Make the Madness Stop...

No, not march madness, although I've pretty much stopped watching after Thursday and Friday night. How is it possible to have every single team that you want to win lose? Butler, Tennessee and UNLV all lost really close games. UNLV put on a great comeback in the last three minutes of the game. So close.

But the madness that needs to stop is this song. My buddy Jeff gave me a copy of an old Damien Rice CD "O". I've had song number four 'Cannonball' stuck in my head for like a week now. The rest of that cd is a little strange, though I did give it a chance on my ipod.

I think part of the reason it's so prominate in my head is because they used it on an episode of "The Black Donelly's" (I think that's how you spell it). That show is good. I mean like real good. If you haven't watched it yet, you should catch up on Itunes and check it out this Monday.

I mean like jelly on your biscuits and gravy good.

I Should Blog More Offen...

Did you know that the 't' in 'often' is silent? In the words of Johnny Carson, "I did not know that." Seriously. Maybe I'm the last one on the planet that didn't know that, but the correct pronunciation of the word 'often' sounds like 'offen'. Look it up.

Have you ever had that happen to you? When something in your world you believed in with all your heart was found to be false. Maybe it wasn't even something earth shattering, like the anunciation of a word. Maybe it's something very profound. In either case, it feels like the life you've lived seemed veiled or incomplete, and now the curtain has been torn and you are viewing life a bit more raw now.

I think that I am really selfish. I know we all that have bit of "I'm number one"-itus, but I think mines a bit deeper than that. I was walking through Vons the other day and I thought, "I should get my wife something." Now, I know the Supermarket isn't the most romantic place to go shopping for your wife, but I thought, what the hey? So I went to the cards and looked a few, until I got a phone call that distracted me. After the phone call, I decided that I was hungry, so I went to Cold Stone and got myself an ice cream (nutritious and delicious). It wasn't really until this moment that I realized I never got anything for the girl with the green eyes.

I think I need to work on that. I would really like to love my wife as she deserves. I was reading in John 3 the other day and when John the Baptist says, "He must become greater, and I must become less," it just cuts to my heart. I think that line could apply in all our relationships, not just the one with Christ, though it certainly applies there as well. My wife needs to become greater and greater in my thoughts and actions, and my wants and desires need to become less and less. I think if I can start to do that, my selfishness won't pop up so offen.

The Smells Of Summer...

I washed my car for the first time in a long time today. I love the way she looks when she's not dirty. Such a beautiful car. The 'new car' scent never quite smells like it should so I go with the 'orange citrus'. Reminds me of summer. And with the weather in the lower 90's it's starting to feel like it to.

Watching the cars come off the drying assembly line, it's hard not to try and match the car with the owner. There's the Lexus SUV. Probably goes to the lady talking real estate on the phone. I spot a mullet at the table in the back. Let's see...any camaros in that line? nope? Well, then I'll go with the 80's mustang. Bingo. I spot one I can't place. It's a cadillac but it must be early nineties at best. It has a huge dent and scratches on the rear quarterpanel. Can't quite place that one. So I wait until it's done and the mexican twirls the rag. Up pops a rather unpleasant man who I only noticed before because he was arguing with the cashier when I first walked in to pay. He paces around the car holding the poor attendant hostage while he points at every miniscule droplet of water he can find. Doesn't want any streaks, see?

I find myself wondering if he's going to put this much effort into a car that will never look new, why bother? Why not put that energy and effort and time and money into something that at least when you're done, she'll sparkle and have that summer smell?

I find myself being that man many times. I put energy and effort in making something sparkle and smell fresh when in reality it's dead and foul. I read my bible just enough to give the air of superiority. I pray just often enough to show my piety. I think, "My, aren't I spiritual." I read the right books to know the right answers to the right questions in the right conversations. And I am so very, very wrong.

I wonder what it might be like if I gave in and let Him renew me. Instead of working hard on something that will never be new, what if I died to myself so I could know what new really means. Instead of holding people hostage with my piousness, I might serve them with my humility.

Finally, my car's done. She looks beautiful. I love the smell of summer.

Let Your Thinking and Believing Become Doing and Serving...

I was reading some blogs on the internet today and came across this little bit of writing. It comes from the blog of real live preacher. Something about it just resonated with me, like when you know you've been missing something but can't remember what it is until you find it. I encourage you to check out his blog anyway, as it has some great thoughts, but at least, enjoy this little ditty:

~Let go of big things and embrace little things.
~Ignore loud things and listen for quiet things.
~Put aside obvious things and seek out hidden things.
~Forget easy things and learn hard and ancient things.
~Stop saving your life and start losing it.
~Let your thinking and believing become doing and serving.
~Quit trying to arrive and become at home on the journey.
~Lose your road maps and find a wise guide to walk with you

That's beautiful to me.

Remind Me Not To Ride With This Guy...

You might remember this guy as manliest cartwheel every after beeting a russian behemoth a few years back in the Olympics. Or you might remember him as the guy who got lost for a few days in the frozen wilderness of Idaho and had to have a toe amputated after his body temperature had dropped more than 10 degrees. Or you might remember him from a 2004 motorcylce accident where he was hit by a car and almost died at the scene.

