Focused Journey

Saying Goodbye

2011-01-29T07:30:00.033-05:00

I have a sad announcement to make today. Okay, it's probably not sad for anyone but me. Now that I think about it, I don't know why I should even feel sad. Maybe sad isn't the right word. Perhaps I'm feeling a little nostalgic. After debating about it for awhile, I've decided to shutter my blog at Focused Journey. I'm not giving up blogging, I'm just moving to a different location and changing the name.
If you care about why I made this decision, please keep on reading. If you just want the location of the new blog, go on and jump to the bottom of this post. If you're already reading this at my new blog (since I'm posting this at both locations) I guess just do whatever you want.

My reasons for the switch.

Economics. Having my own website involved paying not only for the domain name, but also hosting fees. While in the long run it wasn't overly expensive, I still feel the need to eliminate that expense. I am still paying for a domain name, but that is next to nothing.
Features. In playing around with the WordPress blogging features, I discovered things that I could do on WordPress that I really didn't know how to do with my own site. This may seem like nothing, but I enjoy having my blog automatically update both Twitter and Facebook with new posts without me having to do a thing. With Focused Journey, I was able to get half that equation working with posts being pulled into Facebook as a note, but this way works much better.
Reality. Part of the reason I had a full fledged website was because in the back of my mind I thought I would build it up into site with multiple pages and other things. Considering that I can't even define what those other things supposedly were going to be, I've come to realize that all I really cared about was the blog on my site. Writing is becoming more of a hobby and a dedicated blogging website just made more sense.
Name. Retiring the name Focused Journey was the hardest decision. I always liked it and still do, but I began to feel that it had become a misnomer. I recently wrote about a ketchup packet that I found interesting and posted a short story that had no significance whatsoever. For me personally, I had trouble reconciling my occasional random thoughts with the name "Focused." I almost felt guilty for writing something for no other reason than to write when it didn't seem to tie into my journey of faith. My wife argued that everything we go through is part of the journey and she's right, but in the end I still decided to let it fade away.

So there you have it. Life rolls on and at most only 2% of my readers will care about this. Thankfully, 2% of the numbers I pull in winds up rounding to zero.

For those that have followed my blog at Focused Journey let me just say thank you. If you want to continue to stay up to date with me, just point your browser to MatthewWright.me.

(On a complete side note, I'm learning Markdown and wrote this post using it. I probably went overboard, but it was entertaining.)

Out Of Shape

2011-01-27T07:30:00.004-05:00

Yesterday afternoon I took another bold step in my desire to lose weight and get healthy. I exercised. Before you think long runs or an intense spinning class, let me clarify what I did. It was twenty minutes of step aerobics on my Wii. Not intense by any stretch of the imagination. The worse part? My calves were actually sore when I was done. It is a sad state of affairs when twenty minutes of probably the easiest workout there is makes you sore. I've read enough people that claim that exercise makes you feel better. I'm looking forward to the better.

When The Enemy Is A Friend

2011-01-26T07:30:00.002-05:00

I like many people live with an enemy inside my home. Taunting me and laughing at me. It is my bathroom scale and I can't stand it. Rarely does it show what I want it to show. Not once has it shaved off a few pounds to make me feel a little better. Each time I stand on it I'm told in cold hard numbers the truth. It let's me know if my efforts are paying off and when my slacking off is catching up to me. As much as I want to hate it, I have to get it in my head that my scale is just a presenter of the facts. It presents the truth whether I like it or not. When it comes to being healthy, a dose of the truth is always in our best interest. So scale, maybe we're not enemies after all, but it still might take some time before I consider us friends.

Melrouge

2011-01-25T07:30:00.000-05:00

This is totally pointless, but I thought I would try and write an extremely short story on the spur of the moment. Once and awhile I try to keep the creative juices flowing. You can decide for yourself whether or not this story was actually creative.

It's completely irrational. I know it is. It's stupid, childish, and completely foolish.

Yet it stalks me. It is the hunter and I am the prey. Too many shadows have sent me running, but run I must. I promise you that one time it will be in that shadow, and it will kill me.

No, I must remind myself that it is a silly fear. Nothing more. I am safe. It can't harm me.

Unless that's what it wants me to think. To let my guard down. To relax. It's watching me. I can feel it. It knows I refuse to accept its power.

No, no, no! That's the talk of a crazy person and I am not crazy! Really I'm not! At least, I don't think I am.

Clever fiend. I debate and wrestle in my mind and you draw closer. Waiting for the moment to strike. End it! Just release my mind from its tortured dreams.

I will live! I am an idiot. Of course I will live. It can't hurt me. It can't even move. Why do I fear something that cannot even crawl.

Because you have your helpers. A guest in my house. My very own friend. You used him. Unwittingly you used him and you prepared the culmination of your hatred. I didn't expect to see you there. The opening of the door and face to face.

What am I saying? There was never any danger. My house. My castle. My refuge. You were there but I was safe.

I thought I was safe, but you found a way in. I conceded the grocery store to you. Your domain, you win. Then you tracked me to my restaurant. You wouldn't even leave me that would you? Now my own residence? Must I live in fear of my own home?

Stop it. You're sounding crazy!

You want me to open that door again. I got it closed the first time, but I know you are still there. Everything in there can rot with you. I will not open that door again.

I can do this. Just a door. I've opened it a thousand times. There's nothing to fear.

McIntosh. Granny. Fuji. A thousand names, one purpose, my demise. Do it already! End this game!

I will open the door. My fridge, nothing more. All will be fine.

Do We Really Need This

2011-01-24T07:30:00.002-05:00

I was watching the Packers Bears game yesterday when I observed a frightening thing. During a break, there was a commercial advertising an upcoming commercial. I know that Super Bowl commercials are a big thing, but does a company really need to advertise about their advertisement? Maybe it's just me, but that is one of the stupidest things that I've seen on television for awhile.

Sunday Reflection 1

2011-01-23T07:30:00.000-05:00

A Sunday morning and a good time to reflect on God's Word.

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. (NIV, 2010)

Suck a Toe

2011-01-22T17:59:00.000-05:00

As a completely random Saturday post. I looked over at my 3 year son who was sitting on the couch a moment ago. He pulled his foot up and stuck his toe right in his mouth. He smiled and then smacked his hand over his mouth. I asked him what he was doing but never really got an answer. I have absolutely no idea what he was doing or thinking. Nothing quite like being three.

Snow Day

2011-01-21T07:30:00.002-05:00

As I was sitting with my wife last night, our local tv network began to run some school delays and cancellations for this morning. With at least a couple inches on my porch and more falling as I went to bed, it's understandable. The closed one was my old high school. Without fail, if there is bad weather, they are among the first to call off. Considering some of the roads the buses have to take makes it clear why.

I remember what it felt like. There's something wonderful about having to go somewhere that you really don't want to and then discovering that you don't have to go. Even better when you find out the night before. I hope my students that have the day off can enjoy it. As for me, I have some work to do.

The Ketchup Packet of the Future

2011-01-20T10:18:00.000-05:00

I appreciate good design. For me, good design is both visually appealing and very practical. This is what I attempt to accomplish with anything I create for my youth ministry. I even see it reflected in my website. There was a time when the design of my site, even though it's template based, was a little overwhelming. Slowly but surely I have searched and found themes that reflect a clean simple design. Much easier to read and I think more visually appealing.

Today I ran into a new design that I think was well executed. I had a coupon for a free Spicy Chicken Biscuit at Chick-fil-a and since I feel guilty about not buying something, I ordered some of their hash browns to go with it. When I'm in the car, I normally don't get ketchup for the hash browns due to the inconvenience. Today though, I knew I was going to be parked in a moment and I thought I'd go for it. When I opened my bag, I discovered a complete redesign of the traditional ketchup packet. It was similar to a McDonald's dipping sauce container that you get with Chicken McNuggets. The ketchup packet wasn't quite as deep and is designed to be in the shape of a ketchup bottle.

I'm not arguing that a packet of ketchup was visually appealing, but the design was incredibly practical. First, it contains more ketchup than regular packets. Second, the "lid" is designed to tear off so you can squeeze the ketchup out. Finally, the other end is designed so you can peel off the cover completely. Again, think McDonald's nugget sauces.

I was trying to move all my hash browns to one side of the container so I would have some place to put the ketchup when I realized this third point. I removed the cover and had a stable container of ketchup to dip my hash browns in. I was thoroughly impressed with the design.

I have no idea if these have been on the market for awhile or not, but I applaud the team of designers that came up with it.

On a side note, isn't it strange to think that there is a group of people sitting around thinking about how to build a better ketchup packet?

He Wasn't Kidding

2011-01-19T07:31:00.000-05:00

As I continue on my road to recovery from pneumonia, I am consistently finding out that my doctor wasn't kidding when he said that I would get tired from time to time. I can go the whole day feeling great, then suddenly I get extremely tired. It's been my intent to try to take a nap the past couple of days to help prevent it, but life and work haven't cooperated.

Last night we had our first youth service of the new year. Unfortunately, it fell right during the hours where I seem to get the most tired. While a couple of my youth led worship, I sat in a chair and tried not to fall asleep. They were doing a fine job, but I really thought I was going to go to sleep. After worship, we sat in a circle so I could speak sitting down. From past experience, I know people have fallen asleep while I preached. It's the nature of public speaking. This however was the first time I thought I might fall asleep during my own message. Thankfully I didn't. It would have made for a good story down the road, but I'm glad I was able to stay awake for it. I'm looking forward to this last phase of the sickness to pass.

In a related note, it was great just to be with the students of Pursuit Youth Ministries again. I for one have missed being with them. They really are an amazing group.

My Office

2011-01-18T16:40:00.000-05:00

I recently read a brief blog post about attempting to write on your blog every day for the entire year of 2011. Thankfully, being sick the first couple weeks of the year ended my opportunity to accomplish this even before I considered attempting. Even though, I thought it would be a nice challenge to post more often.

So with all that said, I present today's post which is a little glimpse into my home office. Yes, the picture attached is my office at home. With a small apartment and two kids, my office amounts to an ironing board and folding chair set up in front of the closet in my bedroom. Often I have my scanner sitting on the ironing board too. It certainly doesn't win any awards for aesthetics, but it's functional and all folds away when I'm done.

Anyone else have an office in a small space?

Writing Just To Write

2011-01-17T23:08:00.000-05:00

When you are growing up, there are a lot of things that you dream of becoming. I know some of the traditional ones for boys are firefighters and astronauts. I remember wanting to to be an author. I wanted to write and have a book published. Sitting here years later, I doubt that book will over come to be. I've heard the saying, "everyone has a book in them," but actually writing that book is rather difficult.

There's still a part of me that enjoys the idea of writing a book, but nothing has ever clicked within me strong enough to actually attempt it. That, and once you do attempt it, you open yourself up to discover just how poor of a writer you actually are. Currently I can dream that I'm a good writer. Sometimes it's better to dream to discover reality.

Maybe someday I'll have something click and I'll go for it. Until then, I shall write here and imagine that the few people that read it are actually thousands.

Big and Small

2011-01-16T23:03:00.001-05:00

Heard a great word at church today. It basically was this.

What we think is big, God often looks at and says it's small. What we think is small, God often looks at and says it's big.

I think of the trials and tribulations we face. We think they are so large as to be completely unconquerable, yet God must laugh because in reality they are so small to Him. With words alone God creates all that is seen; surely the large problems of life can be handled by the all powerful Lord. They are easy. They are small.

In the same vein I think of the things we consider small and unimportant. We allow small sins to go unchecked in our lives because we wrongly compare them to "big" sins. We think they are tiny and we can get by with them in our lives. Yet God looks at these things that we consider inconsequential, and He sees a big problem. He sees something that needs to be dealt with and corrected.

Perhaps we need to readjust our vision to see things the way God sees them. No problem is too great for God to handle, and no sin is too small for God to ignore.

How To Lose Two Weeks

2011-01-15T21:44:00.000-05:00

I have to laugh when I look at my last post. In it I discussed all the things that I was going to miss by not going out and partying for New Year's Eve. I especially enjoy the part about my head in the toilet. Well, New Year's Eve came and went with no problems.

On New Years day my family kept with tradition and headed out to our local Dairy Queen that offers their entire menu at half price. It's a crazy mass of humanity and I question why we do it, but we do.

I didn't feel right the whole day, but I chalked it up to the hectic weeks that had proceeded it and the lingering cough and cold I couldn't seem to shake. The day slowly want down hill from there. I came home and slept. I remember finishing my Blizzard since it was half priced. Then, my wife felt my forehead. A few moments later the thermometer confirmed that I was running a decent fever. At that moment I still thought I would be fine in the morning and go to church. My wife knew better.

The next days are vague memories of lying on my couch, having my head in the toilet, and generally feeling rotten. A little Tylenol would bring the fever down and I would try to eat something, and a couple of hours later the fever would return. It wasn't until Wednesday that I went to the doctor and found out that I was no longer fighting the flu, but I was now fighting pneumonia. I felt dead.

I struggled with the antibiotic and overall tiredness. Another Sunday came and went with me on the couch. Then thankfully, it seemed to break. It took a week and a half, but suddenly I felt like I was going to live again. The random times of tiredness remain which I've been told is common with pneumonia, but overall I feel good again. I'm looking forward to being in church in the morning.

So, two weeks into the new year and I've spent that vast majority of it either lying on my couch or sitting in my chair. I'm looking forward to getting out and living again.

What I'll Miss Tonight

2010-12-31T23:00:00.000-05:00

As the date suggests, it is New Year's Eve. I guess you could say I'm one of those losers that is sitting at home with his wife while my kids sleep in their beds. I suppose I'm really missing out on what the world has to offer.

I could be out drinking until I'm so drunk that I risk lives while driving home.

I could be waking up in the morning with someone that I don't even remember meeting.

I could be putting my marriage and family at risk.

I could be spending tomorrow morning with a splitting headache and my head in the toilet.

Or, I could just continue my course. I will enjoy knowing that my children are both safely asleep in in their rooms. I will look over at my wife knowing that there will be nothing done tonight to embarrass either one of us. I will happily wake up in the morning still getting over my cold yes, but headache free and sober.

Personally, I will gladly wear the title loser.

Happy New Year

Trust His Leading

2010-12-02T09:44:00.000-05:00

I'm suppose to be in Kenya right now. That's where almost my entire team is right now. A year later and I still call them my team. Okay, maybe I should change my first statement. I really wanted to be in Kenya right now, yet looking at the trip months ago it just wasn't feasible. Even when my friend informed me that they had a plane ticket that I could possibly use I still knew it wasn't for me this year.

It's only a few days since they left and it's hard on me. I've seen the pictures they're posting online and I feel that longing in my heart to be there. Out of their kindness, my team even video called me the other day so I could look at each one of them as they told me that they had seen lions, something we never saw last year. I even got a Facebook message from one of the pastors at the church in Eldoret saying that he missed me being there.

It rips at my soul and brings questions. Why didn't I go? Why didn't I feel that okay from my Father to journey halfway around the world again? I've wrestled with this in my mind.

Without being able to explain in depth, I think I discovered the reason why. If you're looking for profundity you might as well stop reading here because the answer I've discovered is painfully simple. I feel that God prevented from going to Kenya because I was needed here. There's been a couple of seemingly small things that have happened over the past few days that would have never have happened if I was out of the country. Things that only happened because I was here. Small things, yet as I view them I realize that they might have consequences that stretch into eternity.

Does God love the youth of Kenya that I had an opportunity to minister too? Absolutely and without a doubt. At the same time, God also cares about the hurting teens right here at home. God had others geared up to cross the world and minister there, but he already had me right where I needed to be to minister here.

