you want me to link to you, send it to me. I'll think about it, and after debating it, I'll have to confront that aweful warning again, and, well, I may just go ahead anyway; again!

... About Good & Evil

With stories of terrorist plots, gas prices exploding upward, and summer busyness coming to an end, just when you think it’s OK to go outside, to let your kids go outside, you hear this story .

The passport of Natascha Kampusch (pictured here) was found at the house where she was allegedly imprisoned and the woman had the same distinctive scar as the girl.

DNA test results are due later on Thursday which Austrian police expect will confirm the woman's identity. The schoolgirl's disappearance at the age of 10 had sparked a huge manhunt eight years ago.

I don’t want to dwell on the unconscionable, unbelievable evil that would possess someone to keep a child captive for 8 years. But I do want to end with an ordinary (but really extra-ordinary) instance of living out our faith. Hopefully these kind of examples balance out the evil world we live in.

At lunch today, a friend from church said that over this past year he has made some conscious choices. The first one was to make his business decisions based more on integrity. He said he always acted this way but was becoming more aware that he needed to stay diligent. He also said that he has recommitted to giving of himself, his gifts and his resources to church and to taking care of his family. There it is; faith lived out every day. Nothing extraordinary, but maybe it is. Maybe it needs to be.

... there once was a little boy named David

Today, I am just going to expand on a comment I left on Mike Cope’s blog today:

David is one of my favorite Bible characters. He is real. We have chronicled for us his ups and his downs (just don’t read 1 Chronicles only when reading David’s story – mostly good news. Hey, they’re telling the king’s story! Who wants to hear bad news?). The most powerful thing we have from David is his own personal reflections on some of the hard times he went through. In the Psalms! No other Bible character gives us a glimpse into his own heart the way David does. Yes, we have the story, the narrative, but these are David’s own thoughts and prayers, and sometimes his own soul bare for us all to see and learn from. Here are a few examples:

• Psalm 142: in 1 Samuel 22 it tells us that David escaped from King-gone-nutjob Saul to a cave near Adullam. (In Psalm 55 and 34 David also pours out his heart before God, but notice the change in his voice from 142 to 55 to 34). Listen to some his words penned from 142:

Look right, look left—
there's not a soul who cares what happens!
I'm up against it, with no exit-- bereft, left alone.
I cry out, GOD, call out:
'You're my last chance, my only hope for life!'
Oh listen, please listen; I've never been this low.
Rescue me from those who are hunting me down;
I'm no match for them.
Get me out of this dungeon so I can thank you in public.
Your people will form a circle around me
and you'll bring me showers of blessing!"
(Psalm 142:4-7, The Message)

• Psalm 32:3-4: He’s writing after the fact what it was like holding his adultery, lying, and murder inside. Outside of Psalm 51, the most gripping look into David’s heart. His words:

Before I confessed my sins,
my bones felt limp,
and I groaned all day long.
Night and day your hand weighed heavily on me,
and my strength was gone as in the summer heat.
(Psalm 32:3-4, CEV)

• Psalm 51: the obvious. But so powerful. David, once convicted of his sin, throws himself completely, 100% on the mercy and grace of God. I am particularly drawn to verse 17:

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise.
(Psalm 51:17, ESV)

... Do cartoon Cats and Dogs get lung cancer?

OK, in honor of the State of Colorado going smokeless (every public place - even the last bastions of smoking-dom- bowling alleys and bars), here’s a good laugh that falls into the category of “get a real life”:

LONDON (Reuters) - They chase each other at high speed, wielding axes and hammers. But the famous cartoon duo of Tom and Jerry are in trouble in Britain for smoking on screen. Media regulator Ofcom received a complaint from a viewer who took offence at two episodes involving smoking.

In one, "Texas Tom," the hapless cat Tom tries to impress a feline female by rolling a cigarette, lighting it and smoking it with one hand. In the other, "Tennis Chumps," Tom's opponent in a match smokes a large cigar.

In a bulletin posted online, Ofcom noted "concerns that smoking on television may normalize smoking," and said that the Turner Company, licensee for Boomerang which aired the cartoons, had agreed to edit some smoking scenes out of Tom and Jerry. "The licensee has ... proposed editing any scenes or references in the series where smoking appeared to be condoned, acceptable, glamorized or where it might encourage imitation," Ofcom said, adding that "Texas Tom" was one such example.

But it would not cut all smoking scenes, it added. Ofcom said it recognized smoking was more generally accepted when cartoons were produced in the 1940s, 50s and 60s, but noted that the threshold for including such scenes when the audience is predominately young should be high.

I have one thing to say: It’s a cartoon; A cartoon. Well, maybe I have a little more to say. If a Tom & Jerry cartoon makes my children want to run out and start smoking, I have failed in my job as a parent. Now, understand me, I am not and have never been a Tom & Jerry fan - too much violence - it might make my kids go out and be vicious! ;-) Seriously though, I am not a fan, but this is weird. As for the statement about editing out the scenes that encourage imitation… come on! Is this serious?

... What does "the fear of the Lord" mean?

