The Simple Things in Life

Here's a bit of lunch time jabber!

Today is a good day. I got to car pool with a friend to work and save on my gas expenses! That's good. I talked to a few pastor types who like our company product The Quest. That's cool. I ate lunch with my buds at work today and discussed the history and unique trek of how humans have relieved themselve pre and post Thomas Crapper. That was interesting. I'm basking in the fun day I had yesterday when my eldest child got to come to work with me for "Bring Your Child to work Day." That was a blast. She's so cool to hang around. Today I'm jumping out of my white collar boat to help some of my good buds in distribution since they are short some personnel. That's pretty fun cuz Rosie is trying to sell me some herbal drink that will make me really healthy and all that. She's intersting. Dude! It's Friday and what more can I say? It's just a down right good day so far!

Ya know? It's the simple things in life and good friends and buds that make this day so cool and to top it all off - I live in the peace, freedom, and security, yes I said security, that I am forgiven and I'm in the center of God's will for my life. Well folks, a loving wife, three cool kids, a supportive family, a terrific job, and all that, just make for a really FANTASTIC FRIDAY! Hope Monday can be this cool.

Hey, stop and smell the roses!

The Lost

"The lost" are not just a mass of people 'out there' without a faces, without names. They are my uncles, my aunts, my in-laws, my friends, my co-worker, my fellow churchman, my fellow American in New Orleans, my waiter...my neighbor. "The lost" are the people I interact with every day who smoke, who drink, who get kicked out of their duplex, who can't pay their rent, who sleep around and who reject the church as we know it. These are "the lost" and although I work in the very wonderful world of Christian publishing by day, tonight my heart is broken because "the lost" are those children in my neighborhood who were carried away in a 'paddy wagon' tonight because their dad's in jail, their mom can't make rent, and the house is falling down around them. They are the ones who play in my back yard, play make believe with my kids, and attend Thursday night Bible club and listen so well to the stories of God's love for them. Yes, "the lost" have names and tonight I speak these names to the Father by name precisley because they are...my friends...not just "the lost."

This sums up the victory that is ours for those who have been forgiven by His shed blood and continue to walk in His way.

Jesus is alive = HOPE!

I don't think so!

Read the end of The Book!

I Just Can't Stop Thinking About It!

I know ya'll probably think that I think about the Bible or spiritual stuff all the time, however being that this is Good Friday I guess my mind is just bent to the fact today of God's covenant nature towards His people in the Old and New Testament. I just cannot get it off my mind how good God was to Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, David, and Moses especially even though he only got to see into the Promised Land. Then, my mind wonders to the NEW Covenenant in Christ and WOW it's like it all just make sense - God's loves me, He loves people. He loves us so much He poured and continues to pour out His love our way even when we were still lost and rebellious against Him.

Well, I just can't stop thinking of His great love. He is truly the only God full of mercy and grace.

In other news, this Lenten season I've picked up on a cool radio station that I have often visited but am visiting more and more in these days because of great music and preaching. If you can listen to Gospel 1590 AM Kansas City in the mornings and afternoons you should. I like the preaching in the afternoon drive home because it recenters my heart on the Lord and because the black homiletic is more to my liking than the Europeon homiletic I mostly hear. That's right you heard me!

My friend Jeff Edmondson wrote recently a very good article in his blog about story homiletic
and how preachers should get off the preaching path of point sermons and focus on story and narrative. Gospel 1590 helps me hear narrative and participatory preaching that in my white world really does not happen. I think more white preachers should preach less structurally and more narritively and see what freedom they can truly find in the pulpit as they give it a shot. Any way Jeff had a good point.

Well, I'm off tonight to my friend Dan's church for Good Friday service. My buds from the House are helping with worship. It should be a great time of reflection and being with the Body.

He is near! Dt. 30:14

Holy Week Thought

My Holy Week thought for today actually comes from an O.T. passage in Deuteronomy 30:1-14. There's a lot going on in this passage, but to cut to the chase it's verse 14 that really spoke to me recently. God is saying to His people that His word is near them (He is near them) and it is on their tongues and in their hearts so they should just do it.

I don't have words adequate enough to describe what that means to me in these days, but I do know that if it were not for the cross and empty tomb that the New Testament equivalent of this promise would essentially be no good! There would be no new covenant if not for Easter. The old covenant, as uplifting as it is, would only leave us in a state of continued searching for freedom in a state of law abiding and promises kept and broken. But, with the N.T. promise comes a nearness to God that elevates Dt. 30:14 to a whole new level!

Now the new covenant allows for the Word to be near us in a way unlike that of Dt. 30. Indeed The Word is near, on our tongue and in our hearts! Wow!

Glorious Night

The family and I went for our first spring bike ride tonight after work. Sometimes it's just nice to go home and be free to do nothing or just hang out with the fam without having to run to this or that. If I think about it I've done enough funerals to recall that it's at those moments that I always reflect on the fact that family time is what I cherish the most. So, instead of waiting for some funeral to come along and remind me of what my priorities are, I just spend time with them!

After the bike ride was a trip to Fazolis for $.99 kid meal night! Then home for much needed baths and showers. All in all a great night!

Lately, I've been doing a bunch of traveling for work and to be honest I'm a bit tuckered out, but atleast I have an understanding wife and all. Well, this weekend should be fun as I'm officiating a wedding of a young lady I had in my youth group when I was a youth pastor back in the days when I was fazing out of my mullet! The mullet was scary, but the youth in my group were awesome.

Well, if you read this blog please excuse my extremely boring life, but compared to most folks and their lives I'd rather have it be a bit more laid back and boring than eventful and psychotic!

Peace and grace.