The issue boils down to one of trust. Do I trust God enough to allow Him to be in control? Do I trust Him enough that when he says "no" to an amazing opportunity that I can rest assured that He has good reasons for it? Do I trust that God actually knows better? Finally, when all is said and done, am I willing to allow my plans and desires to be prevented by God on behalf of His greater plan?

May we all continue to learn to trust His leading for it always leads us exactly where we need to be.

The Letter

2010-11-04T08:01:00.000-05:00

In my continuing effort to write short stories, I present "The Letter." As with most of my stories it was written to illustrate a point and spark a discussion in my youth ministry. I think that it stands well on it's own so I decided to go ahead and post it.

Bill woke to the lovely strains of profanities being hurled at him. He lifted his head slightly off the pavement. Apparently he was to live yet another day. The trash collectors continued cursing at him to get out of the way. Bill scratched himself and climbed slowly out of his box. He smiled a dopey grin. Sometimes the grin calmed people down. Today the insults and profanity simply increased. Eh, what did it matter. Better to be cursed than run over.

Reaching back into his box, he grabbed an old army surplus bag that contained all his belongings. A few bottles worth a couple pennies, a perfectly good shoe that someone and left beside the road, a few shirts he had found in a dumpster that he was holding to for winter, and the letter. Far and above the letter was his most prized possession. It was stained and wrinkled, yet he valued it far above everything he had. He reached quickly into the bag and assured himself that it was there and with the horn of a garbage truck blaring in his ears, he left the alley headed for the bathroom.

It was ten blocks of walking before he reached the loading dock of Mantenilli’s Restaurant. He was blessed. Just over a year ago he had been sleeping right here in this alley. Some workers had come out arguing who was going to dig though the dumpsters to find a ring that a wealthy diner had apparently lost the night before. It was a dumpster full of discarded pasta and sauces. A real mess that neither had wanted to dig into. Since he hadn’t anything better to do and since he was already planning on visiting that dumpster for breakfast, Bill had spoke up and volunteered. Taking the letter out of his bag and tucking it in his pocket for safe keeping, he had dove in. Perhaps it was a miracle or maybe just luck, but he had found the ring.

Out of pity and a thankfulness that they did’t have to do the the digging, they let him clean up a little in the tiny worker’s bathroom right by the loading dock entrance. Thus began a ritual. That back loading door was always open for him to slip in and relieve himself in the morning. He had no idea that the workers only did it so they could hear their boss gripe and complain about why the bathroom always smelled so bad when he came in around lunch and then chuckle as the newest hire was sent in to clean them yet again. Even if he had known he wouldn’t have cared.

He slipped in and out as quick as he could. People changed in an instant so it was always best to keep a low profile. With the pressure relieved, there was nothing to do now but wait. The downtown delicatessens and bake shops were in the rush of breakfast. People were paying outlandish prices for a cup of coffee and danish that weren’t even that good. Involuntarily Bill licked his lips. A coffee, even bad, would hit the spot. Maybe luck would shine upon him. Maybe he would find a cup of coffee in the trash that was still warm. A coffee and the remains of someone’s sandwich. His stomach growled. There was at least another hour before the trash would begin to be taken to the dumpster. He transferred the letter to his shirt pocket, and turned and headed towards the park.

The park was a peaceful place to wait. Since it was public space he had every right to be there. As long as he kept his head down the cops would leave him alone. The morning joggers, as always, strangely altered their paths in different directions as he approached. Bill chuckled. It was always done so deliberately, like they suddenly realized they had somewhere else they wanted to jog. If one kept an eye on them you would see them eventually make their way back to the same path they had just left. All done to avoid passing Bill. What did it matter, he had more important things to attend to.

He rounded the curve and spotted his favorite bench, the one that was first to be enveloped in the warmth of the sun. After the long night on cold ground the warmth of the sun always did wonders for him. A businessman that he had never seen before was there. If only all of life’s problems were so easy. Bill sauntered up and plunked down right next to him. Within nine seconds the man had folded his paper and left. Bill congratulated himself on his new personal record, swung his feet up onto the bench, and sat there to enjoy the sun.

As he did every day, Bill pulled out his most prized possession: the letter. He turned the envelope over and over in his hands before he pulled out the folded sheet of paper. It was dirty and stained, but it was still here. He had received it seven winters ago. That was back when he was still staying at the shelter. Back before funding had run out and it had closed. He had been checking in to get a bed when one of the social workers had pulled him aside. A sealed letter had arrived with his name on it. She had asked him if he knew the sender of the letter, a one William Parks according to the return address. When Bill realized that it was his uncle, his own mother’s brother, the very man that he had been named after, he had gotten all teary eyed. The social worker had even smiled as she handed over the envelope. One like Bill never got mail. The fact that it had found him was a mini miracle.

That night, in almost holy reverence, Bill had sat on an old cot and slowly opened the letter. He felt a warmth in his heart that had been cold for so long. Inside the envelope he found one sheet of paper. It had been the most beautiful piece of paper he had ever seen. There was a picture of what appeared to be two lions standing on either side of a shield at the top. It was there in brilliant red. It was almost as if intricate red metal had been formed into a picture and then woven into the paper itself.

At the bottom was an intricate pattern that stretched from the left side of the page to to the right. In between top and bottom was line after line of flowing words. The person who had sent the letter hadn’t typed it out, but had written it by hand with a pen. Right there on a cot surrounded by other homeless people, Bill had wept and wept. That one of his family had taken the time to send him a handwritten letter had touched something deep inside of him. Without even realizing it in that moment, the letter became deeply important to him. While other belongings came and went, he would protect this symbol of love.

Bill awoke with a start. The warm sun and the pleasant memories had lulled him back to sleep right there in the park. A glance at the sky told him that he was behind schedule. He folded the letter as quick as he could and placed it back in the envelope and then placed it all deep into his bag. He had to hurry. Being late meant that someone else might get all the good food. Being late sometimes meant you didn’t get any food. But far worse, it meant risking having a run in with one of the families without having other people there to protect you. The thought alone made Bill pick up his pace. The families were a blight on otherwise well meaning homeless like himself. Nothing better than gangs in his opinion.

He had once heard another man share that they had started as group of young homeless people looking out for each other. At some point they realized that they had power over the other homeless by the sheer fact that they had numbers. Suddenly it became much easier for them to take food away from others than to look for it themselves. At some point they turned ruthless. Violence was no longer just a possibility, it was the norm.

A days work of scrounging for food could become pointless if you ran into a family. Keep your head down. Don’t look any of them in the eye. Never resist. Follow the simple rules and you might just make it out alive. Follow the simple rules and you might just pay a price anyway. The Pete that had lived on Third Ave. resisted once. He had exchanged a cold street for a cold morgue. A few questions and no arrests later the cops had closed the case. Just another homeless death. Bill shuddered and again quickened his pace. While most of the people he knew kept to themselves, there was at least a mutual agreement to scavenge the best dumpsters together for protection. He was already worried that he had missed that opportunity.

He slowed and glanced around the corner of the alley between Miller St. and Pleasantview Rd. Empty. He definitely was late, but he was also hungry. Cautiously, he slid down the alley and lifted the dumpster lid. It had clearly been picked over a little, but down on the very bottom was almost three quarters of a sandwich. Almost impossible to believe that it had been missed, but there it was. Bill stretched his arm as far as he could but it was no use. The sandwich was out of reach. He’d have to jump in.

Carefully he checked his letter and then set the bag next to the dumpster. He climbed in, sat down, and picked up the sandwich. It was some kind of fancy bread with a whole egg and bacon on it. He lifted the top and sighed when he saw melted cheese. This was going to be the best breakfast he had eaten in weeks. The food overcame any caution he had and he slowly took a bite and chewed. For a brief moment the world faded away. He took another bite, and then another. How on earth had this sandwich been missed? It didn’t make any sense.

Revelation hit him at the same time he heard them. A family. Sometimes he was so stupid. For a sandwich like that to be left meant the other scroungers had left quicker than they wanted too. They had left because a family was working the area and here he was sitting in the the very dumpster they were sure to be looking in. He heard the footsteps and a barking laugh as a joke was told and responded to. And then Bill heard nothing. He tried not to breathe.

Dazed, Bill found himself laying on his back staring at the sky and a crowd of sneering faces. His mind tried to focus. It had happened so fast. Hands had grabbed him pulling him up and out of the dumpster and slamming him onto the ground. The back of his head burned with pain. Through tear filled eyes
Bill saw a knife. He tried to whisper “why?” The word never made it into to the air as the knife found its mark.

Bill died with barely a sound. Just a reminder to all the other homeless who really controlled the streets. Nothing more than a warning to others.

Nine blocks and seven hours later, Bill’s body lay in a city morgue. His bag that had been rifled through and then discarded next to his corpse was with him.

Two detectives assigned little more than a quick process sorted his belongings. The only interesting piece was a letter on ornate stationary that by it’s date was over seven years old.

It read:

Dear Billy,

I hope this letter finds you. I have searched for you over these many years with no avail.

Let me be blunt. My health is failing, I fear I don’t have long on this earth. Yet I promised your parent’s before they died that I would do everything I could to find you. This is probably my last attempt. I’m am writing this letter to you and mailing it to every homeless shelter that I can track down. I pray that perchance you and one of the letters will come across each other.

We know things didn’t work out how you had planned, but that shouldn’t have kept you from coming home. You didn’t have to head to the streets. We were here and we were ready to welcome you back. Sadly, it appears that will never happen.

Please read this next part carefully. Your parent’s upon their death left everything they owned to you. It is small fortune. I have watched over it and grown it even more. Now as I approach my death and with no children of my own, I too am leaving everything I own to you. All you have to is come and claim it. This stationary is from my lawyer. Call the number printed at the bottom of the page and he will take care of everything.

There is so much waiting for you if you want it.

With love,
Your Uncle Will

Detective John Marten shook his head. He thought over the various run ins he had had with Bill over the course of the years. Bill had been a fixture in this area back when John was still a cop walking the beat. Once or twice he had jailed him for vagrancy. Countless times he had told him he wasn’t allowed to beg for money outside of various stores. And now tragically in light of the letter, he thought about that one day years ago when he had ordered Bill off a newly planted area of grass in the park. Pointing to a sign that had clearly read “Keep of the Grass”, Detective Marten had sarcastically asked, “Can’t you read the sign Bill?” To which Bill had shamefaced replied, “No, I can’t read.”

The Power of Parable

2010-10-14T10:46:00.000-05:00

"It was an out of place blue door among the ruins of a forgotten world. Proudly it had been built. With cheers it had been painted. In reverence it had been passed. By shouts it had been defended. In screams it had been lost. With cries it was remembered until it was remembered no more. Behind its timbers hid both the foundation of a kingdom and of that kingdom's demise, and if time would allow, the rise of that kingdom once again."

A blue door, an ancient story, and a mystery. With a few words we find ourselves being pulled into a story.

After a crazy week of many messages, I found myself at a lost for my Tuesday night youth service. We've been working straight through the book of Ephesians and the next couple of verses stumped me on how to present them. I understood them, but I just wasn't sure how I could get it across to my students.

At some point in the preparation process I realized that I could change the imagery to something completely different and yet it would most likely be more understandable. Within moments a story began formulating around the that image in my mind and it was off to the races. I was under a time crunch, but I wrote, edited, and wrote some more. When it was done, I found myself with two verses to read, a story to share, and hopefully some discussion to follow.

I was actually substitute teaching as I wrote and the one class pestered me to read it even though it was half finished. It's amazing what power there is in a story. That class sat in total silence as I read a story. Even better there was that "arghh" moment when I got to the halfway point and had to stop. Later that night as I shared the finished version with my youth ministry the effect was the same. Attentive listening. The story brought them in and afterward we were able to look at the verses from a different perspective.

Telling a parable does have risks. Sometimes I hide deep spiritual truths within the confines of the words and other times a certain element was written for no other reason than it was written. The lead character putting on a red scarf could symbolize the shed blood of Christ, or it could have been cold when I was writing and that influenced where the story went. There is always that risk that the listener won't understand to what the story is referring or perhaps worse, add something that wasn't there at all. Yet, the power of a story to draw people's attention is worth the risk.

In sharing a story that I write I always make sure that there is time to discuss the story in light of Scripture. I can't just assume that my message will come across clear. The story captures the attention, but often there still needs to be a time of unpacking it a little for the hearers. Also, I'm not even opposed to discussing where the story doesn't adequately capture what the Bible is teaching. God's Word is the end result, the story just a tool to help us get there.

So where does the story of the door of blue lead? I have no idea, but it's a story I would love to hear.

Diagramming

2010-10-07T09:50:00.000-05:00

I did something crazy and probably extremely boring in my youth service this past Tuesday. I took a large chunk of my teaching time and showed my students how to make a rough diagram of a sentence. Now I know that there is an actual method for diagramming a sentence which is fairly in depth, but I ran more with the idea of breaking the sentence into basic portions of thought that you write on following lines of the paper. A thought that clarifies or answers a question from the previous thought is placed underneath that thought.

I had a lot of questioning stares of "why are we doing this?" I questioned it myself until we started working through our passage of Scripture. The two verses we had were full of prepositional phrases and it was so easy to become lost in them. Even in reading the verse aloud didn't make much sense. However, once we diagrammed it together, it became much easier to see the the main thought of the passage and even how all the extra phrases added more clarity to it.

It was one of those lightbulb moments for several of the students. I saw it on several faces and so did my wife. With a little effort, what once seemed complicated became easier to grasp. I even had one of them tell me the next night that they didn't understand why I was teaching what seemed to be nothing more than an English lesson, that was at least, until we got to the end. It clicked for them. I even had another student want me to assign a passage of Scripture for them to attempt to diagram for next week.

As a pastor, one of my main roles is to study the Word and then share that truth. Just as vital though, I must strive to teach others how to study the Bible for themselves. Hopefully a small part of this was accomplished.

Things I'll Miss

2010-10-06T09:24:00.000-05:00

In a little over a month my team is heading back to Kenya. I know it sounds a little presumptuous to call them my team when I'm not going with them, but I worked side by side with these people last year and somewhere in my soul I still consider myself a part. I've had the opportunity to speak with a few of them in the past couple of weeks and it really stirs me up. I fully understand and accept that this isn't a time for me to go, but that doesn't stop me from thinking about it. In honor of that, I feel compelled to compile a short list of things that I'll miss by not going to Kenya. Some are poignant and others pointless and I'll leave you to distinguish between the two.

I'm going to miss going to dinner late at night in Eldoret, Kenya. Not just dinner at any old place though. I'm going to miss going to an Indian restaurant while staying in Kenya. And not just any Indian restaurant, but one that served up Italian style pizza done the American way. And if that wasn't enough, I'm going to miss being able to choose Chinese chicken as our pizza topping. To put it all into perspective and in one long sentence. I'm going to miss going to Kenya and having dinner in an Indian restaurant that served Italian pizza done the American way with Chinese chicken on top. I love the craziness of it all.

If the opportunity arises my team, eat a slice for me.

The Daisy Chain 2

2010-10-04T20:05:00.000-05:00

If this appears in Facebook and it's not just in my notes section, then technology is really crazy,

The Daisy Chain

2010-10-03T06:53:00.000-05:00

This is a post to see if this crazy daisy chain I've set up will work. Currently I have my blog at www.focusedjourney.com. I have it set to automatically sync with a Blogger account of the same name. I'm a sucker for backups. Now, I have my Tumblr page pulling in the info from the Blogger RSS feed. I think it's possible to set up Tumblr to automatically update Twitter. Then, I have Twitter update Facebook. It's more of a test of whether or not it can be done and not something I'm sure I intend to keep.