Rubel Shelly wrote a great little article about the fear of the Lord. I am including an excerpt below. It reminded me a little of a Christian drama presentation I saw a long time ago at Highland Church in Abilene. I can’t remember the name of the presenter; He is an ACU grad; does one-man-shows; has a video out about his stuff… Aaaagh…I hate it when I can’t remember someone!

Any way, the presentation was on man’s views of God. He went through showing how some view God as a sleepy old man that forgets things; He got the world going and then backed off and forgot us. The one that I remember being very powerful was the view of God as the Texas Sheriff who was always watching to see if someone messed up and then he’d “git ‘em”. Everyone would live in fear of this God. Live in fear and trembling… listen to how Shelly puts it:

“When either the Hebrew Bible or Christian Scripture sanctions "the fear of the Lord," it is referring to what Eugene Peterson describes as "a fear that pulls us out of our preoccupation with ourselves, our feelings, or our circumstances into a world of wonder." Not dread but astonishment. Not terror but reverence. Not shaking-in-your-boots panic, but enraptured-with-love fascination.

Thus we begin to understand why Scripture says: "Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him" (Psalm 33:8 NRSV). "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom ..." (Proverbs 9:10). "Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we try to persuade others ..." (2 Corinthians 5:11).

The God who has showed himself in history as Jesus of Nazareth is not a thug who threatens and pushes people around. He is the God who creates such beauty in the world that we stand speechless, upholds us in our crisis moments so that we do not collapse, and would rather die on a cross than live without us.

Stand in awe! Fear his name! It is for your sake that he has given all.”

I don't know about you, but I think I like this undertanding better of the "Fear of the Lord".
(Here’s a link to the whole article.)

... and missing the homeland...

Nothing special today, just thinking about the homeland, the Great White North, eh?

As fall is coming, school started this week, here are some things I miss:

1. Seeing hockey in person. Not NHL (especially not the Avs), I'm talking junior hockey, peewee hockey, where the players still love what they're doing. On any given day from October through March you can find a game to attend.

2. Playing hockey. Now, i know that this one closely resembles number one, but, only if you don't play hockey. I have recently found some guys in Colorado Springs that play and they are interested in me since I played goalie, a little.

3. The simplicity of life there. This one is more difficult to describe but it has to do mostly with consumerism and materialism. Lots of it in the good old USA but Canadians tend to not get all caught up in that game.

4. The outdoors there. Colorado, I have seen since we moved here last year, rivals it, but it will never be like how I remember it as a child.

5. Toronto. There's just something about the massive place that's home to me. Lots of fun memories from High School. Jeff Davison, if you'r reading this, I am specifically referencing our treks downtown to the record stores in the late 70's to find the latest cool music.

These are just a few. I could talk about the boring Canadian food, the great ethnic food from all over the world, unbelievable fishing spots, and of course, my Blue Jays! But those are topics for another time. It's amazing how much our childhood impressions of things have such an impact on the whole journey of life. This is just one of those spots where i'm stopping along the way to remember. O Canada!

Anybody want to share their memories of their "Homeland"?

... Still wondering...

More random thoughts:

1. When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane & going the wrong way.

2. Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

3. For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism.

4. Two wrongs are only the beginning.

5. Change is inevitable . . . except from vending machines.

6. Always try to be modest and be proud of it!

7. Love may be blind but marriage is a real eye-opener.

8. If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving isn't for you.

... OK, I was just wondering...

(I don’t remember where I got some of these but they compose some sort of random top ten – enjoy!)

1. Save the whales. Collect the whole set.

2. A day without sunshine is like . . . night.

3. On the other hand . . . you have different fingers.

4. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.

5. He who laughs last thinks slowest.

6. Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

7. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

8. Borrow money from a pessimist -- they don't expect it back.

9. Quantum mechanics: The dreams stuff is made of.

10. Support bacteria -- they're the only culture some people have.

... what were you doing yesterday after the preacher went long in his sermon?

OK, it was my sermon that went long but - I was here again yesterday. What a great finish! Dean Wilson beat Tom Lehman in a playoff to win his first PGA event. The roar would have been heard miles away if Lehman would have pulled this off!

Some PGA Tournament observations:

• Golf fans are the most polite anywhere (except during the Ryder Cup – but that’s another story) and, for the most part, they dress well.


• There are people of all ages there, making it a fun family atmosphere.


• Fans cheer for everyone no matter how well they are playing.


• Fans cheer even though players miss shots.


• Food is incredibly over-priced and underwhelming!


• The PGA tour slogan one year was: These guys are good. They are more than that. They are amazing. Their misses are better than my good shots!

... where were you yesterday?

Here’s what I was up to yesterday. I got free tickets to the International, The PGA tournament at Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, Colorado. Thanks Lance Barrow of CBS Sports for the tickets! I am taking a couple of day’s vacation this week so Cameron and I and a college guy from church can go. Cam was excited because he got autographs from Sergio Garcia (made sister jealous), Reteif Goosen, Davis Love, and Bernhard Langer. We got to see how effortlessly they play a really hard game.

