Satan's Candy Bar

On my way home from this past Weekend in Dallas my plans included meeting up with my daughter Erica for a bite of dinner as she was traveling back to UNT and I on to Brownwood. I was up early (6:30) for the first session of the day and missed breakfast for obvious reasons. Then wanting to get away just a touch early from the TASB conference I skipped lunch, went to another session and headed out. I was STARVING - I found a bag of these mini-Heath bars, a candy from my teen years and I was hooked. I could not stop eating them, on and on and on and on!!!!! By the time I reached the restaurant for dinner I had consumed well over half of the bag. The chicken-taco-salad I was eating was not going to compensate for the 10,000 calories (my estimate) I had nibbled through.

I was engulfed by fear to get on the scales Sunday morning - I just knew I had allowed the Prince of Darkness to infiltrate me. Three (3) POUNDS!!! In a matter of three days and after being rather attentive to eating - 3 POUNDS! I am on a cleanse now. My sister-in-law's wedding is in four days and I am determined to lose the 3 + 4 more.

Why am I so vain???????????

Well this is something!

My good friend Paul Irby has a blog - though his post at times may be few and far between (he has a specific post about this dynamic) and he is on a delicate romp about this one and I must say that I agree with him. It is well worth a read and research. with a daughter that has talked of ministry within churches I have started seriously researching the issue of women in ministry from a Biblical-Historical view point. My extended family (on my wife's side) have so many women gifted and used of God I often wonder and find myself pondering how they might be used if more evangelical Christians viewed women in ministry a bit differently.

I will not rail on Lifeway Stores here - I'll let Paul do that for me. I will say this that Paul is a very well-educated West Texas Baptist Boy (his entire life) that lives in Abilene. Check Paul Irby out here.

Variety!!!!

This week is going to be one of the most variety-oriented weeks of the year for me. A bit like my television viewing. I will readily admit that unless I am watching an episode of "Seinfeld" for the 40th time or "I Love Lucy"- either would not be uncommon for me, I have to really "watch" or do the Tivo pause thing when necessary to really get the gist of what is taking place. Tonight's TV viewing included the ending of a Hepburn movie (Jill's favorite time in front of the TV) then "Dancing With the Stars," "Prison Break" and "Boston Legal." None of these final four have excessive redeeming qualities but they do get my mind off of the day to day thoughts that will engulf my thinking process.

The "variety" I referenced in my title this week includes; my paid gig (church work) topped with a 50's variety kick-off party (complete with sock-hop dancing, hot-rod cars, watermelon seed-spitting and Dr. Pepper drinking contest) for our churches' campaign - 40 Days of Community event. This event is simply defined as a time for us as a church community to see/experience how we as a family of faith can accomplish our spiritual lives better together. I will also attend a state-wide school board convention in Dallas, help cast 50 in our community musical production of The Sound of Music, pray for my daughter who collapsed in a 5k run in Dallas this past weekend (and ended up at Baylor Medical Center's emergency room) and seriously review the needs of our historic downtown district here in Brownwood. And to top it off I have been taking a rather humorous trip down memory lane looking through old high school pictures of plays and school friends then posting them to a class web site while having a spirited email conversation with a great friend from my teen year's job at Burger King. All in a week!?! There is a great deal going on - but at least I am not in a funk today. Go figure!

Growing-Spiritually

Donna Posey has a most interesting post from last Thursday (that I just now read.) Over the past couple of weeks it seems as though I have just been in a "funk" in regards to spiritual stuff happening in my life. I certainly have a desire for something spiritual and actually even long for it but, there is just something that I can not put my finger on. I guess Donna's post has got me thinking along with another friend of mine John Henson. John seems to be in a place that really deals with the "living our life" indulging in spiritual actions stuff. Rick Davis also has an approach that I often find my self looking at and (though it almost always takes me multiple reads) getting some good stuff. But all of that to say this: Yesterday during our worship we sang a song entitled "You Are" by Mark Roach.
I had a comment from one in the service that "Morning Star" (referenced in the song) was a common name for Satan (found in Isaiah.) I giggled, then looked up the Revelation reference 22:16 - and had a little text-message conversation with him about the song and the "morning star" lyrics. WOW finally challenging myself on something spiritual and it is this?
Growing Spiritually - I just don't believe that we can simply give a common phrase or saying to bring some one out of this state of being or lack there of. Moving forward in our spiritual life has to be a choice-process-intentional to see growth and significance.