How Did You Get Here

2010-09-30T06:55:00.000-05:00

I was out of town the past couple of days and I had to miss my youth service. As I've done in the past, I asked one of my youth that is considering heading to Bible college to take a shot at filling in for me. He spoke on 2 Timothy 4:7 which reads, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” He ended his message by telling this story.

Imagine you are at the marriage supper of the Lamb with all the saints of God. Across from you is a girl that appears about five years old. People are talking and laughing and just enjoying themselves. As the dinner progresses, you and the girl begin talking. You ask her how she came to be here. She opens up and begins her story.

"I lived in Rome not long after the time of Christ. My parents became believers in Jesus and so did my brother and I. One day, people began treating us different. It was as if they hated us. I wasn't sure why, but my dad simply told us it was because of Christ. Then one day, they came and took my dad away. We waited, but he never came back. My mom cried a lot, but she always said that one day we would all be together again because of Jesus. It wasn't that long and they came and took my mother away. I remember trying to run after her and some soldier hit me. I woke up later and she was gone. She never came back. The very next day they came and took my brother and myself. They led us to a large coliseum and walked us out to the middle. I remember the crowds yelling, cursing, and laughing at us. We were given a choice. Refuse Christ and we would be allowed to walk away. Otherwise we would face the consequences." She looks over at you from across the table. "I couldn't refuse Jesus. I wouldn't. So we were left out there in the middle. I was holding my brothers hand as tight as I could. Across the coliseum we watched the doors open and the lions came." She brings her story to a close. "It's pretty clear how that part of my story ends. Worth it though because I'm here." She then smiles at you. "Enough about me, how did you make it here?"

In that moment, in an odd way, your stomach drops. Your life flashes before your eyes. You lived in America, one of the most powerful and prosperous nations the world has ever known. You had food, shelter, technology, wealth, toys, and almost anything you could imagine. Not only did you learn about Jesus in a nice air conditioned church, but you even had the benefit of being in a children's ministry and then a youth group. You had access to the Bible at home, on the Internet, and on your phone anytime you wanted it. You faced minimal opposition to your faith. Yet, with all those benefits you barely served the Lord. You did little to share his truth. You loved him, but found it hard to really serve him. The Word flashes through your head that you made it, but as one escaping through the fire.

For clarification, I wasn't there and the story here is written second hand from what my wife shared with me. I'm sure I modified and embellished it a little, but I think I captured the story as I understood it. I don't know if it's original or if he found it somewhere, but I really like it. It's a gut check on how we are living our lives.

Resist the Doughnut

2010-09-23T08:04:00.000-05:00

I have decided to coin a phrase of which I'm sure will be used to teach, edify, and encourage long after my time on earth is through. It basically states this.

Resisting the doughnut is harder when you're standing in the doughnut shop.

I make no claims of originality as this thought surely as been echoed somewhere in my life, but it's still a good thought for us to ponder. As Christians, we are called to resist temptation. We are even told in the Bible that every temptation can be overcome. No temptation is all powerful. Yet, sometimes popular opinion leads us to believe that some temptations are irresistible. That we are in fact powerless to resist them.

In many instances, I think the problem lies in the fact that we start resisting the temptation far too late. Jump back to doughnut shop as an illustration. If we're trying to be healthy and avoid foods like doughnuts, it's foolish to place ourselves in a doughnut shop. We can deceive ourselves all we want with thoughts of "I'm just looking" or "I simply like the smell", but you know as well as I do that we're going to wind up walking out with doughnuts. The resisting must begin before you are ever near that shop.

Personally, as I am on a diet, a doughnut may sound good, but when I keep myself far away from doughnut shops I find it a lot easier to resist them. I make the conscience decision not only to resist the doughnut, but I also keep myself away from places where it would be so easy to buy one.

Now I obviously don't think doughnuts are sinful, but I know you can make the cognitive leap to apply what I'm writing about. I think the mature action of believers is not only to resist temptation, but to also be smart enough to avoid places and situations where the threshold for giving into temptation is greatly lowered. Everyone is tempted by different things, and with that in mind, everyone needs to figure out what boundaries can be set up to assist in them in their fight.

There will always be unexpected situations of temptation that we will have to fight, but many could be much more easily overcome just by prayerfully examining and planning ahead.

The Good Samaritan

2010-09-15T21:54:00.000-05:00

Sadly, there are days when my actions fall in line with the Levite and Priest. I'm more concerned with my tasks and duties to bother myself to stop and assist another.

Thankfully, there are days when my actions fall in line with the Samaritan. I stop, I care, I act, I sacrifice, and I give.

Then, there are days where I feel more like the man that has been robbed, beaten up, and left for dead.

I'm trying to live out the second one, but sometimes it sure feels more like the third.

The Power of Scent

2010-09-08T09:11:00.000-05:00

Lately, every time I take a shower I find my mind wandering back to my time in Kenya. It happened enough times that I consciously took note of it. I wondered why for awhile, and then it slowly dawned on me that the body wash I was using was the one that I took with me on that trip. In an effort to clean out a cupboard, I've been using up old shower gels. Normally I just use a bar of soap, but bottles are handy for traveling. At least they're handy until they get too low to last for an entire trip.

It really amazes me how a scent can bring back vivid memories. The second I open the bottle my mind is flooded with scenes from Eldoret and Nairobi. Suddenly I can taste the food again and see the incredible night skies. I remember how driving down the road is one long game of chicken and being served a cup of tea after I finished preaching. For a brief moment I relive sleeping tangled up in mosquito nets, walking through the crowds at the street bash, and even being interviewed on radio.

All this from a simple scent. The only hard part about this is that I don't like the scent of the body wash. It was a bottle that I got free and since it was full I took it on the trip. So my mornings are a mix up between a smell I don't particularly like and the amazing memories it invokes.

Coffee and Humanity

2010-08-26T07:42:00.000-05:00

After a very long summer of running everywhere, I finally have been able to have coffee Thursday. Coffee Thursday is when I take the morning to work in a coffee shop. It's a weekly tradition that summer schedule greatly hindered.

When I pastored a very small church several years ago, my office was block walled with two windows that were frosted so you couldn't see in (or out). It was like being in prison every day. I began calling it my sensory deprivation chamber. Once you walked in all contact with reality ceased to exist and creativity began to asphyxiate. It was a depressing place. In my time there, I probably only wrote a few messages in that office. Most were written at home with a window (clear) that gave me a view of the world outside. Prayer and planing were better accomplished by driving and finding a quiet spot by the lake.

That's why I love working in the coffee shop. There's people walking in and out. You see the gamut of emotions from happiness to sadness. You hear snippets of conversation that make you laugh and others that make you shake your head. I know everyone is different, but for me it sparks my creativity. Plus, having a nice dark roast of coffee doesn't hurt either.

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A C.S. Lewis Quote

2010-08-18T09:48:00.000-05:00

Preparing a lesson this morning and came across this thought by C.S. Lewis in his work Mere Christianity. It's worth pondering for a few minutes.

When you come to knowing God, the initiative lies on His side. If He does not show Himself, nothing you can do will enable you to find Him. And, in fact, He shows much more of Himself to some people than to others-not because He has favourites, but because it is impossible for Him to show Himself to a man whose whole mind and character are in the wrong condition. Just as sunlight, though it has no favourites, cannot be reflected in a dusty mirror as clearly as a clean one.

The Phone

2010-07-21T10:21:00.000-05:00

Back in March the phones at the church got wiped out from lightning. For a variety of factors out of our control, it took about four months to get the phones working again. Just last week they were finally up and working again. Within the first few hours of them being repaired I realized how much I enjoyed them being out. Already the telemarketer calls have started. Various companies calling and telling me how they can save me so much time in ministry preparation by purchasing and using their products.

I would just like to state that I normally have enough time for ministry preparation, provided I don't have to waste too much time trying to extract myself from telemarketer calls.

I sort of miss the phones being knocked out.

(For full disclosure, I have nothing against Christian businesses producing materials for church use. I just prefer to go looking for them when I actually need them)

I Love Mommy

2010-07-19T09:57:00.000-05:00

My little two year old boy loves his mommy. He unashamedly loves her. As for me, the love is conditional. If he's in a good mood I might get an "I love you." But let that mood turn bad through tiredness or a host of other factors and he quickly becomes a lover of mommy only. This past Sunday he was riding with me to get our weekly Taco Bell lunch. He loves the ride as he gets to point out where all the fast food restaurants are located. That's scary in and of itself but thats not the focus of this post. As we were riding, I thought I'd test him.

"Hey little guy, do you love daddy?"

With that sweet smile he replied, "yeah, I love mommy."

"No, I asked if you love daddy?"

"Yeah, I love mommy."

This went on for several moments until I realized that I wasn't going to get a response concerning his love for me. Later that afternoon as I lay on the couch, I thought I'd try again.

"Do you love daddy?"

"I love mommy."

Again after several attempts I quit my pointless endeavor. However, before he walked away I had him look me in the eye for one moment and I told him something very simple. I told him I would love him even if he never loved me. Now granted, I comprehend that my little two year old doesn't have a full understanding of love. I even know that he does love me even though he swears undying allegiance to his mommy. Yet, I wanted him to know that my love would always be there whether his love was or not. Perhaps I said it more for myself as I look toward the future.

As I lay there watching him play I was quickly reminded of another father that chose to love even though his children refused to love him back. I was reminded that the Father loved us enough to allow his son to die in our place, even while we were living in open rebellion and hatred against Him. He loves for God is love. I can only speak for myself, but I'm grateful that the Father chose to continue to love me even through the times of my life where I didn't have love for Him. Only by His love was I brought back to a place of loving Him and experiencing His incredible love.

Health Update July 10, 2010

2010-07-10T10:16:00.000-05:00

Back from vacation and I was thrown right into preaching last Sunday (I did volunteer before I left), running a youth group overnighter, and then finalizing the preparation for a wedding ceremony that I'm conducting in a few hours. Shoulder is still bothering me and I've just been swamped. Now that I have all the excuses firmly in place, it's time to reveal my fabulous weight gain. I'm up 4.6 pounds which officially puts me back at 244.4. Not proud of that but it is what it is. I have this wedding reception to make it through then my schedule is fairly clear so I should be able to buckle down and get working on this healthy change again.

Shoulder Failure

2010-06-21T20:10:00.000-05:00

In my quest to get healthy, I've started to do something once unthinkable. At least in my mind. I was getting up early and heading out to ride my bike. I got two days in then had to take a couple days off because my wife was away. No problem. I was planning on getting back on my bike starting this morning. Now the however.

However, on Saturday I took my youth group tubing at the lake. It was a great day, until my last run. Our driver tried to kill me. I love him but I promise it's true. The final turn had us whipping across the water, and then the tube flipped. Found myself skipping across the water. No big deal, but by Sunday morning I struggled to lift my left arm. Spent all day Sunday in considerable pain. Today has been painful, but thankfully I'm regaining mobility.

So anyway, my great plans to continue my bike quest has been temporarily placed on hold until my arm is healed enough to get back out there.

Health Update June 19, 2010

2010-06-19T09:31:00.000-05:00

Just a quick update as I run out the door. I lost two pounds this past week. Broke back under 240.

It's both a sad and a happy day. Sad that I allowed myself to climb all the way back up to where I am. Happy that I'm at least headd back in the right direction again. Well, that's about it for right now.

Health Update June 12, 2010

2010-06-12T19:42:00.000-05:00

Okay, I've promised myself that I would once again take up the weekly accountability of posting my weight on my blog. Just so we're all clear, I started using sparkpeople.com about three weeks ago. My starting weight on this journey was 247 pounds.

The scale graphic to the right shows my current weight. Additionally, it also shows whether that is a loss or a gain from the previous week. Green means I lost and red means I gained. So without further ado, this past week I lost 2.2 pounds and now I'm officially at 241.8 pounds. That was as of Friday morning. Kelly and I went away overnight and I wasn't great. I have six days to work like crazy to negate that bad two days.

The Future

2010-06-10T08:28:00.000-05:00

What does the future hold? I have absolutely no clue. I don't know what the next minute will hold let alone what tomorrow may hold. That is the amazing thing about following Christ. Tomorrow is a mystery to me, but not to my savior. There's amazing peace in that. I will plan for the future the best that I can, but ultimately I place all my plans into His hands.

I Got Another Blogging Gig

2010-06-07T20:04:00.000-05:00

This blog has been extremely quit. Too quiet. The reason is simple. I've started blogging somewhere else. As I mentioned in a previous blog, I've recently joined sparkpeople.com. It's an online community to help people get healthy. I track my calories, exercise, and several other things on the site. It's free so that's a plus. Anyway, they encourage you to blog there. These past two weeks I've been trying to get my mind back into the mental game of wanting to get healthy so I've been focusing my time there. Plus, while I don't mind posting updates here on my success or lack of it, I didn't want this blog to become a place were I vent about my lack of willpower and the amazing power of a doughnut to tempt me. That's what my other blog is for. So if you've been worried where I've gone, I'm going to do my best to be back here more frequently. The scarier part is that I don't think people have probably been all that worried.

As I use to do in the past, I going to publicly be posting my weight and hopefully loss of weight on Fridays. Come by to chuckle or encourage me.

Humbling

2010-05-27T08:53:00.000-05:00

As humbling as it is for me, I have started dieting (yes, healthy lifestyle change) again. I'm still doing calories, but I'm using the site Spark People. It adds a a social component that I probably need. It really helps to know that some people are checking what you eat and encouraging you. Anyway, that's were life has me. I'm shooting for that 180 mark again and will reevaluate from there. That's 67 pounds to reevaluation so I have some time. First weigh in is Friday. Not looking forward to it.

Book Review - The Last Christian

2010-05-24T14:27:00.000-05:00

Today's book review is for "The Last Christian" by David Gregory .

My Thoughts
I enjoy a good science fiction book. And while I enjoy glimpses into the far future, I think my favorite type of science fiction is "next step" stories. This is my phrase to describe stories that are set in the near future. Stories where Google has branched out into building fully automated cars or where Facebook has acquired more information on each one of us then the NSA. Stories, from a technology view, that are completely plausible. David Gregory not only does this, but throws in the thought provoking idea of Christianity completely dying out in America and one missionaries calling to revive it.

This book impressed me. As a technology nut I found his vision of the near future completely believable. Especially the leap to complete virtual reality through implanted hardware within the body. To me, what makes these things believable are his bringing into the story the in-between hardware pieces that made these steps possible. Abigail, coming out of the jungle, does not have the implants. During the course of the story, we have descriptors of the helmet and devices she wore to enter into that virtual reality that others so free entered without. Technology builds on top of technology and that was present. Okay, enough geeking out.

Beyond the technology, the story was enjoyable. There was a nice blend of mystery, danger, and the thoughts of "wow this really could happen in America."

I guess to make a simple summary, let me just say I liked it. It was fast paced, held my interest, and gave me some things to ponder when it was all done. Definitely worth reading if you get a chance.

Publisher's Info
In the future, it’s possible to live forever—but at what cost?

A.D. 2088.

Missionary daughter Abigail Caldwell emerges from the jungle for the first time in her thirty-four years, the sole survivor of a mysterious disease that killed her village. Abby goes to America, only to discover a nation where Christianity has completely died out. A curious message from her grandfather assigns her a surprising mission: re-introduce the Christian faith in America, no matter how insurmountable the odds.

But a larger threat looms. The world's leading artificial intelligence industrialist has perfected a technique for downloading the human brain into a silicon form. Brain transplants have begun, and with them comes the potential of eliminating physical death altogether—but at what expense?