Just this past week, he was flying a little airplane (when will people learn, if you have any amount of fame whatsoever, STAY OUT OF TINY AIRCRAFT!) and it crashed into an almost frozen lake. Three dudes had to swim for about two hours in the freezing water then huddle together at night for warmth until they were rescued.

When this guy was in gradeschool, he brought a bow and arrow in for show and tell. He managed to impale himself with the arrow in front of the whole class.

So basically, the moral of the story is, if you see Mr. Gardner coming your way...RUN!

These Guys Are Good...

These guys are my heroes. My brother and I came up with some fantastic games when we were kids, but I'm pretty sure we never did anything this cool. Sorry about the music...

Am I The Only One?

When I first saw the trailor, I thought, "This looks stupid. All that CG and special effect crap that ruined star wars. I won't see it."

Then I saw the second trailor. Then I thought, "You know, it may not be too bad. It's people fighting and swords and arrows and blood and stuff. How bad could it be."

Then I started to wonder what it was actually about.

And that's when I fell in love with the story.

You can read all about it at Wikipedia, but let me just say, I think I want to name my first kid Leonidas. It means "son of the Lion". Seriously.

My favorite part of the story is when King Xerxes of Persia is having a conference before the battle with Leonidas. He says that they are too outnumbered and if Leonidas will lay down his arms he'll make Leonidas king of all Greece under Persian rule. Leonidas tells him there is no way he could do that to his compatriots. This ticks Xerxes off and he aggressively orders Leonidas to lay down his arms and Leonidas says, "Come and get them."

Son of the Lion indeed.

In Case You Missed It...

I present the best moment of the Oscars...enjoy it while it lasts...

The Perfect Storm...

Have you ever had a perfect day? I mean the kind of day where everything goes right? Yesterday was one of those days for me.

I slept in till about 9:30. Then I got up, ate breakfast, threw my clubs into my jeep and took off for the golf course. Played a not-too-shabby 18 (well, for myself anyways...I'm sure there'd be a few people embarassed with my score). Came home to an immaculate house that my wonderful wife had slaved away all day cleaning. Hopped in the shower and then made some mean chili for some friends we had come over. Watched a hilarious movie, and then went to some other friends house for a party to cap the night off. Came home at about 11:00 pm and went straight to sleep.

Why can't they all be like that?

(Oh, and did I mention it was like 75 degrees all day?)
(Oh, and also, you have to spell degrees because there is no key on the keyboard with the little degrees sign)

See What I Mean?

We Wasted The Good Suprise On You...

When I was a kid, I loved the Oklahoma Sooners. Well, mostly their football team. And mostly because my Grandpa did. At that point, I really couldn't have cared less about college football. It was more about getting as much swag as I could that had the name "Sooner" on it. It's why I like the movie "Far and Away".

I remember one christmas telling my parents all I wanted was Oklahoma Sooners gear. Footballs, bed sheets, sweatshirts, whatever, as long as it had the word Sooner on it (although at that age I still wasn't sure what a 'sooner' actually was). Well, christmas eve comes and all is quiet. I, of course, can't wait for the morning, so I sneak out in the middle of the night with my flashlight, scissors and tape.

I pick the nearest gift with my name on it. With the precision of a seasoned surgeon, I slice the tape perfectly between the seams. Ever so quietly, I pull the object out. With much joy, I admire my new sooner's hat.

Fearing I might get caught, I quickly use the tape to re-assemble the gift with the kind of perfection that comes from years of sneaking. The next morning we bound down the hallway to our new gifts. My brother and my sister are excited about what the unknown has in store. I'm a bit more reserved. I try to play it off as maturity, but it was all because there was no more unknown. I knew what my gift was. Of course, when the moment came, I played the part of the excited kid getting exactly what he wanted.

I've never really thought about that christmas until yesterday.

Sure, the Colts beat the Bears. Whoopieding. Even when Hestor ran the opening kickoff back, I can honestly say there was never a moment I was worried. Somehow, I just knew that we were going to win. Not because of destiny or anything else, just because I knew we were a better team.

I have to be honest when I say the present opening came for me two weeks ago. When Jackson intercepted that Tom Brady pass, I jumped up and ran around my house screaming like a crazy person. Yesterday, I barely smiled. It was like it was a forgone conclusion.

Don't get me wrong. I've been waiting a looooooong time for the Colts to reach this point. I've been waiting since Colts stood for: Count On us to Lose This Sunday. Back when Dean Biasucci was the kicker, and Bill Brooks caught passes from Jack Trudeau. Yes, I've been through those low times. And it feels good for us to finally be at the pinnacle.

I think, though, the pinnacle is when you know you are the best. It's when you beat the best. Sorry Chicago, but the real super bowl was two weeks ago.

It had better commercials too.

Just a Side Note...

