mistakes that I made

Well it happens to all of us. We make mistakes. This week, I have two, at least. Two that strike me like, "are you kidding Jeff?"

The first one was yesterday. I spilled an entire cup of coffee on my desk. I can not remember the last time that I did that. I had stuff spread all over the floor to dry out. Silly mistake.

The other was last night. I was leaving the church after my class and I walked out the door with everything. My wallet, checkbook, jacket, phone, everything except my keys. Opps. the door shut. I just locked myself out of the office area. My keys are inside. What do I do?

I obviously need to call someone. I thought about who was the closest. I called Sherri. She showed up in 5 minutes, in her PJ's and handed me a set of keys out her window. I was apologetic. She was accomodating. No problem. I will help you anytime. I am so glad to have people that will cover your sins, in the middle of the night. Thank you.

I know I made other mistakes this week, but that is all that I want to confess to you today.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Christmas CD

It is give away day on the blog. I have three copies of Fernando Ortega's Christmas Songs CD. They are all legitimate copies still in their original wrap.

They are free to the first three people who post a comment to this post and request one. Be sure to leave your name and phone number.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.
news flash- the first CD has been claimed by Tonia at 9:33am
Terry takes the second one at 4:05pm
the third one went to missy at 830pm
ok, thanks, thats it, they are all gone.

new church

As you probably know, we have been working since August to get the new church, The Beacon United Methodist Church, off the ground.

Last Sunday I asked for help. We need some families who will make the commitment to be missionaries to this new church for 6 months to one year. You can still attend the 8am service at Woods Chapel, then go to the Beacon's 10am service. Another option is to go to the Beacon at 10am and then go to Woods Chapel at 11:15.

I need to hear from you. If you are willing to help or want more information please let me know. Post a comment here with your name, or send me an email. Remember, in 1975 a number of people went out of their way to help start Woods Chapel. We would not be here if it were not for their efforts.

Possibly the most selfless thing that a church can ever do is to make the effort to start a new congregation.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Sunday

Sunday is here again. If you are a pastor, it seems like Sunday comes three times a week. Non-stop pressure. Time to preach, and it better be good. Well, that is bad enough when things are going well, but it is much worse, or it seems worse when there are problems.

Problems. Kids with problems, members with problems, employees with problems. You still have to be at church at 6am to get it all going.

So today, at 5:55 I am walking in the dark from the place where the pastor parks, thinking about problems, challenges. I notice something that needs to be taken care of. I continue my walk. I am in between the gym and the playground and out of the corner of my eye I see it. Something dark, darting across the parking lot. Next to the curb. A cat? A skunk? Armadillo? Some sort of ghostly gobinly alien thing that is here to abduct or scare an old man.

Then I see it. The dark object is a shadow. It is the shadow of my own head. The light from the corner of the gym and my own brisk walk have delivered the shadowy object to the corner of my line of site. I was afraid of my own head.

And God speaks. Most of what we worry about is a shadow. A nothing. A here for a moment and then gone. Release the worry. let it go. Get back on task, it is 5:58 and God's work awaits. Not just for preachers, but for all of us, God's work awaits. Let the shadows go.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

the internet

You know, it is hard to post a blog if you don't have the Internet. What is the world coming to. Everything is so totally reliant on electronic gadgets and wireless signals that run through the air.

You know, if something ever happened to all of the cell towers, where would we be? Well, the young people might be lost, but we who grew up without computers and cell phones might return with joy to the life that we grew up on.

Imagine again, you actually have a little peace and quiet in your world. You carried real paper and pen to meetings. You had a paper calendar.

Well, this post was late today because our Internet was down at home. Now its back up, "phew." What were we going to do? The whole technology thing is kind of mind boggeling.

It's a beautiful 50 degree day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

repetitive humor

Ahh. The joy of repetitive humor. You can tell the same jokes over and over again. That is one of the joys of making new friends. You can tell your old jokes over and over, and to them, they are all new.

So. I have a few annual jokes. I have a St. Patrick's day joke. I have a thanksgiving joke. I have some Christmas jokes. And I have a March 4th joke. That was yesterday.

This simple little joke is the only joke that was passed from my grandmother to my mother, and on to me. It is about going to hear the band, the band that is going to line up downtown and March forth. March 4th.

Sorry. that is all there is to it. Just a little play on words. But what a blessing a sense of humor is. What a gift it is to laugh. I hope that you did not miss the parade yesterday.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

the parade

Well, it is that time of the year again. Today is the annual parade. All of the local high school bands will be meeting downtown. At noon, they will all line up and March 4th.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

connections, pt.2

Yesterday I wrote about who we are more connected to, those who feed us or those who need us. Today, a little bit more on the topic.

As you go out into your day, are you a consumer or a distributor? A taker or a giver?

If I am a consumer, I tend to think that the world owes me something. Today is about me. When things don't do my way, I am upset.

When I see myself as a distributor, I understand that I have a product to offer the world today. I am not here to get something for myself. I have something that the world needs: God's love. I see every person as a possible client, a potential customer for my business. They are not annoying to me in anyway, they are simply an opportunity for me to reach out and share the love.

Interesting that my worst days are days when I am a taker or a consumer. My best days are the days when I am a distributor. A giver. That is because we were not created to be takers, we were made to be givers, brokers of God's amazing love and grace.

What kind of a day will you have today?

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

connections

Connections. Connecting. Are we better at connecting with those who support us, or those who need us? Human nature is to spend all of our time connecting with those who make us feel good, and to ignore those who need us, who sap our energy.

But, what does the kingdom ask of us? The kingdom asks us to spend our lives helping others find the love that we have experienced. That means that we have to learn to spend more time with those who need us than we do with those who feed us. Say that again, we have to learn to spend more time with those who need us than with those who feed us.

Actually, when you get out and do it, it is invigorating to help those who need you. Once you get in the practice of being connected to those who need you, it feels like home.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

favorite song

One of my favorite songs, from many many years ago, was sung by the choir today at 11:15.

Here are the words:

If I had all the riches, This world had to give, All the comfort that it brings, Never needing anything, I could search the whole world Over far and wide, Trying to buy this precious love, That was sent from God above.

But it wouldn't be enough; No, it wouldn't be enough. To buy one splinter of the tree, That Jesus died on; And I couldn't pay the price, For one single drop of blood, That was shed for my salvation.

It doesn't get any better than that.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

If you only had one prayer

If you only were allowed one prayer, what would it be?

God bless me.
God give me.
God help me.
God please fix my [fill in the blank].

Remember, you only get one prayer, and it is your prayer for the rest of your entire life.

How about:
"Not my will but thine be done." or "into thy hands I commit my spirit." or "Lord teach me in all things to be content." or "let me love you with a pure heart" or "thank you."

Well, there are some good ones to pick from. I think today I am going to stick with "thank you."

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

you never know

You never know when your words are going to touch someone. You have to always be ready. One minute you are wondering about your value as a person, and the next, someone has asked for your support, your love, your help. And, you give it with joy.

Suddenly, you are catapulted from the broken, sad person, to the person who is actually helping another. Funny how God works. You go from the downtrodden to the hero, in one moment.

So, the moral of the story is, never kick yourself too hard. In five minutes the tables will turn and you will be helping someone else. Be ready always.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

judge not

Someone sent an email and asked a very important question about the guys with the muddy boots from yesterday's blog. Their question was, "are we judging them?"

Well, let me back off of what I said yesterday. I don't mean to judge them. They are probably nice guys with wives and kids. Maybe they go to our church, I don't know. Wouldn't that be funny. What if they tracked mud into our church? We would still love them, but we would ask them to take their shoes off outside.

Nice guys can still make bad choices. Tracking mud into a restaurant, even a McDonald's is a bad choice, by even the nicest guys. I don't want to punish them, or hurt them, I just want people, good people to think about how their actions affect others.

Good people are not made bad people by bad decisions, but all people need to learn to make good decisions.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

muddy shoes

Well, sorry. I wish I had something funny or inspirational to say, but I have to write about the muddy shoes. The other day I was hungry for a healthy nutritional meal, so I stopped in at the McDonald's on 40 highway for a #1. #1 = Big Mac, fries, and a diet coke. Nectar of the Gods. This is so good, it is worth getting fat over.

As I walked in the door, I noticed that there was mud on the floor. Not tracks of mud, but tracks of mud and chunks of mud. I stepped over it and around it. It led from the door to the register, then to the drink station. Back to the counter and back around to the seating area. I got my food and followed the trail. In a booth are two construction guys, about age 35. Their boots are covered with mud. I am thinking, "they are lucky that my mother is not here right now."