As Abby navigates a society grown more addicted to stimulating the body than nurturing the soul, she and Creighton Daniels, a historian troubled by his father's unexpected death, become unwitting targets of powerful men who will stop at nothing to further their nefarious goals. Hanging in the balance—the spiritual future of all humanity.

In this fast-paced thriller, startling near-future science collides with thought-provoking religious themes to create a spell-binding "what-if?" novel.

Author Bio
David Gregory is the coauthor of two nonfiction books and a frequent conference speaker. After a ten-year business career, he returned to school to study religion and communications, earning two master's degrees. David lives in Texas, where he works for a nonprofit organization.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can click here to go directly to the Multnomah web site where you will be able to download the first chapter for preview, read an author interview, or even watch a promo video.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

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One of Their Own Won't Make It

2010-05-14T21:15:00.000-05:00

This is an incredible time for television shows. As we charge forward to a host of season and series finales, there seems to be one main theme. A main character is going to die. I know that some shows have actors leaving, but there are other ways to write them out of the series without blowing them away. If this was the first time a show had done it maybe I could accept it. But show after show is advertising the sad demise of a character. I'm tired of it. It's no wonder television ratings are so terrible. Get a new idea people.

Book Review - Indivisible

2010-05-10T06:11:00.000-05:00

Today's book review is for "Indivisible" by Kristen Heitzmann.

My Thoughts
I jumped into this book really not knowing what to expect. From the description I knew it was some sort of thriller, but you never know if that is going to hold true or not. Thankfully, I was impressed by the story. I wouldn't describe it as a story building up to a major twist, but a story that has a lot of secrets that come out more and more as you read. While I had one of the mysteries pegged from the beginning, although I confess there were a lot of clues, there were many others that left me questioning to end. Take that and throw in a couple of mutilated raccoons that have been sewn together and you have the makings for something interesting.

I guess the best testament that I can give to the book is that I wanted the story to continue. The story had a a definite ending, but I wanted to see what happened next in the life of the characters. Even if it wasn't a thriller, I would read the "next chapter" if it was ever presented to me. Whenever you finish a book and you wish there was more is always a good sign.

As we head into summer I would definitely recommend this book for anyone looking for an enjoyable psychological read.

Publisher's Info
Battling his own personal demons, Police Chief Jonah Westfall knows the dark side of life and has committed himself to eradicating it. When a pair of raccoons are found mutilated in Redford, Colorado, Jonah investigates the gruesome act, knowing the strange event could escalate and destroy the tranquility of his small mountain town. With a rising drug threat and never-ending conflict with Tia Manning, a formidable childhood friend with whom he has more than a passing history, Jonah fights for answers—and his fragile sobriety.

But he can’t penetrate every wound or secret—especially one fueled by a love and guilt teetering on madness.

Author Bio
While home schooling her four kids, Kristen Heitzmann wrote her first novel. It became one of a five book historical series. Since then, she has written three more historical novels and eight contemporary romantic and psychological suspense novels including The Still of Night, nominated for the Colorado Book Award, The Tender Vine, a Christy Award finalist and Christy Award winning Secrets. She lives in Colorado with her husband Jim, sundry family members, and pets.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can click here to go directly to the Multnomah web site were you will be able to download the first chapter for preview.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Whose Kingdom?

2010-05-04T21:11:00.000-05:00

We've been looking at the Lord's prayer in my youth ministry and tonight we talked about "your kingdom come." It's a wonderful thing to say that we want the kingdom to come, but it gets more complicated if we really stop and examine our own lives. There's the dynamic of the kingdom both being already present yet still to come. With that in mind, which kingdom our we living a part of today? If a group of impartial outsiders were to examine us, would they come to the conclusion that we were living for God's kingdom, or would the evidence of our lives testify of another kingdom that has reign and authority over us? Sadly we see examples of other believers that allowed another kingdom to rule in their lives. While they may have said they wanted God's kingdom, their life spoke otherwise. When I pray for the kingdom to come, I am definitely looking torward eternity, but I also want to live completely and unashamedly as a part of that kingdom now.

Book Review - Radical

2010-05-03T07:03:00.001-05:00

Today's book review is for "Radical" by David Platt.

My Thoughts
When I was offered the opportunity to review this book, I almost didn't take it. The full title is "Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From The American Dream." I don't have much respect for authors that blame America for all the evil in the world of which there are quite a few. Yet, the description piqued my interest enough to go ahead and read it. I'm glad I did. After reading it, I walk away not feeling that the book is a critique of America at all. Instead, I walk away feeling that many Christians in America live as Americans first and Christians second. The book is a challenge to all believers, although specifically American believers, to refuse to allow our culture to blind us to the way Christ has called us to live.

In a nutshell, Christ has called us to reach the world for him, not to live comfortable lives. We have been called to be dangerous, not to live danger free. The book challenges our oft misguided belief that some are called to reach a lost and dying world while some get a free pass to relax.

I barely know what to write about this book. It was challenging and convicting. More than anything, it's making me want to pray about it. No one likes a punch in the gut, but if it's God trying to get our attention we need to stop and examine it.

I'll leave it as this. You need to read this book. Then, you need to get in your Bible and pray about it.

Publisher's Info
It's easy for American Christians to forget how Jesus said his followers would actually live, what their new lifestyle would actually look like. They would, he said, leave behind security, money, convenience, even family for him. They would abandon everything for the gospel. They would take up their crosses daily...

BUT WHO DO YOU KNOW WHO LIVES LIKE THAT? DO YOU?

In Radical, David Platt challenges you to consider with an open heart how we have manipulated the gospel to fit our cultural preferences. He shows what Jesus actually said about being his disciple--then invites you to believe and obey what you have heard. And he tells the dramatic story of what is happening as a "successful" suburban church decides to get serious about the gospel according to Jesus.

Finally, he urges you to join in The Radical Experiment --a one-year journey in authentic discipleship that will transform how you live in a world that desperately needs the Good News Jesus came to bring.

Author Bio
David Platt is the pastor of The Church at Brook Hills, a four-thousand member congregation in Birmingham, Alabama. Widely regarded as an exceptional expositor, David has traveled and taught around the world. He holds two undergraduate and three advanced degrees, including a doctorate from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. David and his wife, Heather, live in Birmingham with their family.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can click here to go directly to the Multnomah web site were you will be able to download the first chapter for preview.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Athlete

2010-04-30T12:11:00.005-05:00

I was sitting in a park watching one of my youth girls play softball yesterday and I was reminded that I once had an unassisted triple play when I was younger. It was a hotly contested kickball game during recess when I was in the fifth grade. I doubt anyone else that was there even remembers it, but let me tell you that it was amazing.

Confession

2010-04-29T22:28:00.003-05:00

I have a confession to make. My wife and I were out and about this evening when we happened across a KFC. I'm a sucker for testing and trying new food products and KFC has one. Perhaps you've heard about it in the news. It's called the Double Down. It consists of two pieces of boneless chicken. Not chicken tender size but full breast size. These pieces of fried chicken act as the bun. In between the two pieces of deep fried goodness resides bacon, cheese, and a sauce of some sort. There is no bun. It's a chicken sandwich in the purest sense. Most questions concerning it revolve around its nutritional value. Having now recently partaken of one of these concoctions, I lend my voice to the crowds that decry it's total lack of nutrition. The only problem I have was that it was amazing. We split one just for fun, but we were both surprised that it was so good. The chicken was moist and juicy and there was quite a bit of it. Both the cheese and sauce were tasty. And the bacon? Well, it's hard to ever go wrong with bacon. The end result was surprising but extremely satisfying.

I would love to try another, but it will be a tough argument between my taste buds and my brain that knows something like that will shorten my life expectancy.

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Growing Up

2010-04-26T22:42:00.000-05:00

As I write this, my son is sleeping in his own room. I know that doesn't sound special, but it's his first night there. He's more than ready to transition into a bed and our apartment just doesn't accommodate both he and his sister each having a bed in the same room. Just not enough space. So the crib and various other pieces of furniture have exchanged places to allow this. Later this week we'll be bringing the bed. I sit here and realize my children are growing up so fast. Before I blink this moment will be gone. That is why I played hide and seek with my children tonight. I assure you that hide and seek with only four small rooms to hide in isn't much of a challenge, but it was worth it. Too fast this moment will be gone forever.

Check Out My Diploma

2010-04-22T09:53:00.000-05:00

I have a confession to make. I had a couple of speeding tickets about two years ago. One I absolutely deserved. There were extenuating circumstances with the second and I think it was undeserved. Anyway, you pay your fine and move on with life. That is, you move on with life until it comes back to bite you.

In updating some church insurance information, my name was submitted as a primary driver of the church van. The insurance company ran a check on me and declared me ineligible to drive the van. Seems they don't like those speeding tickets acquired back in my youth (ahh...to be thirty again).

This presented a problem and problems need solutions. I called our insurance provider and they offered me probation on one condition, I had to take their online defensive driver course. I really had no choice so I accepted their offer. As of this morning, and after a grueling online course and test, I am now a diploma carrying defensive driver.

Now I have to live with the shame of being on probation. I wonder if they'll assign me some sort of parole officer?

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

The Meeting is Done

2010-04-18T20:44:00.000-05:00

I know it sounds odd, but we just had our 2009 annual church business meeting today. Actually, I like the way we work it. The winter months are rather unpredictable here in Ohio and instead of promoting a meeting that might have to be canceled, we simply wait until March for our meeting. Considering this is April, you can tell that the winter storms affected us and we had to push it back a little more. I doubt anyone looks forward to business meetings, but they are necessary to keep a church running. Sounds like a lot of things we have to do in life. No deeper thoughts than that.

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Book Review - Forget Me Not

2010-04-15T05:36:00.000-05:00

Today's book review is for "Forget Me Not" by Vicki Hinze.

My Thoughts
This book has been a tough one for me to review. It's not a bad book, but it's not great either. The story moves along at a decent pace, but sometimes I felt like the plot was being forced along and not allowed to develop naturally. And maybe I'm just extremely perceptive, probably not but I'll run with it, but I felt is was obvious from early on why Benjamin's wife and son were murdered. The other major twist, which I'll politely not even mention in case you read the book, again seemed obvious early on. In addition to those, I'm just not much for love stories that rapidly develop within matter of days. Once again, it seemed forced. Finally, I felt that scant little information was provided concerning this shadowy organization that the characters are suppose to fear. These little details hinder what overall wasn't a bad storyline.

There are some decent twists and turns that keep you intrigued. I won't deny that I was reading more chapters in a sitting than I intended to simply because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. That fact alone bodes well for any story. That's why this review is mixed. I enjoyed the story, but I think it could have been better. If you like a mystery with a little romance thrown in you'd probably appreciate the book. The call is yours.

Publisher's Info
Crossroads Crisis Center owner Benjamin Brandt was a content man—in his faith, his work, and his family. Then in a flash, everything he loved was snatched away. His wife and son were murdered, and grief-stricken Ben lost faith. Determination to find their killers keeps him going, but after three years of dead ends and torment, his hope is dying too. Why had he survived? He’d failed to protect his family.

Now, a mysterious woman appears at Crossroads seeking answers and help—a victim who eerily resembles Ben’s deceased wife, Susan. A woman robbed of her identity, her life, of everything except her faith—and Susan’s necklace.

The connections between the two women mount, exceeding coincidence, and to keep the truth hidden, someone is willing to kill. Finding out who and why turns Ben and the mystery woman’s situation from dangerous to deadly. Their only hope for survival is to work together, trust each other, and face whatever they discover head on, no matter how painful. But will that be enough to save their lives and heal their tattered hearts?

Author Bio
Vicki Hinze is an award-winning author of twenty-three novels, three nonfiction books, and hundreds of articles. Selected for Who’s Who in America in 2004 as a writer and educator, Hinze is active in Romance Writers of America and serves as a Vice President on the International Thriller Writers Board of Directors. Vicki lives in Florida with her artist husband, a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel. Visit www.vickihinze.com to learn more about Vicki’s books, blogs, and writing programs.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can find out more about it from the Random House web site.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

When Something Is Missing Part 2

2010-04-14T05:09:00.000-05:00

Yesterday's story was the opening to my message on Sunday from the 13th Psalm. I tried to bring out the idea that the Psalm lacks what I would consider a climax (as introductory story). We have David lamenting the fact that it feels like God has abandoned him and that his enemies are going to triumph. The tension builds as David cries out to God for an answer. Without an answer he surely will die and all his enemies will celebrate his demise. All this brings us to the point in the psalm where we want a climax. We want the answer to come, a solution to arise, and the enemy to be defeated. In short, we want God to step into the story and do something.

Yet, God never steps into the story. We're expecting a climatic moment for God's power to be displayed, and what we get is something very anti-climatic. We get nothing. After all the build up, David ends the psalm by declaring that he will continue to trust, rejoice, and sing for God has been good. He goes from complaining that God has forgotten him to singing because God is God, and nothing in the story has changed.

My point I felt was simple to understand, but harder to accept. God can and does still answer prayer. There are climatic points in our lives were we need God to step in and he does just that. However, and I can't explain why, there are other times when God chooses not to step in. Moments where we desperately need God, and he remains silent. The climax of our story doesn't come. When that happens, we're left with a choice. Is faith in God dependent upon him doing things for us, or is it based on belief? Belief that he is God both when he steps into our story and when he chooses not.

Maybe it just resonated with me, but I thought it was a good word.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

When Something Is Missing

2010-04-13T21:28:00.001-05:00

The year was 1987. A seventeen year old girl raced down a maze of New York alleys. The area around a wicked slash in her jeans was quickly becoming stained red. The pounding of footsteps and shouts of men pushed her on. She was lost and tired, but if she stopped she was dead. Two wrongs turns and a backtrack brought her into the view of her pursuers. Trying to duck into another alley, she lost her footing on some loose gravel and went tumbling down. She lay on the pavement dazed. Then, without warning, they were there. Rough hands grabbed her and pinned her to the ground. A foot was placed solidly on her neck and pressure slowly began to be applied. She coughed as it became harder to breathe. They had found her and now she was going to die. Through the pain she looked up past the buildings into the night sky and saw the most amazing thing.

An Amazing Feeling

2010-04-06T13:24:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I was able to do something amazing. At least it was amazing in my opinion. I went to my bank’s web site and I clicked the option to pay bills. On the following screen, I choose to make a payment on my student loan. Then, I wrote in an extremely large number, verified it, and clicked pay. With that mouse click I officially paid off my student loan. It was an incredible feeling. One step closer to being completely debt free. I guess that means the car is about to break down. Anyway, rejoice with me for the day at least.

Book Review - This Little Prayer of Mine

2010-04-05T18:54:00.000-05:00

Today's book review is by my wife Kelly and is for "This Little Prayer of Mine" by Anthony DeStefano. Illustrations are by Mark Elliot.

My Thoughts
This is a cute children's book. It is written as a prayer to show kids how and what to pray. It shows two children in different aspects of life and how they can pray during those times. I liked that it included asking God to help in making good choices and showed asking for forgiveness when wrong. The pictures are nice and show great detail. I read it to my four year old and she enjoyed it too.

Publisher's Info
Author Anthony DeStefano’s adult books, The Prayers God Always Says Yes To and A Travel Guide to Heaven, have sold a quarter-million copies. Illustrator Mark Elliott’s cherished artwork has appeared in popular picture books and novels for young readers, including Gail Carson Levine’s ever-popular Princess Tales series.

Now, these acclaimed inspirational experts have come together to create This Little Prayer of Mine, a beautiful and alluring book designed to guide children into a very simple, real and expressive relationship with God.