Lacking Motivation-Still

This is a bit odd to be to be posting and experiencing the subject at hand. But I will just admit it!!! I am really lacking motivation here lately. Last night as I had just completed preparing some Cheesy Crusted Potato Casserole, Buttery Corn-on-the-cob, tossed-salad, fresh-cut watermelon and home-made banana puddin' (and I do enjoy meal preparation) for the 100+ people to eat I noticed I had not even secured servers, clean-up help etc.... Some people jumped right in (thanks Audrey & Jennifer) but still - this is a problem. I had made all my preparations for worship band rehearsal - but it was still the same-ole, same-ole. My desk is full but my motivation is weak. I don't dislike anything I am doing - I just don't want to do it right now. Maybe it's the rain - hurricane, oh well! Hope this is an encouraging blog for you as surely (I know - don't call me "surely") your day can not be more frustrating than this!

Small Towns

This is kind of hard to articulate but Brownwood (pop 20,000) is consider a small town and especially so when you think that the nearest "large" town-Abilene is 70+ miles away and their population is just over 100,000. We are definitely very rural. I sometimes think what it would be like to have remained in the large cities in which we use to live; Denver, Wichita, Birmingham, Ft. Lauderdale, Toledo and of course Sweetwater (to be exempted from the large city threshold.) This morning after getting up at 5:30 AM to prepared and take my son to marching band rehearsal - I scooted off to have our vehicle (pictured) put into the vehicle hospital. As it approaches 170,000 miles this is to be expected but-as we are only one or two payments away from a debt free vehicle I don't mind the occasional several-hundred-dollar repairs that are needed to keep it in good working order.

What I appreciated more than anything this morning was that I took my car in - was greeted by name, and proceeded to have a seat (waiting for Jill to pick me up) then have some great conversation with people that knew me from early childhood and just loved my parents. We talked about the amazing 6" rain during the span of an hour that we received at the lake last night and how good it was for the lake to get those kinds of downpours. Brad walked in and another conversation took place as he wanted to help us get a kid-jumpy-thing for a big event we are having at church later this month - and he doesn't even go to our church. After Jill arrived we headed out to get some breakfast (a very rare occasion for us) at a local non-national-chain restaurant and had additional varying conversations just as above with more people.

There is something really fulfilling today about getting to minister in a small town, knowing people and loving just where God has placed you for His purpose.

Thinking about Labor Day

I often wonder how my parents "did it!" You know - working, raising kids, working, going to church, working, fixin' the car, working, cleaning the house, working, loving their kids, working, visiting family, working, having a life!! I think you get my drift. After lamenting not being with our oldest on his birthday - Jill and I decided that we would like to take a quick trip to Denton, see their new home and treat them to lunch with us. Being that I work on Sunday and we determined to do this two-days prior to the Sunday, we left after the morning worship services. Stayed at a great hotel, Hyatt Regency, north of the Metroplex that has all those little bells and whistles that you just don't find at the LaQuinta. You know - a great big fluffy bed with HD wide-screen TV - a breakfast buffet to die for and a nice little workout room (that I actually utilized.) Now, between the drivin' and the eaten' and the visitin' I am exhausted. I even attempted to take a nap on the journey home as Jill and Dylon wanted to shop a bit at a mall. It was hotter than blazes in the parking lot and the kid-yelling-filled conversion van that pulled along side of me in the parking lot did not help my disposition any. I went in the mall - got myself one of those fabulous hot cookies and a Diet Coke and shopped with the family.

Oh well - I am picking myself up today, eating a breakfast burrito (thus the reason for the picture) and getin' er done! When was Labor Day?