Well. At least we know the source of the mud. Now I am trying to figure this out. Were they born in a barn? Surely my momma did not raise them. What are they thinking, to just walk into a place of business and make this kind of mess. What were their other options?

The first thing that comes to my mind is to have another pair of shoes in the car if you intend to get this muddy. The second thing that comes to mind is this, take off your shoes. Leave them outside the door. I promise you, no one will want to steal your mud infested boots. My wife, who is much smarter than I am, had a better solution- go to the drive up.

The word respect comes to mind. Sure it is McDonald's, but come on, you just made a huge mess and a ton of work for someone. When I was a kid, occasionally my Dad would see someone misbehaving and he would say, "I wish that was my kid for 20 minutes." I asked him why one time. He said, "well, I would teach them a lesson." I never asked again. Anytime Dad said, "I wish that was my kid for 20 minutes" I knew that those guys were very close to a good paddling.

The world would be a better place if more people were raised by good old fashioned parents. At least there would be less mud on the floor.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

KC Public Schools

Well, we have another new superintendent, and now yet another attempt to stabilize the budget of the KC Public School system. The new super has put fwd a plan to balance the budget by closing 30 [half] of the schools in the district.

Radical. Aggressive. Needed? There has been a good deal of unhappiness shared by parents who do not want their kid's school to close. It's like everyone is ok with closing some schools just as long as it is not my kid's school. Again, its all about me. Inconvenience everyone else, just not my kid.

So, here is my point. If you don't like the plan to close this many schools, what is your alternative? It may sound radical, it may be a radical plan, but if you don't want to do this, what do you want to do. There are lots of complainers in the world but very few people who will work for answers.

Bottom line is this. The budget has to be balanced. Period. We have to do it at home and businesses have to do it as well. If they don't, they go bankrupt. Our leaders in Washington need to figure this out too. It is a law of life, when the budget is out of balance, you have to increase income or cut spending. When finances are handled poorly, trouble is on the way. When they are handled well, people sleep at night. Personally, I like to sleep at night.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

The Great and Powerful... Dorothy?

In the 1980s and 1990s, some Christians wrote a bunch of great leadership books. Men like Bill Hybels were teaching Christians how to lead like corporate pros. And this is a good thing. We need good organizational structure in the church. In times of crisis, we need great leaders.

But not all people can lead like Bill Hybels. We’re not the same people. Still, I think the rest of us who find ourselves with an opportunity to lead can follow another model of leadership. As Brian McLaren explains in his book Adventures in Missing the Point, we can follow a model of leadership from The Wizard of Oz.

There were really two main leaders in this movie. There is the great and powerful Oz. We later find out that Oz is just a short, fat man behind a curtain. Not quite the strong, powerful leader he had made himself out to be. The other leader is Dorothy.

See. Dorothy is on a quest of her own, and along the way she finds a few characters who have some things missing from their lives. So she says to the Scarecrow, Tinman, and the Cowardly Lion – why don’t you come with me? We’ll find what we’re looking for together. And in the end, it is Dorothy who leads them to find that what they were seeking, they actually possessed all along. Scarecrow had acted brilliantly. Tinman showed his heart. The Cowardly Lion wasn’t so cowardly after all. They only had a chance to prove themselves when Dorothy brought them into her journey.

What I am proposing is that we can all be leaders, even if it’s not in a stereotypical corporate American way. We can all look at the people around us, and invite them on our journeys with us. Along the way, they will see our vulnerabilities, and we’ll see theirs -- there’s no curtain to hide behind on this journey. We will find that the things we seek were created in us all along, and they are just waiting for the right time and the right person to bring them out of us. So leading others is not about being the smartest, the coolest, or the one with the “gift of leadership” all the time. It’s about being a part of a community of people all moving in the same direction.

Will you invite others to journey with you? Along the way, will you point out the heart, the gifts, and the love that God has given them? Maybe that’s all it will take to turn someone into the person God created them to be. May you also see yourself growing as you help others grow.

With love,

a young shepherd.

care or control

I read a very interesting article last week about churches that care and churches that control. Or, I guess I should say, churches that try to control.

Obviously it is the job of the church and the Pastor and staff to care for its members. When the church does this, everybody feels good about what is happening. Keep in mind when I say "care" I don't mean 'entitle." Part of caring for members means that we need to help them find and retain an outward, other focused life view. With that in mind, Pastor's need to love their folks and be patient with them.

Sometimes though, Pastors, churches, denominations try to control their people. Here are some examples:
"good Christians believe this or that about the trinity." "Good Christians believe this about a certain social issue." "Good Christians must do this or that."

Now I do believe that when we are listening, that we sometimes behave differently, but the issue is should the church use guilt and shame to try to force people to act in certain ways. Somehow, I do not see Jesus shaming people into certain behavior.

Fact, is, you just can't control your members. They are going to read books that you just know are bad for them. They are going to watch TV shows that you do not agree with. They are going to support causes that you think are less than Christian. They are even going to decide that they need to move on to another church. As a pastor, you can't stop this, and to the extent that you try, you only make yourself and others miserable.

When we remember that our job is to love people, we release ourselves from wishing everything was a certain way. I choose to just love. Period. You love that author? Ok, no problem. You only come to church once per month? Ok, I still love you.

Control does not work. Manipulation and guilt are bad motivators. Love is the the thing that holds us together. Love is the only thing that matters. God is love.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

No Robe

Well, a couple people asked so I guess I will provide an answer as to why I did not wear my ministry robe on Ash Wednesday.

As a rule, I have never been one to wear a ministry robe. I have one, and I know that some people see it as somehow "respecting God" but I have always felt that it attracted attention to me. I have always felt that a robe somehow made others feel that I was "set apart, other than, different from, even better than." That is not my model of ministry and I don't think it was Jesus' way either.

Consequently, I have not been a robe person. I have in the past made one exception, and that was on Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday has a very formal feel to it to me. A very holy, special time, so I have in the past worn my robe. [some joked when they saw me that they bet I was wearing shorts underneath the robe.]

This year, for the first time, I did not. Why? Well, here is why: it occurred to me that none of our associates have robes or wear robes and I don't want to set myself apart from them or make them feel funny. So this year, no robe for Ash Wednesday. I hope you understand.

[by the way, we are having church today. of course! First church of the Yukon at WCC is open. Park your sleds and snowmobiles and come on in.]

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

what does a pastor do?

Every now and then I run into people that really believe that pastors only work one day a week. They ask things like, "is that a full time job?" Or they ask, "what else do you do for a living?"

Once, several years ago, I had a young man come see me about going into the ministry. We had a nice talk. He was interested in my schedule during the week. I showed him my calendar and we went over it. I never heard from him again. When I called his family to check on the situation, they told me that when he found out what went on the rest of the week, he was no longer interested in ministry.

So, what does a pastor do all week? I will work on this information in upcoming blogs, but first lets just talk about sermon preparation. In seminary they told us that it takes one hour of preparation for every minute of delivery. 20 minute sermon = 20 hours of preparation. That is probably true, the problem is, that I don't know of many pastors who are afforded the luxury of sitting at their desk for 20 hours to prepare. For most pastors, preparation is a 24 hour a day event. Looking, listening, thinking, praying. Making notes, collecting pieces, molding, shaping, starting over. Making sure that it has a connection to the divine. Making sure that it makes sense. Reading, typing, running over it in your mind: once, twice, three times a sermon.

Somewhere at the end of this process, you go to bed on Saturday night and sleep. Hopefully well. Hopefully not consumed with something with the sermon. Sunday morning, having done your best preparation, you get up and go. You do your best. You put it into the hands of the Lord and hope that the words are blessed and have their intended effect.

Next time, a little bit more on how a pastor spends their time.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

cholesterol

Here is some good news. After eating fast food and other random junk for years, I succeed in getting my cholesterol u pt o 240.

For the past six months I have been taking some pill and these giant fish oil capsules. The little pill is fine but the fish oil capsule is a monster. Eat two of those and you feel like you had breakfast.

Anyway, I got a recheck this week and my cholesterol is down to 175!!! Looks like I will be around here to bug you for a long time [the Lord willing.]

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Ash Wednesday

What is it about Ash Wednesday? The opportunity to pray as long as I want to? The opportunity to sit in the dark, quiet sanctuary? The music? The question: "Are you willing to repent of your sin, and follow the way of the cross?" Or is it the answer, "the sign of the cross upon your forehead marks you as a disciple of Jesus Christ."