Through engaging rhymes and alluring illustrations, This Little Prayer of Mine shows children—and their parents and grandparents—that complete dependence on God is what brings peace and fulfillment. It invites children to know and believe that God is always just a simple prayer away and that He longs to respond to them with a resounding, “Yes!”
This Little Prayer of Mine appeals to readers from all different faiths. Easy-reader format allows children to read alone, or with someone older, and encourages them to openly express their fears, thanks, and needs directly to God.

Author Bio
Anthony DeStefano is the author of The Prayers God Always Says Yes To and A Travel Guide to Heaven. He has received prestigious awards from religious organizations worldwide for his efforts to advance Christian beliefs in modern culture.

Mark Elliott’s brilliant illustrations have appeared in popular picture books and novels for young readers, including Gail Carson Levine’s Princess Tales series. His acclaimed artwork delivers inspiration, wonder, and timeless beauty on every page.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can find out more about it from the Random House web site.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Book Review - An Absence So Great

2010-04-02T18:39:00.000-05:00

Today's book review is by my wife Kelly and is for "An Absence So Great" by Jane Kirkpatrick.

My Thoughts
This book is the sequel to A Flickering Light, which I read before and blogged about. When I read the first book, I was not too thrilled about the story line as some of the elements of the plot I did not agree with. After reading this one I found out that it is based on the life of the author's grandmother. The story is very good. She takes the truth of her grandmother's life and makes it an enjoyable story. I recommend both books to get the full story. It was a good book.

Publisher's Info
Inspired by the engaging stories told through her grandmother’s photographs taken at the turn of the century, award-winning author Jane Kirkpatrick provides a portrait of the tension between darkness and light in the soul of a young woman pursuing her professional dreams.

Despite growing in confidence as a photographer, eighteen-year-old Jessie Ann Gaebele’s personal life is still at a crossroads. Hoping she’s put an unfortunate romantic longing behind her as “water under the bridge,” she exiles herself to Milwaukee to operate photographic studios for those ill with mercury poisoning.

Jessie gains footing on her dream to one day own her own studio and soon finds herself in other Midwest towns, pursuing her profession. But even a job she loves can’t keep those painful memories from seeping into her heart, and the shadows of a forbidden love threaten to darken the portrait of her life.

Author Bio
Jane Kirkpatrick is an award-winning author of sixteen historical novels, including A Flickering Light, the first part of Jessie Gaebale’s story, and three nonfiction titles. Known for her unique insights into the exploration of community, family and faith of actual historical women, the Wisconsin native and her husband have called their ranch in Oregon home for the past 25 years.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can find out more about it from the Random House web site.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

The Way

2010-03-24T06:41:00.000-05:00

Last night in youth I taught from John 14:1-6. We’re in a series that I’m calling “Who Is Jesus?” The answers we are looking for are found in specific instances were Jesus stated. “I am the ...” Last week we looked at “I Am the Vine” and last night was “I Am the Way.”

I know that it’s not considered sensitive to other religions, but Jesus in this passage leaves no wiggle room. He states unequivocally, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6 NIV). If you believe what Jesus taught (which I do), then he makes it clear that there is only one way to be with God, and that’s him.

To clarify, we don’t make it to heaven by just following Jesus’ teachings, we don’t make it by being a overall good person, we don’t even make it by selling everything we have and working for the oppressed. We make it by having a relationship with “the way.”

As I was in my Bible this morning, my reading brought me to Proverbs 10:29. “The way of the Lord is a refuge for the righteous, but it is the ruin of those who do evil” (NIV). I thought it was fitting. There is no doubt that Christ is a refuge for his people, and sadly for many, he will be the ruin of all that reject him.

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Book Review - Steering Through Chaos

2010-03-19T07:00:00.000-05:00

This book review gets a nice introductory story to go with it. At the beginning of this year I seemed on a roll in winning free things. I won a free iPhone app, an ebook of my choice from O'Reily Media, a book by Scott Wilson, and then a book by Margaret Feinberg. For the Scott Wilson book, my name was mentioned in a live interview as having won a copy and I replied to confirm it, but my name was never listed on the Web site as being a winner. I assumed that there had been some mistake. A few days later I had an opportunity to get a free copy of the book by agreeing to blog about it, something I already do with books from Multnomah. Since it appeared that I wasn't getting the free copy I thought I had won, I signed up for a copy to review. The very day I signed up to review it my free copy arrived. I tried to email and cancel the other book, but a few days later it arrived. So, I will do something that I haven't done for awhile. I will give away the second copy free. Just post a comment on this and I will randomly select a winner next Thursday.

My Thoughts
Great book. That was easy. I know this type of book isn't for everyone as it is primarily written for pastors and those in church leadership, but it is definitely worth reading. The book deals with the various things that we are going to face as we attempt to lead a church through change. It discusses ways of getting people on board, dealing with the struggles that arise, keeping yourself from burning out, and how to communicate. Not only that, but it goes into depth on why we need to prepare for change in advance of actually needing the change. It's a challenging read and you come away from it both thinking "I hope I never have to go through that" and "I need to prepare for this." Some books I read and then I don't mind getting rid of them. This is one of those books though that will become one of my reference books, something that I can refer to from time to time.

For full disclosure, I met Scott at a minister's conference that he taught at. He spoke on the topic that he covers in this book. So my review comes out of both reading the book, hearing him teach on it, and having the opportunity to talk to him. That, and he gave me a free copy of his previous book because I jokingly questioned his ability to teach us. Yes, making fun of the speaker before he teaches sometimes scores you free stuff.

You can read the first chapter of the book for free at www.scribd.com.

I've also embedded a YouTube vide below where Scott discusses the book. It's worth watching. I don't know if Facebook notes will pull in the video or not. If you don't see it, you can either see it on my blog or on YouTube itself.

And don't forget a comment could win you a free book. Show a little comment love if you can.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Good Morning!

2010-03-18T07:47:00.000-05:00

Continuing a thought from yesterday, I really believe that God wants to change things in our lives. In this, sometimes He points out the problem or the change He desires, and then we have to begin working on it. For me it’s my mornings. God wants them. The struggle resides in the fact that I’m a night owl. The hours after 10 PM are my wide awake time of the day. Yet, I’ve sensed for quite some time the need to be awake and spending time with Him early in the morning. I think it’s something that needs changed.

So I’ve prayed and asked the Lord to help me, resolved within myself to actually get up and do it, and finally I got someone to check on me. I’m a big believer in community. We were not created to be lone rangers of faith. We are to help and receive help from other believers. To that end, I decided to do something crazy. I asked for a student volunteer in my youth ministry to check on me, and one of my awesome young ladies said she would do it. For two mornings in a row now, she has called my cell phone as she gets ready for to school to make sure that I am awake. I know that she reads this and I want to say a big “thank you.” I was wondering if she would chicken out but she didn’t. I’m sure calling her youth pastor early in the morning isn’t the most exciting thing in the world, but she’s doing it.

I’m no where near perfect, but I try to model authentic faith to my students. In this situation, I’m hoping that they will see two things. First, that there are always things that God wants to work on in our lives. Second, that we will always need other believers to help us and, in the same breath, we need to be willing to do the same in return.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Permission to Prune

2010-03-17T09:45:00.000-05:00

Last night in our youth service I taught from John 15:1-8. In it Jesus describes himself as a vine, us as the branches, and God the Father as the gardner. The passage has some serious implications if you ponder the truth that God completely cuts away branches that don’t bear any fruit. Serious implications as these branches are described as then being thrown into the fire.

While I dealt with that, the main emphasis was the second part. We are told that those that bear fruit can expect God to prune their lives so that they can bear even more fruit. I headed to Wikipedia* to learn a little more about pruning. Here’s the relevant portion I found.

“[Pruning] usually entails removal of diseased, damaged, dead, non-productive, or otherwise unwanted tissue from a plant, such as branches, buds, or roots.”

Pruning is getting rid of the all the junk in a plant that hinders it from reaching it’s full potential. I like the two aspects presented. Some of the material removed can be diseased which in turn could destroy the the entire plant. Other items removed may not necessarily be harmful, but definitely not productive.

If we examine our lives, we will find that God is wanting to do the same thing in us. Often times we’ve allowed things into our lives that are harmful. Sometimes it’s things we even enjoy. Yet, if we are to follow Christ we must allow God to prune these things away. In the same vein, sometimes there are things that come into our lives that are not necessarily wrong, but they can begin to consume us. Sometimes God will choose to prune these things out of our lives as well. And, to let you in on a little secret, I don’t think most people enjoy being pruned. It’s hard to hear the Lord’s whisper telling us to change something. It’s hard to have the Lord direct us away from things we enjoy. It’s hard to hear him say “No.”

I guess what it comes down to is an issue of trust. Do we really believe that God knows what’s best? If we really do, we can honestly say, “Even though it hurts Lord, please prune away at the junk in my life.” Not always easy, but so necessary.

*For the intellectual purists I’d like to mention that I know Wikipedia can be hit or miss on the accuracy of their information. While I wouldn’t trust it when writing a thesis, I do trust it enough to gain some insights on a subject as simple as pruning.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Book Review - Start Here

2010-03-15T09:31:00.000-05:00

The book review for today is "Start Here" by Alex & Brett Harris.

My Thoughts
"Start Here" is a companion book to the Harris brothers book "Do Hard Things", so it is probably best read after reading the first book. Full disclosure, I haven't read "Do Hard Things". I have worked with some curriculum based off of it and from my understanding, the book is a challenge to teenagers to use their teen years doing hard things for God. It's calling youth to rise above mediocrity and culture's low expectations of them. I think "Do Hard Things" answers the question of why teens should be choosing to live this way. "Start Here" then answers the question of how do I get started. Put another way, it doesn't ignite the desire to do hard things, but helps those that have already had that desire ignited get started on their journey. While this book can be read on its own, I think it makes a lot more sense to read it after having read "Do Hard Things".

As for the book itself, I think it offers a lot of practical advice for teens that want to do a little something more in this world than simply hang out at the mall and play video games. The book covers such topics as finding God's will, getting help from others, and what to do when you get overwhelmed. I particularly liked the section that dealt with how to handle yourself when people start complimenting you. Pride is such an easy thing to fall into and I'm glad that it was addressed. Another important area that is covered is the possibility that a teen might try something hard for God and it might not work out.

One nice feature is that peppered throughout the book are true stories from teens that have already taken up the challenge. Hearing the tales of youth that have accepted the challenge and then accomplished something is surely an encouragement for anyone else considering doing similar.

So my final conclusion is that it is a worthwhile book for your teenager to read, but it really only makes sense to read it after you've read "Do Hard Things".

Publisher's Info
At the age of eighteen, Alex and Brett Harris wrote Do Hard Things—and launched a movement that would change a generation. Young people around the world were ready to be inspired, ready to move beyond complacency, ready to rebel against society’s low expectations.

Now the highly anticipated companion book, Start Here, answers the questions Alex and Brett have received from thousands of teens on their worldwide conference tour and popular online community: How do I get started? What hard things does God want me to do? How do I keep from getting discouraged or burned out? What is the best way to inspire others?

Filled with stories and insights from Alex, Brett, and other real-life rebelutionaries, Start Here is a powerful and practical guide for young people who are ready to take the next step and blast past apathy. Let the rebelution continue.

Authors Bio
Alex and Brett Harris are the coauthors of the best-selling book Do Hard Things, which they wrote at age eighteen. Today the twins speak regularly to audiences of thousands on The Rebelution Tour, maintain a hugely popular online presence through their blog, TheRebelution.com, and have been featured on CNN, MSNBC, NPR, and in the New York Times. Raised in Portland, Oregon, the brothers currently attend Patrick Henry College in Virginia.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can find out more about it from the Random House web site.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

The Truth Hurts

2010-03-08T22:21:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow night will be the last night of our youth ministry's Dating & Sex series. Without a doubt this is the one series that seems to turn youth against me. Youth that laughed and loved me suddenly have a chill in their attitude. Not outright hatred, but a cooling of the relationship. I look back over my years in youth ministry and this has always been the topic that does it. My best guess is that what I preach hits far too close to home and they don't like it. I believe everything that I teach is Biblical concerning the subject. Popular? No. The truth? Yes. What bothers me is not the fact that I get the cold shoulder, but that they're rejecting the truth.

Let me share a word with any of my students that might stumble across this. I love you more than you even realize. I love you enough that I promise to always share the truth with you, even if it hurts sometimes. How could I call myself your friend and do anything less? My only alternative is to lie to you, but then I wouldn't really be your friend.

A Thought On Serving

2010-02-23T07:11:00.001-05:00

I subscribe to the weekly “Matt Chat” newsletter put out by Matt Anderson. I’m pretty ruthless on what I allow into my inbox, but “Matt Chat” has earned the right to keep coming. Yesterdays thought really connected with me so I acquired permission to reprint it here. Hope you enjoy it.

Matt Chat
“24: Part 1 - February 22, 2010”

There's nothing like a server to bring about an air of superiority in others.

As a youth pastor, my leadership team and I frequented a restaurant after youth services. It was a great opportunity to kick back, laugh, and evaluate the evening's activities. Part of that dining experience was having the same waitress each week. Jen was someone we had grown to appreciate and care about. Occasionally we even had good spiritual conversations with her. She made our group a priority, and we made a point of treating her well and tipping generously.
Unfortunately, one particular evening, another group had a differing opinion. Midway through our meal, I noticed a nearby table having a heated discussion with Jen and her manager. Minutes later, Jen came to our table to check on us but looked visibly shaken. I asked her if everything was OK. She replied that the neighboring table was upset that their iced tea pitcher had a ring around it. Jen reported that the pitcher was clean and that it was common for pitchers to develop rings like that and remain after washing. An angry customer retorted, "Really? If that pitcher is clean then that's your natural hair color." After offering our sympathies for such outright cruelty, Jen added a sentence that shook me to my core. "That's OK; it's just another church group."

Not much has changed in 2000 years. Servers, though certainly paid for their efforts, are still regarded rather lowly in the social order of the day. It's amazing how small people will use a server to project a false air of superiority. I've seen it happen too many times. So how amazing that Jesus, only hours before the climax of human history, would show his superiority. But it wouldn't be with a miracle, a healing, or even prophetic teaching. He did it with an apron. "So he [Jesus] got up from the supper table, set aside his robe, and put on an apron. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples, drying them with his apron. (John 13:4-5, MSG)"

To the untrained eye, the one who receives is greater than the one who gives, but in the Kingdom of Light, the reverse is true. Jesus was performing an object lesson. He humbled Himself to do the lowliest of jobs: cleaning the feet of others...and probably with his hands. What a statement! It's not what I would have wanted to see Him doing. Rose petals should have been laid before Him. Trumpet fanfares should have announced His arrivals. Doves should have been released when He entered a room. But that wasn't the Lord. He knew that by serving these men, it would set the table for what He would do later that same day when He would undergo injustices even more humiliating than this.

We are most like Jesus when we do what others wouldn't. May I just say something to anyone with a title? The moment we become too important to fold chairs, carry tables, or spruce up a bathroom is the very moment we've become useless to God. If you're being served, find opportunities to do the same. Don't fall for the ridiculous notion that you deserve it and "paid your dues" at some point. It's nice when honor is given to whom honor is due, but we're not the only ones deserving honor. Let's love people more than ourselves to do what others believe to be beneath them. In short, Jesus wasn't chauffeured to Calvary.

Likewise, those serving must not do so with clenched teeth and a subtle growl. We must do it "as unto the Lord," even when jerks (or worse, Christian jerks) are ungrateful for the service. Christ is much easier to please and never misses an opportunity to tip.

