black friday

tomorrow is black friday. what a name. it follows thanksgiving day. and it starts early. stores are opening at midnight. others open early in the morning with lines queueing before midnight. i've heard of people who get in line and camp out all night to buy doorbusters. why? so that they can sell the stuff on ebay at a profit - a handsome profit. i've seen pictures of these long lines and near fights in stores over items. one day fattening up on pumpkin pie next to a warm fire, the next spending a cold night outside your favorite store. one day chasing that last piece of turkey, the next fighting for the golden egg. i actually went out one black friday. and i'm here to tell you i survived. i spent my time staying out of people's way. i had to watch where i looked. if i looked at something and took a step towards it, someone would dive in front of me to grab it, thinking it was a great deal. i then began to develop a strategy, just like i was on a football field. i'd look right, and imight even juke right, then i'd dive left to grab the precious item as the others around me would tackle whatever was to the right of me. great sport this day was in the store, but dangerous. i'm just glad that Jesus brings only white fridays and that in Him is no danger.

thanksgiving

it is that time of year that we, as americans, celebrate thanksgiving. ya know, that day that was started along time ago by the pilgrims. the day that we stuff ourselves with turkey, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, green beans, mashed potatoes, pumpkin and pecan pie, and whatever else is set before us. that day where we watch the football games and catch up on what's been happening in various parts of the family. the day that was set aside for - oh yeah, to be thankful for the many blessings that we have. yes, we need to be thankful, as we are more blessed than any other country in the world. why? simply, God. God has decided to bless us. the pilgrims knew that and we use to. ouch! but, let us return to our roots and acknowledge the many blessings of God, starting with Jesus and the building of the Kingdom of God and all the other things He has and will add.

commitment

have you ever noticed that there are certain words that are just not popular? they seem to carry a very negative association with them. they conjure up negative feelings. they just don't feel comfortable. they make you squirm. one of those words that seems to be getting more and more negative today is commitment. you see it everywhere. people don't work for the same employer nearly as long - the loyalty just doesn't seem to be there. more and more men and women are simply living together vs. "tying the knot". families no longer live close to each other and are often spread out across the country, or around the world. have you ever asked yourself why? does it have anything to do with commitment? what do we think of the word commitment? what does it mean? the dictionary says that commitment is the act of committing; a giving in charge or entrusting; a pledge; something that requires an obligation. in other words it requires giving of at least part of yourself to someone or something else. wow! scary indeed. if i do that i might get hurt. i mean who or what can i trust? i might get into a situation that is too uncomfortable for me. i might be put in a place where i have to carry someone's burden, their stuff. i might find that i am yoked with someone or something where things are not always comfortable and it feels very heavy. i was there but then i found out that His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

cho-co-lat

mmmm. just the mention of the word and i start getting dizzy. chocolate. the most amazing discovery in all of history. chocolate. cho-co-lat! i once visited the hershey factory in hershey, pa. it was wonderful. upon entering the factory you entered this roller-coaster like ride that carried you through the factory. it was roller-coaster in that as you went by rivers of flowing chocolate you would experience this incredible high. then the chocolate would disappear from your view and you would immediately drop from that high, only to go around a corner and once again be in the presence of chocolate. cho-co-lat! mmmmmm, so wonderful. yes, i am a chocoholic. i love it. there is no bad chocolate, only good, better, and fantastic chocolate. i recommend at least one serving of chocolate a day, though 3-4 is much, much better. i also recommend chocolate baths, though i personally have never had one. there is no doubt that chocalate is the sweetest concoction of all time. yet, it never permanently satisfies as a true chocoholic will be looking forward to his or her next experience after finishing one. it's kind of like Jesus, once you taste of him, you just keep wanting more and more.

alive

isn't it wonderful to be alive. i mean it's amazing. it's like walking into your favorite candy store and having the freedom to pick out five pounds of your favorite chocolate and knowing that as you eat it not one ounce of fat will invade your body or one zit creep unto your face. life is good, no it's great! i get confused when i hear people talk about how miserable they are. yeah, i have my moments - i'm human! i know there can be valleys along life's highway. but they are short in duration - even the pain from life and many surgeries and the two times i flirted with death - when compared to the inescapable joy of living life. so, what is my secret? Jesus! He's the secret to everything - to all joy - to all happiness.

ink pen

have you ever looked at an ink pen. i mean really looked at it. studied it. turned it over and over in your hand. taken it apart. studied it. they really are quite amazing. simple, yet complex. they are made of plastic (metal for more expensive) a spring, and some apparatus that allows you to push it in various places to open it or close it. see, if you couldn't open and close it you'd be buying lots of shirts due to ink stains. so that is really important. think about where we would be without the ink pen. we write with it. we sign important documents with it. we endorse checks with it. we journal with it. we take notes with it. we chew on them. we doodle with them. we play with it. we record important information with it. and i'm sure there is more we can do with an ink pen. but their value is all tied up in whether ink flows out of the tip or not. most of the time it does - but have you ever noticed how they fail you at the most inopportune of times. isn't it nice to know that though an ink pen can fail us, Jesus will never fail us.