Stop there for a moment. How much time do I get to think before I answer the question? Of course I am willing to repent of my sin. But, God, let's be clear..........I want you to cleanse me. Love me. Heal me. Forgive me. Clean it all out. Down to the very core. Scrape out the crummy stuff. Do I repent of my sin? Oh yes, and please take it as far as the east is from the west.

Ash Wednesday, there is something about it. I am as close to God in that service as I am at any time during the year. I witness tears, sincere prayers, and young people who are beginning to think seriously about what it all means.

I love Ash Wednesday. It is a chance for all of us to find forgiveness.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

jackets

Sunday I visited our sister church in the NorthEast park of KC off of Independence Ave. I saw many adults and youth, even children without jackets. It was a very, very cold day.

Tonight, I have picked thru the closet and have set aside 5 jackets for Camino Verdad Y-vida. This is a long winter and there are many that do not have the simple things which we take for granted.

I went to my closet and I said, I will only keep one jacket of each weight. So if there were several jackets that were similar, I kept only one and the rest go to CVV.

Please help me provide warmth to our friends. It is a simple thing that everyone can probably help with. Bring any jackets to the missions table anytime this week.

Don't forget ash Wednesday Soup Supper and come and go communion with imposition of ashes. Tonight from 6-7:30.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

1.5 million people

Last night I watched a movie that was set in a town [Quito, Ecuador] population 1.5 million people. At the end of the movie, there was a panoramic view of the city and you saw these small, simple homes where people live next to each other and on top of each other. The houses went on and on and on. It reminded me of the slum scenes in the movie "Slum Dog Millionaire," except everything was nicer.

As I saw this enormous town with all of these people crammed into such a small space, I was overwhelmed with the feeling that reaching the world is impossible. I am one person. The world is so immense. Why even try. Just live and let them live. Let the chips fall where they may.

Then I thought about how our life perspective changes when we only think of ourselves, and I do not want to live that way. I want a life paradigm that cares about others, whether I can help all of them or not. That is how I want to live my life. Trying to help others, even if we can't help them all.

I was reminded of a quote from the sermon a few weeks back that went something like this, "don't fail to do something, just because you can't do everything."

And so, if God gives us the day today and tomorrow, we must reach out and care. We must be the voice, the hands and the feet of Christ to every person that we can. We can't reach them all maybe, but we can reach some for sure, and life sure feels better when I am trying.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

things I learned

Things I learned yesterday.....

1. The dance troupe performance last night was very good. Guys aren't supposed to like that stuff, but it was very good.

2. I visited CVV after church and sat in on their service with several Woods Chapel friends. We are doing alot to help there, but I saw kids without coats. Whatever we are doing, in my opinion, it is good, but it is not enough. I don't want any kids to not have a coat. Period.

3. Yesterday I wore a spring color tie in hopes that it would drive winter away. It did not work. Maybe it is time for rally caps.

4. Yesterday I felt great love and admiration for my children. I tell them, but I am not sure that they get it. Someone tell them how proud I am of them.

Today. Ahh, what might God have in store? I can't wait.
It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Sing out

Too many people do not sing because they do not have the voice of Frank Sinatra or Peggy Lee. Too many people do not play baseball because they cannot hit like Babe Ruth or field like Frank White. Too many Christians hold back from what they could be because they are not big famous souls like Billy Graham or because the are not Mother Teresa.

Woods Chapel friends, we will never be what God calls us to be until every single one of us jumps in with both feet. Head over heels, committed to the mission. No holds barred, no excuses, lets just go pursue our potential in Christ.

"Use what talents you possess. The woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best. "
Henry van dyke

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

a dream

I dream a lot. Every night. Multiple dreams. Some I remember some I don't. Some are good, well, most all of them are good. Last night, right before I woke up, so this morning really, I dreamed that the flowers were getting ready to bloom. Tulips, Iris and daffodils, all big fat heads just getting ready to bust. More than usual, and bigger than usual.

Maybe is is a sign. Spring is coming. The ground hog is wrong. We have almost made it to the time when everything comes back to life.

The dream included a musical back ground: "O what a beautiful morning, O what a beautiful day...."

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

missionaries released

Well, if you have been watching the news, the ten "missionaries" have been released by the authorities in Haiti.

I understand wanting to help orphans. I understand wanting to save starving children. I may even bend some laws to do that. But to try to take a bus load of them across a national border without proper documentation is hard to believe.

I think the thing that bothers me the most about the story is the report that some of the children were not orphans, and that the children told the "missionaries" that they were not orphans. Couple this with the "we are just here doing God's work" language that the missionaries were using, and the whole thing starts to hurt.

I hurt for the parents of the children who let their children go in hopes that they would have a better life. I hurt for the entire population of Haiti that lost so much in the earthquake. I hurt for the younger members of the mission team, they look like minors, and they were led into this by adults from their church.

I hurt for the public who reads this story and has an interesting conclusion to make. Either God does not care about immigration laws, and either God isn't always truthful, or these people did not hear from God.

I guess one of the morals of this story is that we need to be very careful when we say, "God spoke to me" or "God is leading me." It is very easy for us to get our human selves in the way, and as soon as that happens, God ends up looking a little foolish.

Like if a person says, "God gave me this wonderful house." [the payment is really high and we can't afford to do other things that we should be doing, but God gave me this house.] What about the people that God didn't give a house to? What are we really saying?

It is just far to easy to justify our human decisions by somehow attaching God to them. Here is the bottom line: When you are doing God's work, you don't have to announce it, everyone will see it for what it is. If you are the Son of God, you don't have to go around telling everyone, because people will figure out who you are. Just do and be what you are supposed to do and be and let other people tell you that you are doing God's work. The story ends a lot better that way.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

garage sales

I used to have a garage sale every year. Spend weeks picking things that I wanted to get rid of. Advertise. Put out the signs [fun]. Sit there all day while people come by and try to get you to reduce the price of an already reduced item.

I have a 20" TV that I have priced at $20. Someone asks if I will take $15. I tell them I think it is worth 20. Back and forth we go. I spend the entire morning doing this. Some of the bargaining leaves a bad taste in your mouth. The afternoon is spent sitting there looking at the sky because most of what you had in the sale is already gone. Those shoppers that happen by in the afternoon tend to be drive by's. They don't even get out of the car, they just slow down and look for a moment, then drive on.

The day is done. I pack up the leftovers and take it to the Salvation Army. I take the tables back to who ever I borrowed them from. I count my take= $293.50. I feel happy, and exhausted. Over the next week I will spend the $293.50 buying more things that I will sell in another garage sale in a few years. Hmmm.

Finally, ten years later, I wake up. What am I doing? The TV that I let go for $15 would be worth a fortune to a friend of mine who has immigrated from another country. He could never afford to go to Best Buy and purchase a TV. Why not just give it to him? The chair, table and lamp that I sold for $20 would be valued far more than that by someone in transitional housing in the Hillcrest Ministry program. Do you see where this is going?

The small amount of money I make is nothing compared to the joy that I get to give to others by giving this stuff to them. And I myself receive so much more joy as well. You know, you can't buy joy, but you sure can give it away.

Just in case you were wanting to have a garage sale this year.

On another note, I know someone who just likes to have garage sales. They got a few of their friends from church to hold a multi-family sale. The entire proceeds went to their favorite mission at church.

Random things to think about.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

two choices

Choice one:
Something is acting upon me. It is gripping me, dragging me down. Forces beyond my control are destroying my ability to cope. I am a victim. I am powerless. I am a loser. I am an object in this world that floats along and rises and falls based on the whims of powerful forces that I cannot control. I am destined to a life of self-pity and less. I am consumed by a sense that I don't know where God is and why he isn't helping me.

Choice two:
In the face of difficult times, I allow myself only a day or two to stew, then I am back in the game. I will not be defeated by this or anything. The forces that I face may be many, and they may come at me in ways that I am not expecting, but I will face them and wrestle them, like the patriarch Jacob, I will wrestle and not let go. In fact, I have come to believe that there is a blessing in the struggle, a gift, an opportunity to learn, a resilience that comes to me that I would other wise not have discovered. I march on, and I help everyone else that I can along the way. We will continue, we will overcome. I don't always hear the voice of God, but I know he is with me and it is his character that beckons me to pursue the prize.

Two choices for you today. In whatever challenge you face. Door number one, or door number two. Which will you choose? Your choice will make every difference in the outcome of this battle and the enjoyment of this day.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

door mat?