The world envies the one being carried on shoulders, but the Lord exalts the one who carries. Trays mean more to Him than scepters; aprons are preferred to vestments; and towels are esteemed greater than crowns. Remember that the most significant thing you do this week will only be seen by the Lord. Have an amazing week.

Matt sends this type of “chat” out once a week If you’re interested in signing up, go to mattchat.fanbridge.com and fill out the form.

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Book Review - Hear No Evil

2010-02-19T15:58:00.000-05:00

My Thoughts
There is no doubt that music plays an enormous part in many people's lives. Matthew Turner discusses this reality in his own life, but from a perspective of a childhood rooted in an extremely strict version of Christianity. From what I gather, anything except hymns was basically considered evil. The humor and pain I felt as he discussed his family sneaking out to a Sandy Patti concert resonated with me. Not that I was ever a Sandy fan myself, but more of a closet Petra fan.

Without ever coming out and saying it, Turner questions the validity of both Christians openly judging the motives of musicians that happen to be Christian, and the musician themselves who seek fame as a so called humble servant of Christ. This hit home because I have both heard criticism of Christian musicians for their weaknesses (uh...they are human), while also seeing musicians that claimed God had called them to their ministry (and corresponding popularity), but seemingly forgetting at the same time to give them any talent.

This seems like deep and painful things to consider, but I give Turner credit for writing from his own life experiences and doing so with humor. I can't honestly say that I agree with everything, but the book gets the mental juices flowing in a simple read. With that said, I think the book is worth picking up and reading.

Publisher's Info
If you’ve ever had the opening bars of a song transport you back in time or remind you of a pivotal spiritual moment, Matthew Paul Turner’s honest—and frequently hilarious—musings will strike a chord. Straightforward and amusing, Hear No Evil is Turner’s “life soundtrack,” a compilation of engaging personal stories about how music—and music’s ability to transform—has played a key role in his spiritual life.

Groove along on his journey as young evangelical Turner attends forbidden contemporary Christian concerts, moves to “Music City” Nashville, and dreams of becoming the Michael Jackson of Christian music.

Cosmic and compelling, keen and funny, every page is a new encounter with the people, places, and experiences that have taught the music-editor-turned-author some new things about God, forced him out of his comfort zone, and introduced him to a fresh view of grace along the way.

Author Bio
Matthew Paul Turner is a blogger, speaker, and author of Churched: One Kid’s Journey Toward God Despite a Holy Mess, The Christian Culture Survival Guide, and several other popular books. After a childhood in rural Maryland, Turner attended Nashville’s Belmont University, where he received a BBA in music business, and was the editor of CCM magazine before leaving to pursue writing as a career. Turner has written for Relevant, HomeLife, Christian Single, and other magazines. He and his wife, Jessica, have one son, and live in Nashville, Tennessee.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can find out more about it from the Random House web site.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah, a division of Random House.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Love and Approval

2010-02-15T07:27:00.000-05:00

God loves us. A simple phrase that most Christians would readily agree with. I’m not denying it’s true. God does love people. The Bible tells us that he loved us enough to send his son for us. The problem arises when we begin to confuse love and approval. Just because God loves us does not mean he approves of what we do. I see this more and more reflected in my life with my children. I love them. Their hugs and kisses are worth more than gold to me. I love them even when they mess up and do wrong things. My love for them doesn’t change. However, just because I love them does not mean I approve of everything they choose to do. When my daughter lies to me, it cuts deep. I still love her, but I don’t approve.

I think we sometimes need to examine ourselves very closely. We get so comfortable in God’s love that we fail to realize that there are things that we’ve allowed into our lives that don’t please him. He still loves, but he isn’t pleased. Are we willing to be open enough with God that he can begin to point these things out to us? I hope so, because more than anything I want us all to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant.”

It Must Be Genetic

2010-02-14T18:04:00.000-05:00

Today after church we went to have lunch with my parents and my sister and her family. We had a nice lunch followed by cupcakes. The kids all ate theirs and ran off to play some more. I was sitting there minding my own business when my wife pointed out that my sister and I were both eating our cupcakes with a spoon. A quick glance around the table zeroed in on my dad, spoon in hand, eating his cupcake. I don't need to go into the anguish we felt as our secret use of a spoon came to light. Honestly, I don't know why we were singled out as being abnormal. Of the six adults around the table, we were evenly split between spoon users and non spoon users.

So if you are reading this I need your comment. When you eat cupcakes, do you use a spoon or not?

On Facebook? The orignal post resides at www.focusedjourney.com

Sam's Club

2010-02-13T21:23:00.000-05:00

I have some questions for Sam’s Club. Why do we have to show our membership card to come in and shop? What is the benefit of having a worker stand there glancing at our cards? This is just my opinion, but wouldn’t some very clear signs stating that Sam’s Club requires purchasers to have membership be just as effective? It’s not as if someone can sneak in without membership and secretly buy products. As I was just there this afternoon, the only way to purchase is to have the cashier swipe your membership card. I understand that you don’t want people to unknowingly walk in, shop, and then discover that they aren’t allowed to buy. The problem is that your workers really don’t check people that walk in. All you have to do to enter is walk close behind someone else that shows their card. As long as you are close the worker doesn’t even give you a second glance. And let’s not forget today. Today as I walked in, I mistakenly grabbed my Discover card out of my wallet and showed it to the worker. There was no, “sorry sir but that isn’t a membership card.” There was no, “Hey! Members only punk!” There was a smile and I walked right on in. So again I must ask the question, why do I have to show my membership card?

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

A Little History

2010-02-09T22:59:00.002-05:00

Thanks to the snow, we had to cancel youth tonight. Once the kids were in bed, I continued work on a personal project. An addition to blogging, I also keep a journal. There are some things I'm thinking and praying about that need to remain private. My journal is comprised of both these private entries and blog entries. Originally, these were separate. I've been working to move all my blog entries into the journal.

As I was working on this, I came across so many tiny pieces of my history. I read my thoughts after I injured my back. I found humorous little stories that I had written about my children. I even read my triumph of making it under 220 pounds.

I came away with a couple thoughts. I need to write more. Memories are so fleeting, but they become more permanent when recorded. Second, I've really blown the progress I was making with my weight. It reminded me that it's time to step up with some self-control. Maybe it's time for that weekly weight posting again. Anything to get me moving.

Sometimes taking a moment to look back and review can help you prepare to move forward again.

Super Bowl

2010-02-07T21:47:00.000-05:00

Well, the Super Bowl is over and congratulations go the New Orleans Saints for winning. The last few years have featured some decent games that haven’t been over by the second quarter and tonight’s actually held my interest.

The commercials were extremely lackluster. Where’s the creativity? Where’s the laugh out loud moment? The best commercial of the night appeared before the Super Bowl evan began. The McDonald’s remake of the Larry Bird and Michael Jordan shootout featuring Lebron James and Dwight Howard was the only one that even is worth mentioning. Other than that, not much.

The Tebow ad that had feminists up in arms was short, simple, and completely unoffensive. It shouldn’t surprise me, but it does that they would gripe about a commercial that they hadn’t even seen simply because it supports life, yet at the same time they ignore the way GoDaddy treats women as nothing more than objects in their commercials. Crazy.

Anyway, the conclusion is a fair game and overall poor advertising.

Buried In Snow

2010-02-06T23:45:00.002-05:00

The snow came and it came with a vengeance. Last night was one of the heaviest snowfalls that I’ve seen in this part of Ohio for a long time. Easily up towards a foot and a half if not more. With the drifting it was incredible. Snow is amazing. Something so beautiful, yet it brought this little part of the country to a standstill. The added bonus is that snow makes you feel absolutely justified in staying inside and doing nothing. So, after shoveling for a couple hours and straining my back a little, I found it quite nice to flop on the couch and catch up on some sleep that I’ve been missing. Loved it.

iPad Reflections

2010-02-04T08:14:00.000-05:00

I'm fully aware that there are tech pundits waxing eloquently for and against Apple's newest creation now known as the iPad. I've read quite a few opinions and now feel it is my duty to tap these keys and place my own thoughts out into the wild.

For those that don't know (and I assume some of the people that read this don't), last week Apple unveiled a new computer product called the iPad. It's a slim and lightweight tablet style computer. It sports a touch screen a little under 10 inches and runs on the iPhone OS so out of the box it can run almost all of the applications found in the Apple App Store. The comparison I've run across the most is that it looks like a big iPod Touch. That also seems to be the greatest complaint; that it is nothing more than a large Touch.

When it was revealed last week, I was at work but I had my browser open to various blogs that were doing live updates. After seeing the features, tech specs, and some photos, I realized that there was never a moment where I thought to myself, "I have to get that". After all the rumors and hype building up before the event it was almost impossible not to be let down. The device looks amazing and from a design point of view it is beautiful, but what would it be really good for? That summed up my attitude.

Now that I've had a few days, my thoughts have slowly began to change. It started when I downloaded the podcast of the event and watched it. Just seeing the iPad being held makes a major impact. Photos, even the one I included, don't give you a size perspective. Once you see a picture of someone holding it you appreciate the size. It's like holding a thin book. This is where I think the iPad shines.

I enjoy books, but I appreciate having digital copies of my reading material. Digital copies are searchable, always with you, and compact (obviously computer code doesn't take up much physical space). I already see this with my iPhone. Most of my devotional time in the Bible is done on my iPhone. I have the complete Bible on my phone compliments of LifeChurch.tv. I have a vast number of modern translations to choose from and even the convenience of my reading plan being right there. Added bonus, my Bible is always with me. However, the screen is small. I'm comfortable with it, but it is small. While the iPad isn't going to slide into my pocket, it presents to me a nice option. I could hold a device that is more book like, while still giving the power of having the multiple translations and so on. While they haven't officially said yes, I would love for the Bible software I use (Accordance) to make an app for the iPad. I could read a passage, pop open a commentary, maybe even do a little Greek or Hebrew background, and then write some notes on the passage all in the application. I think this will happen.

Further, I would love to see the magazines that I subscribe to come to me in a digital format on the iPad. I know there are digital options out there already, but they don't look right on the widescreen of a laptop. I think the iPad could show the page more as it was intended to be. While this hasn't happened yet, I think we are moving that route. I love the idea of having old issues of my magazines saved for reference without taking up tons of space on my bookshelves.

The more I've thought about it, the more I've even come to believe that this is the device for my mom. My mom is dabbling in email and does some basic web surfing. She does it on my dad's old HP laptop which sometimes presents more problems than it solves. A simple portable device like this would be perfect in my opinion. If I had a thousand dollars to blow I'd get her one. That amount obviously takes into account my need to have one at the same time. Mainly so I can familiarize myself with the device so I can help her if she has any questions. Yeah, that's the reason I'd need one too. The things my mom needs from the Internet and a computer in general could all be taken care of in this one simple device.

One final thought. The lack of a camera doesn't bother me. I doubt I'd be taking a lot of photos with an outward facing camera. Second, I already don't enjoy talking on the phone. Why would I want to turn that phone call into a video call with an inward facing camera?

I don't have the resources just to buy one when they hit the market and there are a few apps I'd like to wait and see if they arrive, but I could see myself enjoying this some day. That day is probably years away, but I can see it.

That's my thoughts. If you have any feel free to leave them in the comments.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Book Review - Dug Down Deep

2010-01-22T23:35:00.000-05:00

Tonight I am reviewing the book "Dug Down Deep" by Joshua Harris. First a little information about the book and then my thoughts follow.

Publisher's Info
What will you build your life on?

With startling transparency, Joshua Harris shares how we can rediscover the relevance and power of Christian truth. This is book shows a young man who rose quickly to success in the Christian evangelical world before he realized his spirituality lacked a foundation—it rested more on tradition and morality than on an informed knowledge of God.

For the indifferent or spiritually numb, Harris's humorous and engaging reflections on Christian beliefs show that orthodoxy isn't just for scholars—it is for anyone who longs to know the living Jesus Christ. As Harris writes, "I've come to learn that theology matters. It matters not because we want to impress people, but because what we know about God shapes the way we think and live. Theology matters because if we get it wrong then our whole life will be wrong."

Whether you are just exploring Christianity or you are a veteran believer finding yourself overly familiar and cold-hearted, Dug Down Deep will help you rediscover the timeless truths of Scripture. As Harris challenges you to root your faith and feelings about God in the person, work, and words of Jesus, he answers questions such as:

What is God like and how does he speak to me?What difference does it make that Jesus was both human and divine?How does Jesus's death on the cross pay for my sins?Who is the Holy Spirit and how does he work in my life?

With grace and wisdom, Harris will inspire you to revel in the truth that has captured his own mind and heart. He will ask you to dig deep into a faith so solid you can build your life on it. He will point you to something to believe in again.

Author Bio
Joshua Harris is senior pastor of Covenant Life in Gaithersburg, Maryland, which belongs to the Sovereign Grace network of local churches. A passionate speaker with a gift for making theological truth easy to understand, Joshua is perhaps best known for his runaway bestseller, I Kissed Dating Goodbye, which he wrote at the age of twenty-one. His later books include Boy Meets Girl, Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is), and Stop Dating the Church. The founder of the NEXT conferences for young adults, Joshua is committed to seeing the gospel transferred to a new generation of Christians. He and his wife, Shannon, have three children.

My Thoughts
I've read some of Joshua Harris' books in the past and have enjoyed them. When I had the opportunity to read this book, I jumped at the offer. I did this because the book was promoted as digging down to orthodoxy. I phrase it as theology for the rest of us. I remember being in college and working through a heavy volume of systematic theology. It wasn't something I enjoyed. So I was curious to see how the author would approach it. My opinion is that he does a good job. The book isn't written to be an exhaustive scholarly work, but the thoughts of of a regular person wanting to ground their faith. He works to make some of the foundational truths of the Christian faith more accessible. Having come across a lot of Christians that only scratch the surface of what it means to follow Christ, I feel it is very timely to encourage others to go a little deeper. Especially in the hour that we're living.

The book is easy to read, but as you do you find yourself having gut checks every so often. It comes down to confronting what you believe and asking yourself if it is Biblical. I walk away from the book tempted to pull out my Systematic Theology text that sits abandoned on a shelf and starting to dig into it with my Bible right beside it. I'd encourage you to pick up a copy and read it.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can find out more about it from the Waterbrook Multnomah web site.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah.

Welcome to Reality

2010-01-16T21:34:00.000-05:00

Last night my wife and I had the pleasure of spending all night with our youth. It was our youth ministry's annual all nighter. We've been doing them for several years now and believe we know what to expect. This year we experienced something different. All the teens that were there seemed more subdued than most years. We still had a lot of fun, but overall there wasn't as much hyperactive craziness. As we discussed this, my wife made an interesting observation. Normally we have the all nighter right near New Years Eve. This year we had to wait later into January. This means that our students came after having woke up early in the morning and having spent an entire day at school. This is in stark contrast to them normally having been on Christmas vacation for a week and itching just to get out and do something. A day of school completely affected how they acted during the night. Perhaps they got a little taste of what the leaders go through to be there. From a leader standpoint, I think we should do it this way every year.

An Ounce of Prevention

2010-01-08T00:57:00.000-05:00

Perhaps a better title for this post would be "$200 of Prevention." I'm not a big fan of buying extended warranties. They are for the most part worthless. However, there is one extended warranty that I'm a big believer in, namely, Apple Care. New Macs come with a year of warranty coverage, but you can extend it to three years by purchasing Apple Care. For my laptop, the price was somewhere over $200. It's expensive and if you never use it you feel stupid for buying it, but when you need it it's priceless.