If you have an ipod and itunes, you need to subscribe to "The President's Weekly Radio Address". I know, I know, you don't want to listen to a half-hour long dissertation by our beloved commander-in-chief. Don't worry, this is the minute and a half parody. Make sure you have the title right and DOWNLOAD! It will make you giggle.

And The Battle Rages On...

This past sunday, a group of sixteen brave soldiers trudged onto a battlefied brown with the winter's death. We came from all parts of the valley, with tape and water bottles and cleats. Sixteen men, putting our reputations on the line in a war most of us were not prepared to fight.

It had been awhile since I had last strapped on the boots. The motion of attack had long faded and was but a sweet memory. The emergancy manuvers that had once been instinct had now become something of a chore and took more time.

As the battle lines were drawn, the anticipation grew. Men who had been mortals a mere hour preceding, had now become immortal gods on the eternal scales of a gridiron.

This was serious. This was a war.

With flags.

Okay, so it wasn't the epic event I was hoping for, but it was epic in other ways. Football is unique among most modern popular sports. With baseball, it only takes two to get together with a couple of mitts and make sport of it. With basketball, hockey, and soccer, you can literally practice by yourself. But not football.

Sure, you can toss the pigskin back and forth, but that is nothing like the assault that takes place after the ball has been snapped. Or the feeling of invincibility as you catch the touchdown pass. With football, it takes a concentrated effort of coordination. It isn't something that is just going to spontaneously errupt after a trip to starbucks.

When you are going to engage in this competition of greatness, you make the appointment days, if not weeks, ahead of time, ensuring the proper warriors of kinship are present. And the anticipation builds.

The last time I threw a ball in competition was during football intramurals at Johnson Bible College. It's amazing how quickly the throwing motion comes back. The instinct of linemen breathing down your neck, forcing you to scramble and throw a pass you have no business throwing. Your body cracks as the rust breaks free.

But then, you catch the receiver's eye. You know what he's thinking. He makes a break. You cock your arm and release with the power of a man's arm. And it all comes back. Poetry in motion.

The war was hard fought. And when the final whistle blew, the combatents threw their arms around each other and vowed to meet again in a couple of weeks...

After the soreness wore off.

Stephen Colbert Is A Genius....Seriously...

More Than Heaven...

It's been quite awhile since I've had anything real to blog about. Not that I have anything real to say right now, but I thought it might be nice to actually post words that I've written than ones I've simply copied and pasted into the Html area.

Two weeks ago I started real estate school. It's been a lot of fun learning all the different laws that go along with it. Before I took this class, I thought real estate agents simply printed out a pre-manufactured set of papers and then said, "Sign here and here and here and here..."

Even though I now see all the work it actually takes to make money in the real estate world, I find myself excited at the thought of doing it. For the first time since ministry I think I would actually enjoy getting up in the morning for work. That would be a good feeling.

Back to real estate school for a moment. I want to tell you about my friend Grace. Grace came to this country from South Korea four years ago. She came to study at a small bible college somewhere in Kansas (if I could remember the name of it, I would). She was telling me about her professor who had died on three seperate occasions. The first two times he went to hell but God called him back to earth. The last time he was on his way up to heaven but God told him not to come yet. I type all this nonchalantly for that is the way she explained it to me, as if we all have friends who have died and gone to hell and came back to tell us about it.

She then proceded to let me know that the most important thing we could do is go to heaven. That nothing else on this earth matters but that when we die we go to heaven.

Sadly, I know that she believes this with all her heart.

My good friend Bill and I have had many conversations on this topic. I'm pretty sure he's blogged about it a couple of times, but I'm too lazy to find it and link to it, so you'll just have to do a little homework on your own.

The problem is, while I disagree with Grace in principle, my life agrees with her in practice. I know I get too comfortable in my grace. I'm not sure that I understand fear and trembling anymore. Don't get me wrong, I love grace. Mainly because I need it more than most. I just think I get too used to having it there, knowing that I'll never be good enough, so most often I think, "why even try?"

Of course, I know the answer. I know it's because there is more to life than getting to heaven. I know that there is a journey that we are all on and that we are incomplete without each other. And that our journey is incomplete with out the Guide.

I don't have any eye opening final points. I can't think of a clever way to wrap this up that will make everyone go, "Ohhhh, what a clever way of stating that obvious fact." I just hope when I think of Grace, my soul will desire more than heaven.

NEWS FLASH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CHICAGO (AP) -- Chicago Bears football practice was delayed nearly two
hours today after a player reported finding an unknown white powdery
substance on the practice field. Head coach Lovie Smith immediately
suspended practice while police and and federal investigators were called to
investigate. After a complete analysis, FBI forensic experts determined
that the white substance unknown to the players was the goal line.
Practice resumed after special agents decided the team was unlikely to encounter the substance again....

Janice!!!!!

I'm pretty sure that Janice will be the cause of some future therapy sessions.

Superbowl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Somebody pinch me.


What a game.

Um...Am I Going To Hell?

Okay, before you judge me, let me at least say this: If they didn't want us to watch and enjoy they wouldn't have made it, right?

My Son...

For those of you who don't have myspace, here is a look at the newest addition to our family...Diesel!