A dear friend asked me if Christians were supposed to be door mats.
Short answer= no.

They said, Jeff when I think of the last two weeks of sermons, this is my message: lay down your books. Keep no record of wrongs. Forgive. And then help the broken, be the good Samaritan.

In a way, it all sounds like I should be a door mat.

Well, ok. But, no.

We do need to forgive, but that does not mean that you have to hang with those people anymore. Forgiveness means to let go of the offense. It does not mean that you have to spend thanksgiving with them. Forgiveness does not mean that you stay married to someone who beats you. You forgive them and move on to healthy living.

Helping the poor. Yes we should. More than we do. However, you still must provide for your own. Don't sell your house and give everything away, leaving your children to starve. Don't do that. But for most of us, that is not the issue....the issue is that we can do so much more. And there is joy in doing the more. There is joy in giving one's self away. You will know when it is too much.....but we have to stop trying to find joy by accumulating things and realize that joy comes when we give ourselves away.

You are not a door mat. Jesus challenged the pharisees. He turned over the tables of the money changers. But he also helped a ton of poor folks and he kept no record of wrongs.

It's a beautiful day in God's world. Be sure to see the good.

thoughts

thoughts. Do you ever have times when the bad thoughts seem to be getting more attention? I am disappointed with something that happened. I feel discouraged for some reason. Snow is coming back. On and on it goes.

So, let me take this moment to find some good. To see some good. What are the good thoughts? My daughter Jenny turned 21 last week. We got our stuff off to the tax man. My son came home for the weekend. I have the greatest job in the world.

There is always some good. And when I think of it, I feel better. how about this for a good thought....I met someone at church today who has tried ten churches and every single one made her feel bad until she came to worship with you at Woods Chapel. That is a happy thought. If we look hard enough, we can always find a happy thought. There is always something good.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

your life

Your life is not really your life. It is yours only so long as God allows you to keep it. It was designed and given to you for a purpose. Many people live and die and never know why they have the gift of life.

God gives us life so that we can celebrate Him and all of creation. Worship, that is, but celebrate is a less churchy word.

When I celebrate God, his world and his people, I don't spend time whining and complaining. I stop picking at other people. When I celebrate God, his world and his people, my problems seem much smaller.

Oh how our lives would change if we spent more time celebrating God and his goodness and giving ourselves to one another. That is why we are here. The more we do that, the better life is, for we are doing that for which we were created.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

not moving

Well, I heard a rumor the other day that Jeff was moving to another church. This would be news to Jeff. I have not heard a thing from the District Superintendent's office that would indicate that I was moving.

I like it fine where I am. You all are great.

Several asked about some of the books that I posted in the blog yesterday. If you are ever interested in finding used books or out of print books, I buy all of my books at this web site www.alibris.com

I'm still not moving.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

books for my kids

Well, each of us have books that we have read in our lifetime that made an impact on us. Besides the Bible, the following books are the main ones on a list of books that I have collected for my children. I have collected three copies of each book so that when they are ready, each of my three children will have a copy of each of these books that have marked my life.

If you should choose to read them, remember that my age at the time of reading, and my life situation probably told volumes of why that book spoke to me at that time.

I’m OK, You’re Ok by Thomas Harris– [first read in 1972 when I was in the 9th grade]

The road less travelled by Scott Peck [read in 1984]

Illusions- by Richard Bach [read in 86]

Holding on to hope by Nancy Guthrie [given to me after my dad died in 2002]

In his steps- by Charles Sheldon [a classic, read in 2004]

When bad things happen to good people by Harold Kushner [read in 2005]

Walking on water by Anthony Demello [read in 2005 and every year since]

Velvet Elvis – Rob Bell [read in 2009]

The Go-getter by Peter Kyne [read in 2010]

I think it is important to try and leave our children some sense of "what makes us tick." I am also working on a list of songs that I have found valuable in my life.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Concrete

Concrete is very hard. You may not usually think of concrete as being really hard. When I walk on it, I really don't think about it at all. However, if you ever have the opportunity to fall on it, say, if you had a full head of steam, running from the bad guys, and you fell on it, well, then it would be pretty clear that concrete is really hard.

Such was my experience yesterday. As you may know, we have some troubles at church from time to time with near-do-wells. Yesterday, I got a call from someone who wanted to meet me. So I am out in the parking lot talking to them, and they ask for money. Ask, in a way that made me take a step back. Then they stepped toward me. I stepped back. They stepped towards me. Pretty soon, I am in a full run headed for the church door, with the troubled youth in hot pursuit.

Now, I used to have the speed of Jessee Owens, but the years have taken their toll. I know if I can get to the church building though, most people will respect the church as a place of sanctuary. I should be safe if I can just get inside the doors. Well I am bounding up the east sidewalk with the grace that can only be mustered by a 52 year old pastor running from his college age daughter who wants money.

She swears that she did not trip me, but I am sure that I felt her foot sweep my trailing shoe as I was coming up the last stair. She says that I am just clumsy, but she is faster and younger than I am. At anyrate, I hit the ground. Hard. Concrete is hard. Remember? It was a three point landing, both palms and my right knee. Her response to my fall was the kind of snicker that young people sometimes deliver to older folks. She put her foot on my neck, reached into my back pocket and took out the $28 that I had mentioned earlier that I might give to her. Then, she stood to her feet, said, "thanks Dad, I love you," and off she went.

I was left on the deck, broken, bruised and humiliated. Today, I am bloodied and bruised. I really should have a bandaid on my knee, but the bandaids in my office are ten years old and all the stickem has deteriorated.

Let this be a warning to you. If you see one of my daughters, do not be fooled by their wry smile or youthful good looks. They are quick, and they are determined. Hide your $28 and get inside the church. Don't end up like me, broken and crying on the sidewalk. Concrete is hard.

Anyway, it's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

soap

You tell a simple story and everyone needs to abuse you. Ok, so I bought a comb and a box of bandaids 10 years ago too. I guess that it is ok that those items have lasted ten years, but for some reason, the fact that I made a bar of soap last ten years, well, that is a scandal..........

Maybe I didn't have to use that bathroom that much during the first ten years.....

Ok, here is a story about that bathroom. True story. We were in the stage of drawing the plans for your new church. It was 1997. The architect has drawn a little bathroom off of the pastor's office. I suggest that we move the door on the bathroom so that it is accessible to everyone in the office. I say, "the pastor does not need his own bathroom." A wise member of the building committee said in response, "you will not always be the pastor."

Busted. True. Kind of funny.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

waste not, want not

When I was a kid, we did not waste anything. My mother may have well never had a garbage disposal, because nothing ever went down it. If there were left overs, they were consumed the next day. Period. Often, there was a disagreement at the table over who got the last piece of chicken. Dad got the chicken, so you eat the beans or bread and butter. No left overs. Clean your plate. There are starving kids in India.

The children of the depression did not waste anything. A modicum of this view still exists within me and other children of the children of the depression.

Do you know how long a bar of soap can last? There is a sink off of the pastor's office at church. When we got possession of that part of the building in November of 1999, I bought a bar of Irish Spring soap. I finally used it up last month. Ten years, that bar of soap lasted.

Today I am drinking yesterday's coffee. Pour it out of the pot, heat it up for 60 seconds, and I don't have to make a new pot today. Yes, it is not quite as good as fresh, but it will work. I occasionally wonder, how many pots could I make in a row, using the same grounds?

When we buried my Dad, he left behind 4 shirts, two pairs of pants and two pair of shoes. And one cat. He didn't need much. He drove the simplest of Ford products his entire life. He only got electric windows when hand crank windows were no longer available.

Yesterday's generation has a good deal to teach today's generation. In this period of economic whatever, we can all use to "want" just a little bit less. Life does not consist in the collection of our possessions, but in the people that we know and love. Most of the people that I admire can live with a ten year old sliver of soap and yesterday's coffee.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

why we are here.

I have been thinking about this story. It is a clear reminder of why the local church exists and the sacrifices that it's members are called to perform for the sake of it's mission.

The life saving station
On a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occur there was a once a crude little life-saving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat, but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea, and with no thought for themselves, they went out day or night tirelessly searching for the lost.

Many lives were saved by this wonderful little station, so that it became famous. Some of those who were saved, and various others in the surrounding areas, wanted to become associated with the station and give of their time and money and effort for the support of its work. New boats were bought and new crews were trained. The little life-saving station grew.

Some of the new members of the life-saving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and so poorly equipped. They felt that a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those saved from the sea.

