Death Penalty

I heard on TV this morning that there may be a change on the Supreme Court's thinking on the death penalty. It's something I wrestle with a little because I've not been in the position of someone who has been a victim of one of the criminals that was subject to it. On the other hand, and I realize my position may knock me off the Republican Party Christmas card list, I am not a proponent of the death penalty. I just don't see where we have the right to choose if someone should live or die, that we have the right to take someone's life into our own hands. I can't reconcile Christ-likeness with the death penalty.

Do I think criminals should be punished? Definitely. I think there was probably some benefit to the chain gangs and hard, hard manual labor. Maybe some authorities didn't handle it properly but I think it's a much better alternative to the death penalty. When Clayton Williams ran for governor several years ago, one of his theme's was "busting rocks" which is what he wanted the criminals to do. I think he had a lot of support until he made a stupid comment about rape but his hard work for criminals seemed to strike a chord with many people.

I want feel bad to see the death penalty go away but I would like to see more stringent penalties for those offenders who might be in line for it.
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The Rockies-Red Sox series didn't go the way I wanted it to but it was a good example of momentum ruling the day. The Sox had it and the Rockies had been sitting still too long but it was still neat to see them make it that far. As for the Rangers...maybe next year.

A Late Start

I usually blog early in the morning but my day has been wacky so I'm running behind and to top it off, I really have nothing to say. I'm leaving Friday for a conference in Chicago. I enjoy going to Chicago and like to walk around and not need a car for a few days. I had hoped my wife was going to be able to join me but several things going on around here will prevent that so it makes the trip a little less exciting to look forward to. Even so, I'll probably still pop in to the original Pizzeria Uno, eat at ESPN Sportszone for my son and finish off my time there at Joe's Stone Crab. Things may change but it's good to have dreams of eating good!

The rest of the time I'll be at an accounting software conference. I'm not sure I can imagine anything sounding more boring but I'm sure there is. I'm considering trying to get tickets to a Bulls game but the luster of seeing them has diminished over the years. I've also thought of dropping in at Truefitt & Hill and getting an old-fashion shave and haircut. The Apple store will be a definite stop and maybe the Orvis store too. I think there is a theater near my hotel so I might catch the new Denzel Washington movie one night.

I'll be alone but I think I'll find a few things to keep me occupied. It's good to have plans.

16:38

My daughter was able to run in the district cross country meet as it was moved up to Friday. She has struggled with the early morning practices and has appeared to waver at times on whether it is something she wanted to do. I have absolutely no idea if she will run again next year but Friday was a wonderful day. She ran the course in 16 minutes and 38 seconds! It was her best time ever and a great effort over any of her previous times. I am so proud of her because she showed up with a goal of a time to beat (even asked me to help her make sure she was under that time) and then just blew her goal away. It was a great day for a mom and a dad and I trust it was a great day for my little girl too.

Way to go KoKo. You make me so proud and bring me great joy.

Just When You Think You've Seen It All

Here's my friend David and his alligator friend. Someone on the boat said alligator's don't have brains which is probably why the alligator kept chasing the lure even after it got hooked once or twice before David got it to the boat. I commented that I wondered if some fishermen were like alligators in that they keep trying to catch something that could bite their leg off. Oh well...it makes for a great story for years to come.

On the way to Salado today, I saw a church advertising their 30 minute worship. Ain't that grand? All you have to do is carve out 30 minutes for worship. I went to their website and it said they have 8-10 minutes of singing, 12-15 minutes of preaching and about 5 minutes for response (listed as praying and giving). That's pretty tidy.

At the risk of walking too far out on a limb, I'm going to suggest the way we "do church" is ineffective in some ways and we need to learn from churches that are doing some innovative things to grow in numbers, but more importantly, in spirit. Yet I tend to go in the opposite direction of the 30 minute worship. I get frustrated that we have to be efficient and keep our worship service within a designated time limit. I realize there are certain groups of people that have trouble sitting in one place too long but I also know there are some who complain only because they are not being entertained enough or because they don't feel they are getting enough out of the service. The focus is inward when it should be upward. The focus in on them instead of on God, on what they get instead of what they are giving. I know because I have been guilty. I have complained the sermon was boring or too long, the songs were too old and too slow. I'm guilty of focusing on what I want from worship instead of what God wants from worship.

30 minutes to worship. Have mercy on me Lord when I try to stuff you in a small box of time so I can go about my life. Help me God to have a soft and open heart and a desire to worship you with disregard to the world around me.

Reeling Them In

Hopefully, I'll be able to load a couple of pictures from my recent trip to Venice, Louisiana. It's a place where the road literally ends. There were 16 in our group, 11 of those from our church here in Decatur and we did have a good, if not tiring, time. The bedroom we stayed in slept 4 and there wasn't an inch to spare. While the sleeping accomodations aren't going to get 4 stars, the scenery at times was incredible. Wildlife was abundant and it was exciting and interesting to watch it unfold.