After youth service this past Tuesday, my laptop was shut. A few minutes later I tried to open it up. Nothing. I figured it was incorrectly thinking that it was still attached to the projector that we had used. I forced it to power down and tried restarting it. It tried to start, and then nothing. Over the next few hours I restarted it multiple times, took the battery out and then restarted it, and even zapped the pram. Nothing worked. It wasn't a good feeling. Thankfully, there's an Apple store in Cleveland and after calling and talking with Apple Care, I made an appointment.

I drove there this morning as the snows approached. They took my computer, examined it, and declared it to be a bad logic board. Logic boards are expensive. I priced a repair online and it came in at $800. For that amount you might as well buy a new computer. I would have been in dire straights, but Apple Care jumped in to my rescue. I was informed that it would take about a week for them to get a logic board in and installed. The cost to me? Absolutely zero. That zero is a really beautiful word. Thanks to Apple Care, an expensive repair that I wouldn't have been able to cover is going to be taken care of.

So, my advice to anyone that is considering buying an Apple computer is simple. Buy Apple Care. It may seem pointless at the time, but amazingly wonderful if you need it.

And yes, I've drank the Kool-Aid and it was delicious.

The Bible in 2010

2010-01-01T02:51:00.001-05:00

It's hard to believe that 2010 is already here. One of my goals, as it is every year, is to be in the Word of God. For the last several years I have been using the 5 lane reading plan. I like it, but I think it's time to try a different one. Even good things can hinder us when they become simple pattern. I'm hoping a different reading plan will refresh my time in the Word. I'm using a plan from Youversion.com. Not only can I view it online but it also syncs with my phone. Youversion is a great site and if it's not already in my links it will be soon.

It's almost two in the morning and I need some sleep. Here's to a great new year serving the Lord.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T22:42:00.000-05:00

It was a long day today. Up at 4:30 and then hours spent at the hospital. I'm glad to say everything worked out, but it made for a long day. Christmas Eve service went well, but I think the best part of the day was sitting down this evening when I got home. Now, I think it's about time for bed. Since I'm not planning on writing tomorrow, I just want to take this opportunity to wish everyone that reads this a very Merry Christmas.

Book Review - Primal

2009-12-22T14:13:00.000-05:00

Again I find myself in the position of having a book to review that I haven't finished. This time though, I think I have a pretty good excuse. I was in Kenya. When the original offer came out and I accepted it, the book was scheduled to arrive before I left on my trip. I thought the timing was going to be perfect. I would have ample time to read during the flights (I didn't know then that I would be sick). Also, for some odd reason I really wanted to read a book called Primal while I was sitting in Africa. Anyway, due to a slight publishing delay the book arrived two days after I left. My return home threw me right into the middle of my youth group's dinner theatre and the overall business of the Christmas season. Mark Batterson is my favorite author and he deserves a better blog entry, but what can I do. My only consolation is that I have some time off in the upcoming days and I'm looking forward to enjoying the book. So below you will find the publisher's info and then a brief word from me based on the little I've been able to read.

Publisher's Info
Be astonished again. We have a tendency to complicate Christianity. Jesus simplified it: Love God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength. If we are to live out the essence of Christianity, we must commit to being great at this Great Commandment.

In Primal, Mark Batterson explores the four elements of Great Commandment Christianity: compassion, wonder, curiosity, and power. Along the way, he calls you to be a part of God’s reformation, starting in your own life.

As Mark writes, “Is there a place in your past where you met God and God met you? A place where your heart broke for the things that break the heart of God? Maybe it was a sermon that became more than a sermon. Maybe it was a mission trip or retreat. Maybe it was a vow you made at an altar. In that moment, God birthed something supernatural in your spirit. You knew you’d never be the same again. My prayer is that this book would take you back to that burning bush—and reignite a primal faith.”

Primal will help you live in light of what matters most and discover what it means to love God. It will help you become great at the Great Commandment.

Author Bio
The author of Wild Goose Chase and In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day, Mark Batterson serves as lead pastor of National Community Church in Washington, D.C. One church with nine services in five locations, NCC is focused on reaching emerging generations and meets in movie theaters at metro stops throughout the D.C. area. Mark has two Masters degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago. He and his wife, Lora, live on Capitol Hill with their three children.

My Thoughts
I personally enjoy Mark's writing style and within the first few pages he has already challenged my thinking. Quoting former Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Mark discusses the idea of there being simplicity on the near side of complexity and simplicity on the far side of complexity. Near side simplicity is is only mind deep and has never been tested in fires of adversity, doubt, trial, and pain. That's where the complexity comes in. Most of us have asked the question "why" a thousand times. Why do so many things happen to us as we follow Christ. Yet, there is that simplicity on the far side of complexity. It's a place where we have been tried and maybe don't even understand completely, but we know God is the truth and we continue to follow. We find ourselves at a place of simple faith. Not immature faith, but faith that focuses on the main things that God has called to do.

Already this idea has been challenging my thinking and to be fair, I must point out this comes from page 5. Five pages in and I'm already challenged. I'm looking forward to the rest of the book. I know that Mark and his publishers are promoting the book as the first book you read in 2010. It would be a good idea, but I encourage you to pick it up and end 2009 with it.

My favorite place to buy books is Amazon and you can find the book there. Or of you are inclined, you can find out more about it from the Waterbrook Multnomah web site.

And for the government I need to let you know that this was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah

Thank You Hackers

2009-12-19T07:11:00.000-05:00

I woke up yesterday expecting to spend most of the day preparing for my youth group's dinner theater. Before I left the house, a friend called me to let me know that he had been talking with someone claiming to be me on my Facebook. They were asking for money because they claimed that I had gotten stuck in London. It sounded realistic since people knew I was flying back from Kenya a couple days ago. I jumped on to find out and sure enough I had no access to Facebook. That was bad enough, but I soon realized that they had jumped from Facebook and now had control of both my major Gmail accounts. That wasn't good. With that they would have had potential access to password resets from various financial institutions.

Let's just say I was a little nervous. It suddenly became a race to protect my family. I give Google credit. I was able to fill out a form online that required a lot of identifying information about various Google services that the certain Gmail account was connected with, but once I did I had a link that allowed me to regain access within about ten minutes. I jumped on and changed the password on both and went on to change other web site passwords to be safe. I came back and tried to access Gmail again and discovered that my password had been changed. Not only was my account hacked still, but they were actually working against me at the exact same time I was trying to fix things. Not a good feeling.

Thanks again to Google, I was able to regain access. I searched through all the account settings and found the problem. They had set my email to automatically forward to them. Plus, they were getting a text message if anything was changed. I went through and removed everything that they had set up. Then I changed the password again. Then, my wife noticed that Google listed at the bottom of the screen that I was not only logged in from my location, but I was also logged in at a second location. There was an option to terminate the other location. I did and then proceeded to recheck all the settings and change the password again. I did this for both accounts and then waited. I was fairly confident that I got it secured, but I had to wait.

While I waited, I went over to Facebook and reported that my account had been hacked. Within a few minutes my account had been disabled. Better disabled than letting them have access. I'm working to regain control but in the past Facebook has been very slow in my opinion.

So, now I'm checking my accounts constantly to make sure they're remain secure. I've changed a lot of passwords. I'm making them insanely long which is only possible thanks to 1Password. If you're on a Mac, I recommend that you use it. It allows you to create long passwords for websites. It remembers them for you and then fills them in when you visit that web site. Check it out at Agile Web Solutions.

Well that's about it. If you received a strange email from me ignore it. As of now I have control and I hope to maintain it.

Back in the Office

2009-12-16T11:35:00.000-05:00

I've made it back from Kenya with minimal physical damage. Jet lag hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be. I've been crashing into bed a little after 10 PM and waking up at 6 AM. So it would appear that jet lag is making me go to sleep and wake up at a good time. I'm planning on posting a few more thoughts about Kenya in the days ahead, but for now I have to force myself to get caught up in the office.

Warfare

2009-12-11T23:40:00.000-05:00

Last night the focus of our service was the Holy Spirit. Cornell was preaching on how to live Spirit filled. That's what this generation of Kenyan and every nationality of believers need. The service was going fine until we got to the message. Within moments of Cornell starting to preach we had an incredible thunderstorm arrive. The rain was pounding harder than you could imagine. As an added bonus, the building we were in has a tin roof. The roar was deafening. Cornell kept preaching though.

At some point Rusty turned to me and asked if I had a flashlight. I dug one out of my bag and we set it on the table. Then I felt it. Rusty and I sit together in the middle of the room at the sound board and computer and I remember turning to him and saying, "I think I'm getting wet." It felt like the splatter of rain in the ground. Within a few moments we had our answer. We were sitting under the pinnacle of the roof and I guess it wasn't as sealed as it should be. Water started dripping on us. We grabbed a cloth tarp that we had been covering the sound table at night to cover our gear. It rained harder. It became clear that cloth wasn't going to protect us. Some of our Kenyan brothers ran over with some plastic and we covered it with that.

The noise was so loud that Cornell called everyone to pray against it. That's all we could do. Then, the power went off. We prayed harder as flashlights were whipped out. We had a generator and after 15 minutes or so of work they were able to get it running to at least get the sound system going again. The rain wasn't letting up and we prayed harder still. Eventually Cornell decided to keep going all the while rain was dripping down the entire middle aisle.

During this Emmanuel thought it best to move the entire sound table. We ripped up some tape that was anchoring cords and moved it to a drier spot. Remember, this is all happening with flashlights and some candles that one of the ladies had. I asked Rusty if he could get me power back to the projector. My thinking was twofold. If Cornell's presentation was onscreen the students could follow his message easier, especially the verses, because they could be reading while trying to listen. Second, projectors are extremely bright. It would go a long way to lighting up the front area.

Rusty and Jimmy were able to run an extension to get power back to the projector and it worked as I hoped it would. Cornell was able to finish preaching and the altar called ensued. As of this moment we know that someone accepted Christ and that at least one was baptized in the Holy Spirit. We will try to find out more today.

After service the students had their tea. It's a good thing that our camp cooks have done all of their work over fire in the kitchen. We showed some videos and then eventually began sending them off to bed. It was still raining this entire time. Not as hard, but still rain.

I asked Pastor Sam if rain like this was common and he told me that it wasn't. The word he used was that it was abnormal, especially since we are entering the dry season.

The power did come back on before we went to sleep so we have it for today. Our final service is this morning before we break camp. Praying that God does something powerful and that the enemy is defeated.

It's Funny What We Crave

2009-12-11T04:17:00.001-05:00

I have been loving my time in Kenya, especially since I got over being sick from traveling. The people are wonderful and I'm learning to appreciate the food. It's similar to a lot of things that I normally eat while at the same time being different in a lot of ways. As we sit at the two week mark for being out of the States, I've realized that I'm craving a Chick-fil-a chicken sandwich. I've looked around but I have spotted any Chick-fil-a. The only American fast food restaurant that the missionary knows of in Kenya is a KFC in Nairobi. There's a part of me that would really love to go to it just to see how different it is.

Languages and Presentation

2009-12-11T04:02:00.000-05:00

Besides the couple times I've spoken, my major role during this week at camp was to run the multimedia. This includes projecting the worship lyrics. In normal circumstances this can be challenging as the worship team may randomly jump back to parts of a song and you have to be able to keep up. However, this week has added a new challenge. While our team from the States leads worship in the evening, some of our Kenyan brothers and sisters lead worship in the morning. While some of the songs they do are in English, others are in Swahili. It is rather difficult to keep the lyrics correct when they are in another language.

Kumbaya

2009-12-10T07:22:00.000-05:00

I asked someone if they knew kumbaya. They did and started singing it. I asked them what it meant. They gave the the exact same answer that people always give in the States. However, they made it clear that it wasn't a Swahili word. The search for the origins of Kumbaya continue.

Camp X Kenyan Style

2009-12-09T08:29:00.000-05:00

I am right in the midst of the camp that we are putting on. It has been an interesting experience. For those that know what Big Prairie was, let me just say that we had no right to complain. We spent the hours before camp started cleaning our meeting room. We had to do this because a lot of birds consider our building a nice respite from the sun. While we meet they fly in and out and over our heads. When I made an inspection tour of the restroom and shower facilities, I was greeted by two very large rats. I originally thought they were more of the birds until the sauntered away and I saw their long tales. I know God created everything but why the rat?

I freely admit that things are different than what I'm use to, but in the long run it doesn't matter because God is here. We had good services last night and the sessions this morning went extremely well. I of course spoke during one of them. In spite of me things are going good. We have a few more days of camp and then we pack up for the trip home. Rusty and I both calculated that if all goes right it will take us approximately 30 hours from the time we leave Eldoret until we make it back to our homes. I'm looking forward to seeing my family, but not looking forward to the trip. Plus, I'm heading back to cold weather. Everyday here is probably in the low 80's with cool breezes. Nights are cool enough for a jacket. Anyway, my Kenya journey will end soon and regular life will begin again.

Shout outs from some of the people with me. Cornell says "What's up!" Jenna says hello. They must have thought that I was on Facebook.

Preaching in Kenya

2009-12-06T15:40:00.000-05:00

Had the opportunity to preach in a Kenyan congregation this morning. Kept it slow so my accent wouldn't be too hard to understand. I think it went well. I was told it did. The coolest part that has nothing to do with preaching was after the service was over. I was talking to someone and a lady came up to me with a tray that contained a cup of chai tea and some sugar. I guess they brew big batches of it for after church. I walked around and talked with people while sipping on some pretty good tea. The whole trip has been an experience. Tomorrow we are completely focused on prepping for the camp and Tuesday it starts. It's going to be a long and tiring week, but hopefully a good one. I teach a session on Tuesday and I'm praying that goes well.

My New Calling in Radio

2009-12-02T10:52:00.003-05:00

Thankfully I'm doing a lot better. The trip over really took it out of me but I think I'm about back to full speed. Now, for my interesting missions experience of the day.

Carrie, Cornell, and myself went to the local radio station and were on The Fish FM. It was local show for teens called T.I.T.O & Pizzah. They were playing Christian American rap and also Christian rap from here and even Uganda. Then, they were talking with us about the upcoming camp. It was over an hour of promoting the camp. During the time we were also giving away some free registrations to the camp. It was an experience. As we were leaving, we found out they wanted us to do promo spots for the radio station. Each one of us did multiple promos. So basically, if you visit Kenya in the upcoming years, you may hear one of us proudly declaring, "you're listening to 97.1 Fish FM."

Here in Kenya

2009-12-01T14:14:00.001-05:00

I am writing this from a Kenyan wildlife refuge. This is part of the fun of our trip. Got to watch some rhinos. Pretty interesting.

Still fighting some sickness from the the travels. So far the trip has been unpleasant with small sparkles of enjoyment because of it. I hope that reverses before the end.

The most interesting thing I've noticed so far, besides the rhino squaring up to charge the other half of our team's vehicle, has been the guards. Everywhere you go you see guards. At the Nakumaat (basically a Walmart), guarding where we stayed last night, outside of restaurant's. I understand fully well that they are there to keep you safe, but the question that of course surfaces in your mind is why do we need guards everywhere?

In my life in America, there have only been a few times where I found myself in a place that I considered not safe. For the most part I completely take safety for granted.

That 's it for the moment. Please pray for me if you can so I can get over this sickness. I'll try to write more if I get access to Internet.

Book Review - A Christmas Collection

2009-11-30T10:43:00.000-05:00

A Collection of book reviews from Kelly

Publisher's Info about "Treasured"
In Treasured, Leigh McLeroy considers tangible reminders of God’s active presence and guides readers in discovering evidence in their own lives of his attentive love.