So they replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in an enlarged building. Now the life-saving station became a popular gathering place for its members, and they re-decorated it beautifully and furnished it as a sort of club.

Less of the members were now interested in going to sea on life-saving missions, so they hired life boat crews to do this work.

The mission of life-saving was still given lip-service but most were too busy or lacked the necessary commitment to take part in the life-saving activities personally. About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in boat loads of cold, wet, and half-drowned people.

They were dirty and sick, and some of them had black skin, and some spoke a strange language, and the beautiful new club was considerably messed up. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where victims of shipwreck could be cleaned up before coming inside.

At the next meeting, there was a split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club's life-saving activities as being unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal life pattern of the club.

But some members insisted that life-saving was their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a life-saving station. But they were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save the life of all the various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own life-saving station down the coast. They did.

As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that had occurred in the old. They evolved into a club and yet another life-saving station was founded.

If you visit the seacoast today you will find a number of exclusive clubs along that shore. Shipwrecks are still frequent in those waters, only now most of the people drown.

Let's not ever be a part of a story like this.......

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

1 Cor 13:5

1 Corinthians 13:5. First Corinthians chapter 13, verse 5 "love keeps no record of wrongs." Love keeps no record of wrongs. Love keeps no record. Love keeps. Love.

God. God is love. God keeps no record of wrongs.

Love keeps no record of wrongs.

These soothing words speak to my soul.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

communicating with Jeff

From time to time, people are looking for ways to communicate with me. The best and easiest is for you to send me an email at Jeffb@woodschapelchurch.org with an email, we can dialogue, set appointments, and I can know who you are.

Posting comments to the blog is kind of difficult, because I can't always answer in the next day's post, and I cannot tell who you are when you post a comment.

I take appointments, and I meet people every week for a cup of coffee or just a visit. I like to say that spending time with people is the best use of my time. So if you want to visit, send me an email or call the office and ask for Terri R and she will set something up for us. With as much as is going on during Sunday mornings, if you ask me about getting together on Sunday morning, I will probably ask you to send me an email to set it up. I just forget so many things these days.

Phone calls. I am available M-Th in the church office 795-8848. Friday is my day off. Off? That is a day when I catch up with things that I didn't get done M-Th. If I am lucky, it is not all spent on church stuff, but I get some time to mow the grass, work in the yard and work on cars. Anyway, you can call me in the office and if I am available I can visit with you on the phone.

Cell phone. Sad to say, that over the years I have had to limit the availability of my cell phone. I have had too many cases of folks that call me several times a day, every single day of the week. I am sorry about this.

My home phone is 373-1525. Please use it sparingly. With my wife and kids all having cell phones these days, we have almost gotten out of the habit of using it.

To the person who wants to get me the book "84 Cross Road," bring it on. I love to read. Although it is kind of funny I will bet there are 30 or more books in my office that are waiting for me to read.

To the friend who is looking for a time to visit, send me a note and lets work it out. I look forward to it.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

yesterday's comments

I enjoyed so much reading yesterday's comments. Each of your ideas about spirituality are so thoughtful. I must lift up one in particular:

The meaning of spirituality is not easily defined, but I can tell you what it looks like (a story from today's Kansas City Star.) Last week, homeless men at the Kansas City Rescue Mission raised more than $132. to give to Haiti relief. A homeless man who is 30 years old, and trying to turn his life around, gave $5.00. This is spirituality.

The writer is profoundly correct. This is spiritual. This is extravagant generosity. This is the setting aside of one's personal comfort or preference for the sake of the mission. Self-sacrificing. The taking up of one's cross. It would make me feel good today to find or participate in one act of kindness that even remotely resembled this story. Let's see what I can turn over.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

spirituality

Yesterday I was in a 3 hour meeting with a bunch of preachers. Great folks. One of the things that we talked about was spirituality. If you had five minutes to define that word, and you had to do it in one sentence, what would you say?

Think about it for a while and then come back to the blog............

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what did you come up with? What is spirituality? Over the years, I would have defined it in different ways, but at 52, I seem to be stuck on selfishness. It is so sneaky. At 52 I would define spirituality as the journey of learning to give yourself away in the name of Jesus Christ.

What new thing are you learning? What books are you reading? What are you doing that challenges your life paradigm? Do you see selfishness within yourself? Do you fight it? How?

Spirituality- the journey of learning to give yourself away in the name of Jesus Christ.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

the impossible

Well, every now and then we see something impossible. The Olathe high school coach is blindfolded, spun around and told to try and shoot a basket from half court. No one thought that he would make it. He didn't even know what direction the basket was. Impossible. Seemingly so. Yet, he made the bucket. Amazing.

Every now and then I run into something that seems impossible. Insurmountable. Impassable. Yet, life is amazing and unpredictable, and our God is uncontainable. He can make the impossible things become possible.

What challenge are you facing? We may not be able to see it, but with God, nothing is impossible.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

sick

How many days a year do you call in sick? I have not done it in 16 years. Until today. I am never sick. Blame the flu shot, blame good genes, I am never sick.

I always get sick on vacations. It is like my body lets down when it knows I can give it a break.

I have never been sick on Sunday. Can you imagine that? You have to talk all morning, but you are sick?

Anyway, being sick makes a person enjoy being well.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

walking into the unknown

Sometimes we are called to face things that we have never experienced before. Such times generally cause us to be fearful. Even nervous, angry or hysterical. We don't like change and we don't like pain. We want things to stay the same. After all, we are entitled. Aren't we?

So here comes something that I have never experienced before. For some reason, I am not afraid. I am oddly over come by a sense of God's presence. Trust. Maybe it isn't that odd. God is so good, it's just all going to be ok.

Whatever tomorrow brings, we face it with hope, for God is with us. You can trust him.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

practical jokes

Well, somebody is always trying to get me. To sneak up on me, to mess with my brain. I don't know why and I don't think it is very nice.

Here I am this morning, kindly making my way to church to get ready for today's services. I park the car, walk to the office and turn on the computer. Sitting on my desk, right in plain sight is my name tag.

Why is my name tag there? I never leave it out. It has a place where it lives. "A place for everything and everything in it's place," thats what I say. The name tag is out because someone has loaded it up with silly stickers. A big heart, a big pair of juicy lips and bird stickers.

Well, the heart is illegal since it is the sign of those certified on the defibrillator, which I am not. The juicy lips are right out. Not going to happen. I start to peel off the bird, then I realize, that sticker is a talking point. Can you hear the birds sing? Ok, I will leave that one on the front. The lips and the heart will be on the backside in case anyone wants to see them.

I don't ever pull pranks on others, I don't know why people do this stuff to me.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

the dog house

The dog house is that place where husbands go when they are in trouble. It is worse than the couch. The couch usually just lasts for a night, while the dog house may go on and on indefinitely. Yesterday, I got out of the dog house. I had been in the dog house since Christmas, so it was about time.

I don't know about other guys, but I can get into the dog house for all sorts of things. If we run out of dog food, I am in the dog house. If the grass is not mowed, I am in the dog house. I may even be in the dog house for something that I do not know, although I am supposed to know.

This time, I have been in the dog house because the Christmas lights are supposed to come off of the house on Dec 26th. Every year, Dec 26th. No exceptions. Christmas is over, lets get the stuff off of the house immediately, she says. Everyday that I go without getting the lights off of the house, I am in the dog house.

Now, I hate to stick up for myself, but it has been cold. Really cold. We have had a foot of snow on the ground. And, I have been busy, I have a job you know. Mostly I wish someone could explain to this woman that Christmas lights are supposed to stay up until January 6th. Have you heard of the 12 days of Christmas? They go from Dec 25th to January 6th. 12 days, beginning with Christmas and ending with Epiphany, January 6th.

So she wants the lights down on the first day of Christmas, and I am in the dog house every day until they come down. Well, yesterday afternoon, January 22nd, I got the lights down. Now I am out of the dog house, until she finds another reason.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

the love file

The love file. I was thinking about it yesterday for some reason. I can't remember if it is a Dave Ramsey idea, but the love file is a good idea. The love file holds everything that your loved ones need to know if you should happen to die.

Life insurance. Who is the agent. What is the phone number. How much is is the coverage.
Car insurance. same info.
Savings accounts. Location. Account numbers.
Online accounts. Logins and Passwords.
Mortgage. Who is it with? How much is the payment. When is it due.
What are the general bills. When are they paid. How do you usually handle them. A copy of every monthly statement.
Is there a 401K or retirement. Location. passwords.
A copy of your will.
Any instructions for your funeral.