music

is there anyone out there that doesn't like music? i can't even begin to fathom the possibility of that occurring. however, i can believe that people don't like certain types of music. i love all music with the exception of two - country and western - unless it's something by country joe and the fish. music is amazing. it's soothing. it can energize us. it can quiet us. it can bring us face to face with a myriad of emotions. it can cause laughter. it can stir us to tears. there's all kinds from rap to lucille the guitar to heavy metal, both secular and religious. it's found everywhere: elevators, stores, background of movies, radios, churches, stereos, concerts, everywhere. it's everywhere, everywhere - oh no, it's taking over - we're doomed - er' excuse me, got kind of carried away there. seriously, music was meant to be a magnificent and wonderful thing. why? because God created it that way.

grocery stores

grocery stores are a wonderful place to visit. as soon as you walk in the door all of your senses come alive. how can they not? there are odors, beautiful things to look at, magnificent things to touch, all kinds of sizes, shapes and colors to admire, and all kinds of sounds of life to listen to. they contain sweet stuff and sour stuff. they contain healthy stuff and less than healthy stuff. they contain spicy stuff and fortunately, not so spicy stuff. they contain expensive stuff and cheap stuff. they contain "on brands" and "off brands". just lots and lots of stuff that attract and ultimately - at least for a period of time - satisfy our senses. that's how life is. it has lots and lots of stuff that attracts our senses - our attention - at least for a while. the sad part is that we settle for temporary fulfillment of our senses instead of focusing on something - rather someone, that eternally satisfies all of our senses, passions, and our entire being eternally - Jesus.

friday

phew! made it. we're finally here. FRIDAY! the day that we've been wishing days away to get to has finally come. wow! think about that. say we live 80 years and we work and are in school for 65 of those years wishing for friday to come. that means we wished 13,520 days of our lives away. that's about 46% of our lives that we have wished away. wouldn't it have been better to rejoice in each day that the Lord has given us?

election

well, here we are two days out from what was called the biggest election of our time. pundits on both sides were saying that dire consequences were to be had by this country if the other side won. so, now that i think about it, since one side won, and the other side said that - put on your seat belts for dire consequences are on their way. whatever! many are still rejoicing, while many are sad or scared or nervous. many had tears running down their faces after it was all over - some for joy, some out of sadness. that's the amazing thing about elections. people get emotionally involved, tied up into it, buying everything that their candidate says. and then, boom, it's over and reality comes back into play. at some point, the joy of it all for a lot of people will fade to sadness and disappointment. that's not a negative reflection on any individual. it's happened after every election - every election. the popularity polls have fallen - the honeymoon has come to an end. that's just how it is when you cast your lot with a human - an imperfect human. that's why i have cast my lot with God and will continue to do so. though humans disappoint, Jesus never does.

friends

what are friends? good question; maybe a better question is, what are friends for? i think that question is a bit tougher. friends are people we like hanging out with. friends are people that are just there. you can watch football with them. you can take a hike or backpack with them. you can ride bicycles with them. or motorcycles. you can talk to them. these all give hints to what friends are for, but have you ever sat down and meditated on or analyzed the purpose of friends? first, i believe they are a gift - they are given to us for a purpose. i think true friends encourage us, want us to be blessed even when they aren't, bless us with wisdom, pick us up when we are down, don't abdicate the relationship when we screw up, gently head us in the right direction when we're heading in the wrong, etc. they are people with whom you share part of yourself. get my point. but, when you meditate on these "qualifications" of a friend it begs a question: will my friend fail me? unfortunately, he or she will, well, all but one friend. if Jesus is your best friend, He will never, never, ever fail you.

laundry

ah yes. it's laundry day. you know, the day that laundry needs to be done. but why? because someone decided it's not cool to wear dirty clothes. like that really defines the person. but, hey, you can't buck tradition can you? but there can be a benefit. say you're wearing dirty, smelly clothes and you need to walk through a large crowd. the crowd will part like the red sea and you'll have no problem moving quickly to your destination. or say you want privacy at work - just wear dirty, smelly clothes and as soon as someone walks into your office, every one will know it - and leave you alone. so, there are some advantages to not doing laundry. however, please don't take this blog entry as endorsing that in any way shape or form. so laundry day is very, very important. it comes often depending on the size of your family. the frequency doesn't matter, it's the fact that we have to wash our clothes so that when we wear them next they are clean. aren't you glad that we only had to be washed once by the blood of Jesus.

prayer

have you ever wondered what prayer is about? the simple answer is that it's all about talking to and listening to God - and that is very, very true. but, why pray? i mean what is the real purpose of prayer? i mean i talk to people all day long. i listen to people all day long. what do i gain out of it? is it like watching your favorite movie - yeah, that's part of it, because you're gaining information as you listen to the actors recite their lines. is it like giving a lecture or a sermon or describing an incident to a friend - again, yes, that's part of it, because you're giving information out. these two parts - giving and gaining information together help make up prayer - but is that all. prayer, meditation, whatever it is called is practiced by millions of people. i read an article about some very successful businessman the other day that starts every day with meditation - because it clears his mind and prepares him for the day. even that is part of prayer. but, i'm still not satisfied. what is prayer really about? i've come to this conclusion - prayer is about being able to walk into the Holy of holies, through the curtain in the temple that was rent when Jesus was crucified, and crawl up on Daddy's lap, then pulling His big arms around me, and just having a great time sharing my heart and listening to His so that my heart becomes more and more like His heart. i think that is prayer and i thank God that through Jesus He made prayer possible. as the deer pants for the water so my soul pants for You o God.