“The idea for the book came from a cigar box filled with odds and ends of my grandfather’s life that arrived a few months after his death. Sifting through the objects in the box, I experienced him in a fresh new way. This made me wonder what treasures might be tucked away in Scripture that could frame God for me in an equally intimate, tangible way. This process also helped me uncover my own “treasures” of my walk with the Lord: objects that remind me of my history with him and his faithfulness to me,” says McLeroy.

Drawn from the pages of Scripture, the author considers twelve such treasures and personalizes their meaning for readers, such as a green olive branch that offers proof of God’s “new every morning” mercy and a scarlet cord that demonstrates his willingness to adopt “strays” of every sort.

Weaving these treasures together with scenes from her personal history, Leigh McLeroy invites readers to discover God’s heart for them and embrace their unique role in his redemptive story. Treasured offers readers a guided experience of God’s love and character and invites them to consider their own treasures that point to their part in God’s ongoing story.

Kelly's Review
I did not get a chance to read this book.

Publisher's Info About "God Gave Us Love"
In God Gave Us Love, Little Cub and Grampa Bear’s fishing adventure is interrupted by mischievous otters, and the young polar bear begins to ask questions like why must we love others . . . even the seemingly unlovable? Why is it easier to love those we like? Where does love come from? And why does God love her so much?

Grampa Bear patiently addresses each one of Little Cub’s curiosities by explaining the different kinds of love we can share: the love between friends, the love between families, the love between moms and dads, and the love for God.

He also assured Little Cub that because of the love God has given her through his Son, there’s nothing she can do to make God love her any more or any less. Through Grampa Bear’s encouraging Little Cub to love others with a “God-sized love,” children will be inspired to love others and to be patient, gentle and kind, so that in every way, they too can demonstrate God’s love.

Kelly's Review
I have read some of the God Gave Us books before and this one was a great book too. It talks about the different kinds of love in a way that kids can relate to. It also told about the difference between liking and loving. The most important love of all is the love that God has for us. Through his love he shows us how to love others. I enjoyed reading it and my kids liked it too. I know it will be read over and over again.

Publisher's Info About "God Gave Us Christmas"
In God Gave Us Christmas, as Little Cub and her family prepare to celebrate the most special day of the year, the curious young polar bear has something on her mind: “Who invented Christmas?” she asks. “Is God more important than Santa?”

Her questions reflect the confusion of so many children during the holiday season. And this heartwarming story takes them on a wonderful journey of discovery—right to the heart of Christmas.
Through Mama’s gentle guidance, Little Cub learns that God loves her and everyone— polar bear, moose, or human—so much that he gave us Jesus, the very best gift of all.

Kelly's Review
This book was another great one. It tells how God gave Christmas to us and it is not just about Santa Claus. Christmas is a special gift from God for all of us. He sent his son to earth because he loves us so much. The story shows that God is all powerful and everything about Christmas points us to God’s gift of his son for us. I enjoyed reading this book too. I recommend it to anyone wanting to get the focus off of the cultural things of Christmas and back on Jesus.

As always, you can find out more about the books at Random House or Amazon.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Keyna

2009-11-27T10:31:00.000-05:00

Well, the day has finally arrived. I'm making the last few preparations to head out to Kenya. I'm looking forward to the adventure and praying that God does something good. I'm not looking forward to the long fights.
The absolute worst part about the trip though is leaving my family. I'm a homebody and I love just being with my family. It's hard to imagine even missing a moment of their lives.
Yet, I feel God is leading in this. I pray that he watches over the trip and those that I leave behind.
Except for a book review posted for Kelly (written today but dated for next week), this blog is going silent for awhile. Of course, it's been pretty silent as of late as I've been preparing for the trip. I'll talk to everyone later.

From My Phone

2009-11-17T23:11:00.004-05:00

I know it's something we take for granted anymore, buy I find it amazing that I can be writing this post from my phone. When I click publish, it will post this to my blog on Google which in turn will sync it to my official blog page. As a tech person, I am constantly amazed at the multitude of technologies that are being created. It also saddens me. Knowledge is increasing, but wisdom seems to be on the decline. While knowledge is great, the wise application of it is much greater. Don't really have any reason for that random correlation other than it was on my mind.

Book Review - White Picket Fences

2009-11-14T21:20:00.000-05:00

Here's a quick book review by Kelly.

Publisher's Info
Amanda Janvier’s idyllic home seems the perfect place for her niece Tally to stay while her vagabond brother is in Europe, but the white picket fence life Amanda wants to provide is a mere illusion. Amanda’s husband Neil refuses to admit their teenage son Chase, is haunted by the horrific fire he survived when he was four, and their marriage is crumbling while each looks the other way.

Tally and Chase bond as they interview two Holocaust survivors for a sociology project, and become startlingly aware that the whole family is grappling with hidden secrets, with the echoes of the past, and with the realization that ignoring tragic situations won’t make them go away.

Readers of emotional dramas that are willing to explore the lies that families tell each other for protection and comfort will love White Picket Fences. The novel is ideal for those who appreciate exploring questions like: what type of honesty do children need from their parents, or how can one move beyond a past that isn’t acknowledged or understood? Is there hope and forgiveness for the tragedies of our past and a way to abundant grace?

Author Bio
Susan Meissner cannot remember a time when she wasn’t driven to put her thoughts down on paper. Her novel The Shape of Mercy was a Publishers Weekly pick for best religious fiction of 2008 and a Christian Book Award finalist. Susan and her husband live in Southern California, where he is a pastor and a chaplain in the Air Force Reserves. They are the parents of four grown children.

Kelly's Thoughts
I really enjoyed reading this book. The characters were realistic and fun. The use of historical events to tell the story was good too. It was interesting to learn about some of the things that happened during the holocaust. The underlying theme of having hidden secrets was good. It reminds you that no matter what you try to hide it is always best to have it come into the light. Having honesty within a family is crucial for its survival. Keeping secrets will keep a family from being healthy and loving each other fully. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Christian fiction.

Check the book out at Random House.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Ministry

2009-11-11T09:48:00.000-05:00

I have the honor of meeting every other week with three students from
my youth ministry that feel God may be calling them into full time
ministry. Before each time, we all listen to a podcast and then come
together to discuss it. It's a great resource and I'll give the
website a plug at the end. Even though we've only met a couple times
so far, I'm really enjoying it. Talking about the call of God and the
ministry is stirring something in me. It's taking me back to the days
when I felt God calling me. It's fanning into a flame again a passion
to love and serve others. The whole point of these meetings is to
really help them understand what the ministry entails and to help them
prayerfully make their calling sure. Yet, as we talk, I find myself
realizing that I really enjoy what I do. Beyond the struggles,
problems, and heartaches I face in the ministry, there is something
incredible about serving God in this calling.

www.explorethecall.com

Up Early

2009-11-10T06:08:00.000-05:00

This is just a little post to let everyone know that I am sitting in the coffee shop at 6 in the morning. I've been up since 4:45. I thought with age came a love for mornings. Let me just unequivocally express that I do not like mornings. Mornings are for sleeping. I'm sure if I were to research the etymology of the word morning I would find a clear association with the word mourning. They are homonyms and it just makes sense. When you wake up early, you mourn the loss of sleep that you are experiencing. Hence, you are mourning. Over a few centuries the word changes to describe that time early before the sun rises.

To make it even better, there is a pastor I know meeting with a group of men here this morning. They are having a men's Bible study or accountability meeting. Now in addition to being tired, I have a beautiful sense of guilt that they are being very spiritual while I'm griping.

We Press On

2009-11-04T23:10:00.000-05:00

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.” (2 Corinthians 4:7–12 NIV)

This just felt like a good passage to post and reflect on. No commentary from me whatsoever.

A Sloppy Wet Kiss

2009-11-03T11:37:00.000-05:00

I was sitting here preparing worship for youth service tonight and one of the songs that I chose to use was "How He Loves" by The Glorious Unseen. Since we don't have live music, I will often choose a song that we don't display the words for at the end for everyone just to worship. I like this song, but I've heard it put down in the past because of one phrase. The line is, "Then Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss." I admit that I've often scratched my head at this line. It's doesn't seem to be poetic or even beautiful imagery of the Savior's love for us.

Yet, my children have taught me what I believe is the meaning. I love it when my children kiss me. They are completely and unashamed in their love. So much so that they don't realize that it's polite to close their mouths. They don't realize that I shouldn't have to go dry my face off after their kisses. They just love, and for them that love takes the form of a sloppy wet kiss. It's about the purest form of love we experience outside of our relationship with God. Often we don't realize how much God loves us. He's not ashamed of us. He's passionate about us. He wants to grab us in His arms and smother us in kisses and his love.

As we grow older, we seem to leave unashamed pure love behind. We don't like it when grandma's smoother us with kisses. We struggle to release ourselves from the bear hugs of aunts and uncles. We move toward a proper love. A refined love. However, when I look at what Christ did on the cross, I don't see "proper" or "refined" love. I see the raw passionate love of a Creator for his creation. I see love that was willing to pay the ultimate price.

Maybe what I'm writing today is only resonating in my heart and if that's true that's fine. But reflect on the thought that God is unashamedly and passionately in love with you.

Welcome Home

2009-10-29T20:18:00.000-05:00

This past summer, my church was broken into and one thing was stolen. A metal box that the thieves assumed contained money. Thankfully, we don't keep money at the church because, how should I put this, thieves can break in and steal it? So our intrepid criminals absconded with a metal box that contained nothing more than some old ledgers filled with numbers. Quite a heist I know. Anyway, I had pretty much decided that the case was forever resolved to the dustbin of history. Then today, I got a call from a deputy that our box had been recovered. Some people out for a walk came across it on a road just outside of town. It would appear that most everything is still in it. Damp, but still there. Unfortunately, finding the box didn't mean finding the ones that dumped it there months ago. So we have our wonderful box back and just to reiterate once again, we don't keep money at the church. We keep it at the bank. You never know, the thieves may spend their idle time reading my blog and I just want them to know that.

A New Method

2009-10-29T09:11:00.001-05:00

Sometimes it's good to shake up the normal way we do things. A little change can bring a fresh perspective. For the past few weeks I have been undertaking a new method for my sermon preparation. I want to thank Gene Roncone for sharing his teaching notes on the method that I am currently using. The crazy thing about change is that while it can be a good thing, the process is not always enjoyable. The steps I'm undertaking now in my weekly preparation are not natural for me. Sometimes I feel like giving up because it is difficult for me. Yet, with this change I find myself having to go deeper in the text I'm
planning to use. I find myself thinking deeper about what God is saying and wants to say through it. The time I'm spending to prepare has increased dramatically as I expected with learning a new way. That added to an already full schedule makes life hectic at times, but it's worth it. The eventual dividends outweigh the current struggle.

With that said, I need to get back to my preparation.

Destroyed By Choice

2009-10-28T20:52:00.000-05:00

One of the hardest things about being in the ministry is that you get to watch people choose destruction. People that no matter how much you care about them, no matter how much to teach them, and no matter how much you you fight for them, still choose to live a life apart from Christ. There are many I've seen where I know the end result of their choices, yet they choose to ignore it. It's not that they don't know. They know full well, but they choose not to believe. A choice not to follow Christ is a choice for destruction.

Thankfully, there are others that I see that have so much promise. They are striving to live and do what God has asked. They struggle, but they don't quit. May they keep wrestling with God because when we wrestle with Him, He wins. And when God wins out in our life, we win too.

Pizza Hut Is Out To Get Me

2009-10-27T22:05:00.001-05:00

Anyone that has read this blog knows that I'm fighting the diet battle. After slacking off, I'm trying to hit it hard again. Thankfully I'm still below my all time high. Everytime I get serious I go through the first several days where I'm just hungry. Okay, I'm hungry every day but I digress. Without fail, when I get serious we get an ad from Pizza Hut in the mail. In the ad there is always the same picture. It's one of their sandwiches with what looks like boneless BBQ wings on it. It looks amazing. The funny thing is I've yet to try one. When I break my diet I go other places. Yet without fail the ad shows up when I start trying to be good again. I'm beginning to believe that Pizza Hut has singled me out for diet destruction. I'll show them, I think I'll call Papa John's.

On Facebook? The original post resides at www.focusedjourney.com.

Adios Old Comments and Other Changes

2009-10-26T19:30:00.000-05:00

I have officially made my behind the scenes changes to the web site. I know some of you don't care and if that's you, go ahead and stop reading now. The biggest thing that I changed was that my bog now syncs with my blog that I have on Google's blogspot. Before acquiring my own domain and deciding to use Rapidweaver, I tested and used both Wordpress and Blogger. They were okay, but I liked the greater control I had using Rapidweaver. I never got rid of the accounts though. Anyway, I came across a way to sync my blogspot and Rapidweaver. I set it up and it does work. The benefit is that I have a backup blog. This is nice in case I decide down the road not to renew my domain. That's a couple years away, but it I thought it wise to have it already have it in place.

The added bonus is that I can now blog from my phone when I'm traveling. There is a free iPhone app that allows you to post to your blogspot blog. I can write a blog, it syncs to blogspot, and then appears on my blog. Then, when I publish down the road with Rapidweaver, the blog entry is imported into Rapidweaver. I've been impressed on how well it works. Some bugs to be sure will pop up, but nothing too bad.

That does lead us to the couple problems I faced. I had to choose between my old comment system or switching over to the comments from blogspot. Using the blogspot would allow comments to be present on both sites. I chose to go that route. Unfortunately that meant losing my old comments. Tough decision but I made it.

Also, Google's spam fighting features prevent me from importing my entire blog at once. When I tried I would get locked out and could only post from blogspot using Captcha to verify that I was a human. So, I will be slowly rebuilding old post a few a day. I'm not in a big hurry. I don't believe that people are clamoring for my blog archives.

That's where the blog stands now for those that were willing to read all the way through.

For the insanely curious, you can check out the mirror image of my blog at www.focusedjourney.blogspot.com.

Kenya's Coming Fast

2009-10-26T19:09:00.000-05:00

I am about one month away from heading to Kenya. It's amazing to think that I will be heading to another continent for a time of ministry and then returning before Christmas. The missionaries of the past have my deepest appreciation. Many headed out never expecting to return home. For many it was months of travel just to reach their field. I'm humbled that I am able to fly half way around the world, preach and teach, and then fly back in such a short amount of time. Praying that the Lord will use me and the team for something great.

McDonald's Commercial

2009-10-25T21:40:00.000-05:00

McDonald's has a new commercial that bothers me. A man walks around holding one dollar in his hand asking what he can get for it and is told at a variety of places that he can't get anything. Then he goes to McDonald's where he is informed of all the wonderful choices on the Dollar Menu. The man happily hands over his one dollar. Make a note. It was one dollar. We see pictures of food and then the commercial ends with the man at a table eating. He's eating a McDouble, but on his table is also a drink and a yogurt parfait. He handed the worker one dollar, but he has three dollars worth of food. I don't know why this bothers me but if does. It's like when a car commercial shows you a car loaded with features and gives you the price only to tell you in the fine print that all those features shown are not included in the price.

The man either had more money, which sort of negates the entire commercial being about one dollar, or he stole the extra food. Neither one seems like great marketing to me.

Meatballs and Sausage

2009-10-24T22:21:00.002-05:00

A few of my youth and I ran a fundraiser tonight at our church. It was a bluegrass gospel concert and we prepared and sold food during the intermission. A lot of work, but we did fairly well. I arrived to the church at 3:45 this afternoon and left some time after 9. Over five hours, and the most exciting time was that 30 minutes where everyone descended en masse. There is an adrenaline rush when everything is happening at once and you have to move everything to high speed. Anyway, it was good to work with some of my youth and raise a little money for our retreat