In general, every piece of information in one manilla file that would help your spouse or children know everything and anything about how your life is managed. One of these days, they are going to need it. It is kind of a funny feeling to put it all together, but it provides you with some peace of mind, and your family will one day be glad that you did it.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

yesterday

Well, I survived yesterday, and I honestly appreciate the scolding that a few of you gave me. Yes, life is good, even when you start the day with a long list.

But, what is the use of this blog if I can't complain every now and then? It is hard to write some days, when I can't write about what is on my mind because there is a bit of a struggle in it somewhere, and I am afraid that the blog readers will wish better of my brain.

Man that was a long sentence. The point of it is this: is it ok, for me to be transparent in this blog, and if I do, can you readers live with it?

Back to yesterday. Adding insult to injury, I was in the middle of a meeting with a young ministerial student and we got an emergency phone call. It was my daughter. She is on the side of 291 with a flat tire. So, put on the Dad hat. Cancel appointments and go help daughter with flat tire.

I spent the next two hours with that daughter. She is awesome and we had a great time. Oh yes, and we got her tire fixed.

I am sure that the other appointments will be caught up. No problem. It was a good day. A wonderful day. And here we go again today, if God gives us the breath of life.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

6:25

It is 6:25am. Ahh. I am awake. God has given me the gift of this day. Or at least this morning. A long list for today.

A funeral for a friend. Kathy Rogers, 48 years old. Hmm. God, how can this be?
My wife is in Nebraska.
My daughter has lost her car keys so we have to get the extra set to her in Warrensburg.
AgDay is on the TV. Ha ha.
Someone asked about the parking blog. Here is what I would clarify- when we sit in the parking lanes waiting for spaces to open, we block others who come in behind us from parking and going into the building. Drive a little further out, pass a few open spaces. Park your car and go into church. Please don't hang out waiting for something close to open, it just slows everything down.
What else?
I have a TV that has to go to the shop.
My wife broke her 4th suitcase in the last 12 months, so I have to go get her another one.
I am meeting with a young minister today.
I am singing with the quartet tonight.
I am giving my testimony to the confirmation class.
All of this, if God gives me the breath of life all day.

Oh, yes, and I woke up with that song in my heart..."hold to his hand, God's unchanging hand....build your hope on things eternal....hold to God's unchanging hand."

It is, yes it is, a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

a letter from a missionary in Haiti

These folks [Steve and Faith] are friends of Betty P's family. I found their story to be very interesting, please keep them and all those in Haiti in your prayers.

Dear Mary,

I'm so glad to hear from you. I am sending you a copy of a letter
that we are sending to several people. As you will see in the letter we
have left Port au Prince and do not plan to return any time soon so I
don't think that we will be much help to the news folk. However, I have
a very good friend who has lived in Port au Prince (they have the guest
house we were staying in) many years. They are right in the middle of it
and could be available I think. Greg Benson is
his email address. Mary, I have thought of you many times over the years
and am glad you contacted us. I will continue to pass along to you what
we see out in the country side. I hope all is well with you.

This email will go out to many people who have varying levels of
knowledge of who we are and what we do so I will start with a short
history. Faith and I moved to Haiti with our four small children almost
fourteen years ago. Since then we have raised our children and operated
a small mission hospital in a remote part of northwest Haiti. One of our
responsibilities is to go to Port au Prince every 6-8 weeks to purchase
supplies both for the hospital and our family. It is not a trip that we
look forward to as it takes 10-12 hours of driving over very poor roads
to get there; then three days of driving around in the city trying to
find everything we need, followed by another long trip home. We have
always stayed at the CSI (Christian Service International) guest house
in upper Port au Prince. The folks who operate it are like family, and
the guest house has truly been our home away from home for over 13
years. Faith and I had driven in on Sun. Jan. 10 for one of those trips.
Faith was originally scheduled to attend meetings the first two days at
the Gheskio Bureau. Our little hospital partners with them in the effort
to provide treatment for AIDS in our remote corner of Haiti and these
meetings were to discuss changes in the program. They had decided to
postpone the meetings but we needed to go purchase supplies anyway so we
went to Port. We spent Monday Jan. 11 purchasing medical supplies, doing
some banking and working on renewing our resident visa's (which required
us to turn in our visas and passports). The next day we planned to spend
the entire day downtown in the old original part of Port au Prince.
Traffic is so bad getting to and from downtown that we always try to do
everything we need to do there in one trip. Most trips this requires
almost an entire day down there. I say "down there" both figuratively
and literally since the guesthouse is up the mountains several miles and
Down town is along the bay. The figurative part has to do with how
crowded and depressing it can be just being "down there" In a city with
over a million people and very little sewage facilities everything tends
to run "down there". We had a very productive day down town and
accomplished all we had hoped to,(which is unusual). Our last stop
downtown was the Gheskio bureau. Even though our meetings had been
canceled we still needed to go there and turn in some accounting
reports. The Gheskio bureau sits in a particularly polluted part of the
city in an area that once was in the bay but has been filled and built
on. The building has been added onto several time and is like a maze
inside. I stayed in the truck out front parked right next to the
building, (there is almost no parking space), while Faith went to turn
the reports in. I have spent a fair amount of time in recent years
sitting in front of this building and have many times noticed how the
ground jiggles up and down when heavy trucks go by on the street about
fifty feet away. I have also sat there and wondered what would happed if
an earthquake were to come ripping through that area. I have also
wondered what would happen to the tens of thousands of homes built one
on top of the other going up the sides of the mountains and crowded into
narrow ravines.

I will return to our trip but this seems like a good time to discuss the
fact that anyone with any understanding of the history of Port au Prince
(a terrible earthquake two hundred years age and faults running
underneath the city), along with a basic understanding of what poorly
constructed concrete block houses stacked one on top of the other would
do some day could see that it was only a matter of time until this
tragedy happened. I have said to Faith many times over the years, "I
hope we are not here in the city when the Quake comes". However, mankind
has a habit of building up scenarios for tragedy and then acting shocked
when it happens. It is in man's nature to flock to the cities in poor
countries and and build shelter wherever he can. Haitians are not unique
in this.

We left the Gheskio bureau and that part of town about 2 1/2 hours
before the quake. We have been told that that entire area was destroyed
including the Gheskio bureau. We went on our way to transact other
business unaware that we were parting with people for the last time.
After a few other stops we were ready to head to Caribbean Market to
purchase some groceries and exchange some money. For 13 years we have
shopped for groceries almost exclusively at this place. They also allow
us to write an American check and exchange it for Haitian money. I was
very much wanting to get there and exchange some money since we had very
little in hand. As we were headed there Faith asked about one other item
that we had been looking to purchase and if we should stop at another
place and look for it. I reluctantly agreed and we did find the item
which took more time. After we left there we continued on our way to
Caribbean Market but traffic was bad and it got later and at the last
minute we decided to wait until the next morning to go there. Instead we
went back to the guest house and unloaded the supplies that were in the
truck. Faith went upstairs to our room and I sat on the porch visiting
with a friend. When the earthquake started it was a tremble and we
immediately stepped out into the yard. Within a few seconds the tremble
had turned into a strong shake and I turned to look at the building. At
that moment something much like a wave went through the ground and I saw
the entire building sway back and forth about two feet. It is a two
story building made of concrete block and poured concrete pillars,
floors and roofs. As it swayed I realized that it might actually
collapse and I remembered Faith was upstairs so I decided to go get her.
As I started towards the porch a second wave came though the ground and
all the windows on the porch shattered and much of the first floor walls
started to break apart and collapse. I remember very clearly thinking,
"If it doesn't stop shaking the house will collapse before I can get to
her and the kids will lose both of us. I have to wait". Thankfully about
then it started to taper off and within ten seconds I was able to enter
the house and work my way through the rubble to the second floor where I
found Faith standing in our room which didn't have a single crack in any
of it's walls. This in spite of the fact that the two interior walls
underneath that room were rubble. I went from terrified that Faith might
be hurt or killedt to very angry that she was looking for her shoes and
grabbed her by the arm and pulled her out. She said the shock of the
quake coupled with the fact that in our room nothing was braking apart
made her unaware of the fact that the house was about ready to fall in.

The Caribbean market that I was so hot to get to completely collapsed,
four floors of concrete one on top of the other. Had we not changed our
minds we would undoubtedly been inside of it. We have a friend who had
just walked out of it and was in the parking lot when it collapsed. How
many times in our lives do we walk by death and even brush shoulders
with it but are not aware that it has happened?