Last night in my devotional before classes I talked about how much they practice to be able to hit the kind of shots they hit. I talked about their pre-game and pre-shot routines, how they develop habits. I related his to how we are to do this for our Christian lives. We need to get in the habit of starting every with God in prayer and in His Word. That’s our “pre-day” routine. We also need to get in the habit of having a “pre-decision” routine where ask for discernment. These are good habits to develop.

... Where Those Seeds Ended Up?

I was thinking about when I was in youth ministry the other day. I had a wonderful group in Michigan; great kids; great families. Don’t get me wrong, there were some challenging kids. I had a small group of JR High boys that were all unique challenges. Sometimes I wonder how they are doing. Some I have found out about. Some I have no idea. I just pray that some seed that I could have planted along the way, God would somehow grow in them. I still pray that prayer. So, here’s an old Story; have no idea where it came from.

There is a legend about a king who decided to set aside a special day to honor his greatest subject. When the big day arrived, there was a large gathering in the palace courtyard. Four finalists were brought forward, and from these four, the king would select the winner.

The first person presented was a wealthy philanthropist. The king was told that this man was highly deserving of the honor because of his humanitarian efforts. He had given much of his wealth to the poor.

The second person was a celebrated physician. The king was told that this doctor was highly deserving of the honor because he had rendered faithful and dedicated service to the sick for many years.

The third person was a distinguished judge. The king was told that the judge was worthy because he was noted for his wisdom, his fairness, and his brilliant decisions.

The fourth person presented was an elderly woman. Everyone was quite surprised to see her there, because her manner was quite humble, as was her dress. She hardly looked the part of someone who would be honored as the greatest subject in the kingdom. What chance could she possibly have, when compared to the other three, who had accomplished so much? Even so, there was something about her; the look of love in her face, the understanding in her eyes, her quiet confidence.

The king was intrigued, to say the least, and somewhat puzzled by her presence. He asked who she was. The answer came: "you see the philanthropist, the doctor, and the judge? Well she was their teacher!"

The woman had no wealth, no fortune, and no title, but she had unselfishly given her life to produce great people. There is nothing more powerful or more Christ-like than sacrificial love.

Never underestimate your influence. Especially when the seeds that you’re planting seem to be falling on parched soil! Praise God he does not leave us JR High challenges as we were!

... about what God creates new every day!

When we make something, we usually make it with the combination of something and something else, like a furniture-maker makes his craft out of various pieces of wood “put together”. This is not to be confused with creation. Creation is the fashioning of something out of nothing, like how artists put their craft to a blank canvas and it comes alive with color and form. Creation is how a poet puts words on an empty piece of paper and it describes, implores, and moves.

God is a creator; The Creator. He didn’t just do it for six days and that’s it. He continually creates. He creates for us something different for us to see, participate in, and live through every day. Frederich Buechner says this: “Using the same old materials of earth, air, fire, and water, every 24 hours God creates something new out of them. If you think you’re seeing the same show all over again seven times a week, you’re crazy. Every morning you wake up to something that in all eternity never was before was and never will be again. And the you that wakes up was never the same before and will never be the same again either.”

So it is with our Creator God. No wonder the author of Job says in 38:7 (MSG), “While the morning stars sang in chorus and all the angels shouted praise?” and the author of Lamentations says that: “But there's one other thing I remember, and remembering, I keep a grip on hope: God’s loyal love couldn't have run out, his merciful love couldn't have dried up. They're created new every morning. How great your faithfulness! I'm sticking with GOD (I say it over and over). He's all I've got left!” (3:21-24, MSG). God blesses us with his creation every day. It’s up to us to find them, recognize them, and realize they are there for us! Let us always thank God for being our Creator and let us search for what he’s creating for us new each day. I don’t know, it might just help us on our journey .

Here's some of what he creates for me every day:

... Not That I Would Ever Do This!

In 1923 Who Was…

1. President of the largest steel company?
2. President of the largest gas company?
3. President of the New York Stock Exchange?
4. Greatest wheat speculator?
5. President of the Bank of International Settlement?
6. The Great Bear of Wall Street?
These men were considered some of the worlds most successful of their days.
Now, 82 years later, the history books tell us what ultimately became of them.

The Answers:
1. The president of the largest steel company. Charles Schwab, died a pauper.
2. The president of the largest gas company, Edward Hopson, went insane.
3. The president of the NYSE, Richard Whitney, was released from prison to die at home
4. The greatest wheat speculator, Arthur Cooger, died abroad, penniless.
5. The president of the Bank of International Settlement, shot himself.
6 The Great Bear of Wall Street, Cosabee Livermore, also committed suicide.

However, in that same year, 1923, the PGA Champion and the winner of the most important golf tournament, the US Open, was Gene Sarazen.

So, what became of him?
He played golf until he was 92, and died in 1999 at the ripe old age of 95! He was very financially secure at the time of his death.

The moral here: Forget work. Play golf!

Someone sent this to me. I just thought I would share it. I would never advocate a lifestyle totally around golf and tell someone not to work...