Monday, February 21, 2011

"Biblical Name Drawbacks"

So, I'm a neon signs kind of guy.

Translated that means I'm a little
thick when it comes to understanding
God's leading in my life.

Maybe I strain to hard to hear a whisper
and actually tune out the loud response
He has given...

or quite the opposite. I'm so focused on
that earthquake, tsunami, hurricane
response, I miss the faint gentle
whisper of a loving Father.

Either way, I feel there are way too many
times that I miss it. But I continue
to search.

I do however in attempt to pin down
the whisper or blast, search God's Word.

"Congrats. That's a great call. That's the
first step... next to prayer."

Not so fast. I struggle everyday to even open it.
That's sad. Unfortunately I far too often use
the Bible as a recipe book, instead of a love letter.
Tangent... another blog for another time.

Back to the search.

I try the, open the Bible and read a verse.
I try the, pick a number to equate it to a page number.
I try the, expand on the verse of the day of bible.org

I have found myself from time to time, just saying,
"God, if only there were a verse written specifically
for me, for this situation... like, 'Jacob, sell you house.'"

But there's the danger for me. I can look up verses
that have my name in the verse, but may find this:

Genesis 28:1
So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him.
Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman.

I don't even know where to find a Canaanite woman.
And besides, I'm guessing Samantha would not appreciate that.
(On a side note, thankfully Sam WAS the oldest daughter.)

You see. Sometimes, having a biblical name does have it drawbacks.

Yet, I'll continue to search... to pray... to shout after the Almighty.
Yes, shout. He's God. He's big enough. He can take it.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day

My love,
my friend,
my girl,
my wife,
the mother of my children,
my sister in Christ. 143!

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

"A Lost Art"

So, it was forecasted to be 5 degrees this morning,
with a windchill of -14 degrees.

That's cold... Terrible cold.

But It's not the cold that concerns me.
It's the total babyfication of our children.

Huh?

For the 3rd time this winter, our school
has had a 2-hour delay due to...
TONS OF SNOW, RIGHT?

Wrong.

due to... frigid temperature .

What?

Yeah, really. It's cold... oh no.
Give me a break.

I honestly don't ever remember having
a 2-hour delay due to frigid temperatures
when I was a kid. I can't... and I bet,
IT'S BECAUSE IT DIDN'T HAPPEN!
(I'm sure I'll get all kinds of hate mail
telling me it did).

Soft... schools are turning our children
into soft pretzels... squishable beings.

Folks I know don't understand these
2-hour delays... they're recent transplants
to the area. To hear them tell it, to have
school closures due to snow or delays
to cold weather would pretty much keep
things shut down or delayed all winter
long.

So my kids are soft,
Minnesota kids are tough...

What happened to the lost art of
standing at the bus stop in the cold?

So, yeah, unofficially this morning
according to the thermometer at
my house, it was 9 degrees at 7:50 a.m.
Wind chill I can't say.

At 9:50 a.m. (the new bus time)
it was 15 degrees.
Once again, Wind chill I can't say.

6 degrees.
6 whole degrees different.
REALLY?!
REALLY?!

Come on, man.

Stop softening my kids up...
and please, let me be the one
who babies them.

Friday, February 4, 2011

"How Punxsutawney Phil Killed Santa Claus"

So last night Punxsutawney Phil killed Santa Claus in my house.

It was blood bath.

And the only one who may have not
been damaged in all the shooting
was Levi, my 2-year-old son.

Time to back up.

First, let me say Sam and I perpetuate the
lie of the magicalness of the mystery and
excitement of Santa, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fair,
Washer Troll (you know the one who likes
to steal socks out of the the washer so you
can't make a match), etc.

We can debate the merits of why this is
bad, harmless, etc... whatever your view
may be, but that's not what this blog
is about today.

We do it. End of the above debate.

But, we have a 3rd grader, 8 years old.
He's a know it all punk at Fairview Elementary...
I'm kidding of course.

The point is, he's not dumb. He does the math
and figures things out. Things add up, and
don't make sense to him.

SO, let's get to last nights dinner.

Well, let's start with Groundhog's day.
The 1st grade daughter brings a paper
home about the day.

Facts about Phil.

One fact said some people believe that
even though ground hogs only live 6-8 years
(depends on who's shooting I guess) Phil actually
receives a "magic" potion that has helped
him live for over 100 years.

Dinner, last night.
The boy genius went off.
"That's not possible."
"That's not true."
"It's fake."
etc. etc. etc.

And then this, in the company of his
6 year old sister (who is already questioning Santa),
his 4 year old brother who idolizes him, and
his 2 year old brother who really doesn't even
get it yet:

"Punxsutawney Phil is not real!
Santa is not real!
The Easter bunny is not real!
The tooth fairy is not real!"

All because a ground hog can't live
forever by drinking the water in
Indiana County...

Santa Died! He's dead.

I guess I'm going to have to have the
talk with my son one day soon...
you know... play the game with us
for the sake of your brothers.

R.I.P Santa Claus, February 3rd, 2011