We spent the first night on the street and then in our truck listening
to the never ending wails of people crying for the dead, but also the
singing of hymns and prayers of thanks that they were alive. I don't
know how many dead there are but 100,000 seems like a conservative
estimate to me and I wouldn't be surprised if it was double that. A very
large densely populated area of almost exclusively concrete structures
lay in ruin. Many of these houses have twenty or more people living in
them. Few have less than ten. The next day we decided towards evening
that we should try to go home on Thursday if possible since we had a
truck load of medical supplies for the hospital and funds for the
hospital. Haiti has a history of people blocking the roads in time of
trouble and we decided our first obligation was to the hospital and the
people of Bombardopolis. God granted us a safe trip home yesterday. We
are helping the Mayor of Bombardopolis coordinate efforts to bring the
many children of Bombarde that attend school in Port home if possible.
We have pledged some funds to help with this.

I know that many countries are gearing up for a big relief effort. This
is so important because we fear that if security and supplies are not
quickly brought in many tens of thousands could die from disease,
hunger, thirst and violence.

Here in Bombarde there is no physical damage. However, Haiti is a
country in which every family has relatives in Port au Prince. I would
not be surprised if a quarter of the population lives in the capitol.
This means that it is a tragedy for the entire country and the effects
both psychological and material will be felt by the entire country.

There are so many other things that I could tell but I think that I will
stop for now and try to get this sent out if we can get a signal. Please
pray for this poor, sad little country which has had so much tragedy in
recent years and now has one greater than all the others combined.

Steve and Faith

Friends, we too often take our blessings of food and safety for granted.
It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Yesterday

Yesterday Josh preached. He did an awesome job! Greg told me that he had a great crowd in his "Unchristian" class. Yesterday I got invited to play softball. Hmm.

Yesterday, I witnessed a bit of a parking nightmare. After visiting another church, I arrived at our church between the 1010 and 1115 services. I came in the front entrance and went into the south parking lot. What I saw there was kind of painful. There were about five cars just hanging out, waiting for a parking spot to open. A few were driving around in a circle waiting for someone to leave. It was like the only place to park was there on the south side in front of the main entrance.

People. Hear my plea. Come in the back entrance by the youth and mission building. If you don't know where it is, find it. Come in the back entrance. Leave that south lot for visitors and the elderly. If you come in the back entrance, you can find a place to park with no problem. That means that you won't be driving around blocking others who do want to park.

Please consider those who need to park close, and the general flow of traffic when you come to park. Jesus told his followers not to take the best seat at the table. I am asking that you come into the lot, drive past some open spaces and take a spot that is open further away so that we don't tie up traffic driving around waiting for the perfect spot.

Thanks for listening. I love you all and you are wonderful.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

the blues

The blues are back. Not for me. They bounced around and landed on an unsuspecting friend. Someone who actually helped me last year when I had found them.

We were talking the other night and he mentioned how every one would think it was silly, looking at his life, everyone would think that he should be happy as a bee.

That is probably true.

But here is what struck me as we were talking. Do you know how many people love you? In this moment when you are feeling down, when you are struggling a bit, do you know how many people put you on their stellar human being list?

The blues make their rounds to everyone, even this beloved person. Blue he may be, but loved is he as well. And love is the answer. It always pulls us out. We always find our "A" game again because God's love, and the love of others just heals us.

How many people out there love you? More than you think.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

my lucky day

Well. Yesterday was my lucky day. I got one speech and two phone calls from people who wanted to tell me that they loved me. For no reason. I was on their heart and in their minds, so they called me to make sure I was ok and tell me that they loved me.

Well. Wow. That is a very very good feeling.

Who is on your mind today? Who has God given you? Call them. Tell them that you are thinking of them and praying for them.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

more on Haiti

Several have asked if our church will be doing something to help the earthquake victims in Haiti. The answer, of course, is yes.

We will be receiving a special offering this Sunday at all services. In the near future, as opportunities open up, I am also sure that you will be hearing about mission trips and other ways that we can help.

The United Methodist Church is very active in providing relief for such global calamities. You can read more about what the general church is doing at www.umc.org/haiti

Keep the people of Haiti in your prayers. About the only joy I ever see in such tragedy is that the churches step up and respond in such positive ways. Moments of pain provide us with a chance to be the hands and feet of Christ.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Haiti

Wow. The pictures coming in from the earthquake in Haiti are devastating. Let us join together and pray for those impacted by the quake. Also, let us be thinking of ways that we can reach out and be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ to these people.

On a side note, in spite of what at least one Christian leader is saying, earthquakes are a natural disaster. They are not visited upon certain people whom God deems evil. The Christians in Haiti were not spared this catastrophe. They died in equal numbers to those who practice voodoo. Earthquakes are a natural disaster. Like a tornado. Jesus said, "the rain falls on the just and the unjust."

This is not about who the good and the bad people are. This is another reminder that life is a mystery and we don't have all the answers. It is a chance for us to act out our faith and care about those who are hurting, and in some small way allow this tragic event to be marked by the grace and love of God.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

lost opportunities

An opportunity was lost to share one's faith. Another day goes by and I did not talk to anyone about Jesus Christ.

Well, here is another perspective......what opportunities do we lose if we push too hard? When you work on someone in a way that they feel like your "project," they are going to recoil from you. They will see you coming from a mile away and go the other direction. Opportunities lost.

So we Christians just need to be really careful about how and when we open our big mouths. Jesus did not give altar calls and it is not our job to close the sale for God. We are instead to be carriers of his love and grace. We are to be ready always to give answer of the hope that lies within you.

You will know when the time is right. Don't lose your opportunity to reach them by scaring them away.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Our Town

Yes, the video that ran with the song, "In the City" was awesome. WM put that together. I hope there will be more.

Yes, the boss say about "My Home Town."

Yesterday I finished the book, "Our Town." Actually it is a play by Thornton Wilder. It is a quick read, it took about an hour. As I have been getting older, I have had a growing desire to read "the classics." A friend recommended Our Town to me, and I finally got around to reading it.

I am not going to blow the plot for you, but I will make one point that the author makes: We cannot just go through the motions. Life is short. I see you. I see you. You matter to me. Tell someone today. Look them in the eye and tell them that they matter to you.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

worries

Sometimes I wonder about the number of worries that we human beings carry. Life can be very complicated, or it can sure seem complicated.

What will happen with the economy?
How can we help people in need?
How are my children doing, really?
What will happen with health care?
Am I really living sacrificially?
What if the wheels come off?

I am sure that I could add to this list, as could you. There are a number of things that wear heavily on our minds. When I find my brain filled with such thoughts, I just try to remember the simple things.

God loves me.
God loves you.
I survived being a teenager.
So will they.
I will help everyone that I can.

Sort of a "life is short, don't sweat the small stuff." God is good, and we can trust in him regardless of our circumstances. There is plenty of good to see in the simple truths that are always true.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

the healing power of Sunday

Sometimes there are those days. Days when you wake to frozen pipes, dog barf and cars that won't start. Maybe you laid awake for an hour wondering where a kid was that missed their curfew. [O no, not me!]

These are days when we just want to sleep a little longer. These are days when the dog might get kicked. These are days when we don't "feel" like going to church.

In my life, I have found that if I allow myself to fall further into such feelings, then they just take hold. If on the other hand, I get up and get busy, the positive side of my brain comes back to life.

I don't have the luxury of sleeping in when Saturday night is a poo. I still have to get up and go. But I will tell you, every time without fail that I have struggled on Sunday morning, by 8am, I am healed. And that is because of you.

I see your faces. I feel your hearts. They joy of your presence makes a difference for me. I am healed.

This will probably work for any of you that are having a slow start. Go ahead, get up, get a move on, and get to church. See if the joy of God's family doesn't put the smaller issues of life in perspective.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Connie Thomas

From the New Orleans Times-Picayune

The Rev. Connie Marie Thomas, a minister who used her zeal to help repair buildings and souls that Hurricane Katrina had battered, died Nov. 24 of pneumonia at Touro Infirmary. She was 51. "She had what I would call a pastor's heart," said the Rev. Ramonalynn Bethley, district superintendent for the New Orleans area in the United Methodist Church's Louisiana Conference. "To me, it is a faith that is lived out in actions toward others -- in listening to others, in caring for others and in serving their needs," she said. "Christ can come in a warm meal or a cold glass of water. "Pastor Thomas, a native New Orleanian who had led two churches in the city when the storm struck in August 2005, helped establish Luke's House, a free clinic at Mount Zion United Methodist Church. She was no stranger to storm-related losses. Katrina's winds peeled off the roof of her Uptown home. In another church-related duty, Pastor Thomas was in charge of about 30,000 volunteers who converged on New Orleans after the storm. That job, which she held for two years, included finding housing for these people, feeding them and deploying them.

That is what the newspaper said. This is what I want to say:

Connie Thomas was one of the first people that I met when I went to New Orleans in January of 2006. She visited Woods Chapel Church that next month. She preached to us and told us the story of need in new Orleans. Her words opened the hearts of many to go to New Orleans and work in the mission field there.

She welcomed our groups and was so kind and jovial. Her laughter and smile were contagious.

I had lunch or dinner with her every time I went to New Orleans. We talked about ministry and life. She invited me to say a few words to her congregation one year when I was there on a Sunday. She was one of God's foot soldiers. She was my friend.

Pneumonia. Age 51. Hard to figure. I will miss her. This is still our Father's world.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Snow, still

Well, I can barely see the house anymore. I hope that spring comes soon so that we can find my daughters car.

Speaking of cars, I remember when I was in college in Springfield in 1977-78 and 78-79, we had some really bad winters. I remember so much snow and cold weather. None of the college student's cars would start for a month. We tried everything. We jumped them. We put in new batteries. We even pushed my '73 Vega and i popped the clutch. It was so cold that the viscosity of the oil reduced it to sludge. The pistons would not move in their cylinders.

Those winters, I rode my bicycle to work. It was an old beater with knobby tires. I rode it ten blocks in a foot of snow to cover my shifts at the self service gas station where I worked.

I can remember watching the clock at the bank on Glenstone St. It had the time and temperature. I was so excited when one day the temperature got above freezing, because I knew that the snow was going away. Finally.

This snow will go away too. Thank God.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good, if you can see out your door that is.

uh huh. snow pt. 4

I have shovelled the driveway more this winter than in all previous winters at this house combined. My kids do not remember in their lifetime ever seeing this much snow, and this cold of temperatures for so long.

I am going to rename our town Minneapolis or Duluth or Greenbay. Heck, where is our ski resort? With this much snow we should live in Denver.

Let's do a remake of the movie Fargo. We won't even have to go to North Dakota.

I lived in Tulsa for 3 years. It snowed once. It snowed 3 inches overnight and was 70 degrees the next day. Obviously that snow did not last very long. I lived in California for 7 years. It snowed once while I lived there. You could see the snow up in the foothills. Everyone got in their cars and drove up highway 17 toward Santa Cruz. When we got to the summit where the snow was, everyone got out and had a snowball fight. There were tons of people up there enjoying the novelty of snow.

I was accosted at work yesterday. Employees of your church threw snowballs at me and tried to bury my truck. Not nice.

At least we should be able to go skiing. It has been too long since I have been skiing.

Well, certainly all of this snow will help us to appreciate spring. I think that we should have a big party this year when spring arrives. What do you say to that?

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

snow, part 3

It seemed to snow a lot more when I was a kid. Seemed like every year it would snow a ton and we would go sledding on streets packed with snow. We used real sleds too, with metal runners, none of this plastic stuff that the kids use today. We would tie our sleds together. My sister would ride on my back. We would jump our sleds off over retaining walls and then lie to my Dad about how they got broken. We made snow men that were taller than we were. We made forts and had snow ball fights. We would skate down the driveway in our black rubber galoshes. Once I did it backwards, slipped and fell and broke my nose. There was always a ton of snow, but it was never that cold.

Then I grew up, and other than the winters of 77-78 and 78-79, it didn't snow much. Until this year. First blizzard in 20 years. Stuck in the single digits for two weeks. Ugg.

I used to tell my kids about how much snow we got when I was little. Now I can show them. It is pretty, but it is cold. I think I am going to throw a party when spring gets here.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

snow, again

I loved Sharon's comment from yesterday.....infact sometimes the best things about this blog are the comments.

Sharon said,
So, in the final analysis, you'd have to admit that snow is a good thing because it causes you to want to pray and visit with God. And since snow is cold, which you don't like, you'll have to practice your patience. Turn up the thermostat, wear your warm clothes, enjoy the beauty of the snow and your time with God and wit [patiently] for spring like the rest of us. I'm not sure praying for spring is a good thing. Isn't that like wishing your life away? Wanting to get to the "good part" and not having to deal with the "bad stuff"? Don't get me wrong, I like spring too and I get a little anxious waiting for it, but life is way too short to be wishing for the days between now and then to be gone.

Yesterday around 4:00pm, I was clearing my driveway [again] and when I turned off the snowblower, it seemed so peaceful and serene outside. And then, like it was meant to happen, the bells at church started ringing. God was there--he likes snow.

Thank you Sharon. So well said.
It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

snow, more snow.....

Here are the top five snowiest winters ever recorded in Kansas City:
1) 67.0” in 1911-1912
2) 58.5” in 1959-1960
3) 55.0” in 1961-1962
4) 42.4” in 1925-1926
5) 38.6” in 1898-1899

Average winter snowfall (metro ranges):
Kansas City Intl. (1971-2000): 20.1"
Lee's Summit (1971-2000): 15.6”

Last year’s total snowfall (KCI):13.4”
Last year's total snowfall (Lee's Summit): 10.0"

Lowest seasonal snowfall total: 4.5; (1922-1923)
Highest seasonal snowfall total: 67.0” (1911-1912)

Warmest winter season: 39.0 degrees* 1931-1932
Coldest winter season: 21.5 degrees* 1978-1979
[I remember the winter of 78-79]

Last year’s winter season: 36.0 degrees*
Coldest temperature ever recorded: -23 degrees on Dec. 22 and 23, 1989

Ok, so. I am tired of winter. I am praying for Spring. This reminds me of my worst winter on record. In some strange way, snow makes me want to pray. It makes me want to visit with God about how he is running the world. I think about Florida. I think about how I liked snow when I was younger, but I am not so keen on it now. I think about how you just have to trust God and hang on when you don't like the circumstances.

So. It is a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good. Cold, but good.

2010

Well today, it is back to work for me. First day of work in 2010. Not that I didn't do any work on Friday and Saturday, but they are not officially work days. 2010. I have been thinking a good deal about what may come up in 2010.

First, let me say that we are not guaranteed any of 2010. Each and every day that God grants us this year, is a true blessing.

Having said that, I have some things to look forward to in 2010. Another one of my children is turning 21. They get so excited about that. My oldest will graduate from college in December. Awesome! Lord I am praying!

Mostly I think about this year and I just have a feeling that there may be some very special things happen at our church in 2010. What are your dreams for God? Has he been talking to you? Are you open to hear his voice? What might he do in you and me in 2010? Just the thought of it is inspiring to me.

"speak Lord, your servants are listening."

It is a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

things that go bump in the night

I am wide awake. Every winter we have these loud cracking, booming noises in the middle of the night. All I can think of what they are is that it is the house settling or expanding and contracting as the extreme cold of outside encounters the dwelling that is heated to 68 degrees.

Does this happen at your house or am I crazy? Don't answer the crazy part.

Anyway, it is kind of fun to be wide awake at 4am, keeping watch over the random noises of the house. It is the quiet time in the morning when no one wants anything and you are left with your own thoughts and the contemplations of the soul.

I was writing to a friend earlier and I used the word "metaphysics." Woo. Look at me. Metaphysics. The science or study of that which goes beyond physics. Who are we? Why are we here.

The older I get, the simpler I find this very complex topic to be. What ever you believe about life, love, the soul, eternity, it all boils down to one thing. We are here to be conduits of God's love. To receive it, and to then dispense it. To collect and distribute. To gather and then disperse. I know when I am receiving it and then giving it away, I am happy. To the core, I am happy. When I am not doing this, life is goofed up.

I meet with people all the time that ask me about the purpose of their lives. I always answer the same. Receive the love of God, and then give it away. Everything else comes after that or is subservient to that.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Happy New Year

The Missouri Tigers lost. Well, if given a choice at the beginning of the year between making a bowl game and losing, or not making a bowl game, which would you choose? Congrats to the Tigers.

I talked to someone last night who had a friend throw them away in 2009. Over something that was nothing. Now they are heartbroken over something that should have never have ended a friendship.

2010 is upon us. May the Missouri Tigers win. May your team win too. My wife likes the Jayhawks. May they win too. May the economy grow. May you find friendship and love. May we not bury any of our friends in 2010. May we engage in mission beyond ourselves that makes God happy.

Here we go, if God gives us the breath. 2010 awaits us.

Its a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.