The first picture is one of the smaller redfish I caught. I was on a boat that was more serious about fishing than picture-taking so it's the only fish I caught I have a picture of. There were several of the fish we caught that had multiple spots on them but this was one of the "normal" ones. That's Spider fishing on the front of the boat. No one knows his real name.

The other picture is sunset on Saturday night. We were fishing in "Red Pass" where everyone was catching the big reds. It was the first time it was really peaceful on the water while we were there and a beautiful night on the water. (You may be able to click on the pictures to get a better view.)

It was good to get away but always good to be home. I have another trip to make in a week and while it's tough to get away, it's also good for my mind to step out of the normal routine once in a while. Now I'm off to Salado to visit one of our stores.

Fire and Water

I've watched with amazement at the news reports of the fires in California, the 800,000+ people who have been displaced and the damage that has been done. It's always heartwarming to hear the stories of good deeds done by strangers but so many people have lost their home and possessions. While those things are temporal in the grand scheme, I can only imagine how frustrating it is to have to wait out the fires while thinking about starting over.

On the other side of the country towns have run out of water. The drought in the southeast has finally taken all the water some people have access to and others are just days away from losing theirs. I wouldn't want to be in that situation either.

Praying for physical needs seems so selfish at times but people in both these situations need help, comfort and an end to their respective situations. I pray both get what they need.

Vision

I'm serving on a committee for the school district to look at needs of the district today and in the coming years. We have toured all the facilities and now will spend some time talking through what the priorities need to be for the next 5, 10, 20 years. As I've toured the schools, I've seen plenty of quick fixes that need to be made - carpet that needs to be replaced, signage that needs to be fixed, driveways and parking that need repairs. Along with those things, we are considering what facilities need to be improved or added to provide the best academic opportunities for our kids.

As we've worked through this process, it has struck me how important vision and the ability to cast the vision for the future is. Casting a vision is more than a slick marketing theme though that can be a part of it. Casting a vision really requires someone who can weather storms because there will be plenty of naysayers but the vision cannot grow dim. It's rather easy to figure out what needs to be fixed today but to think about what needs to be done for the future is a bigger battle.

My life is so similar. It's easy for me to focus on what I need to do today instead of spending some time preparing myself for the future. Day to day, I can fix little mistakes and postpone decisions but preparing myself for the future takes more thought, more work, more effort and...and the kicker is the payoff doesn't come for many, many years. Eternity is a long time and something that I can easily postpone thinking about while I wrestle with the mundane tasks of today. Yet, I need to cast my vision and start working on my future because it is the most important decisions I can make today.

Brrrr...

It's cold and rainy in Wise County this morning and I LIKE IT.

We made it back from the edge of the world, also known as Venice, Louisiana. It was a good trip overall but a very long one. After an all night drive and a day of fishing with lots of rain and soaking wet clothes, I was beginning to wonder what I signed up for. The next two days were much better and I caught some big fish. Beautiful reds and big speckled trout. I saw some beauty on the Mississippi River and I saw some devastation that still remains from the hurricane.

One of my boat mates, (I won't mention your name David Fuller...oops, I just mentioned your name) caught an alligator and tried to load it in the boat. I've got a picture I'll try ot load sometime this week if I can figure it out. While he was doing that, I was trying to figure out how to get as far away from the alligator as possible. There's nothing like fishing with the Decatur version of Crocodile Dundee.

Have a great day and bundle up.

Off and Gone...

I'm leaving tonight for a whirlwind fishing trip. I'm way too busy to go but I'm going anyway. I knew I had a lot to do but somehow preparing to leave has made me keenly aware of all I need to be working on. I won't be blogging for the next few days but hopefully can post a great picture next week of me with a really, really big redfish.
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A friend made the comment to me the other day saying "religious people scare me." I haven't gotten that out of my head because I wasn't sure I understood what he meant but the more I think about it, the more I think I understand. My friend is a broken person, broken by addictions and pain that I don't know. He's been preached at and told what he needs to do but he's in a place where he needs love through actions right now. He's still hurting as he recovers, hurting because the Devil won a battle with him, hurting because he hurt people along the way, hurting because he failed God. His battle back is learning that God still loves him, still cares for him and has shed grace over him. My friend loves God but is at a point where he needs people who are real, who are open that they are just as fallible, that they struggle with the same struggles.

I think I scare him. I go through life sometimes like I've got it all together. I handle missions work, I handle work work, I somehow get stuff done but inside I feel like I'm hanging on by a thread. I think at times I look like one of those religious people that scare him. Yet I'm no different than my friend. I've lost battles to Satan, I've failed God and I've failed people I love. I've hurt them and I live with the pain of that hurt. The only thing, the one thing that can keep me going is knowing that God loves me. There's no doctrine, there's no right way or wrong way to do church, there's no work I can do that helps me...only God's love pulls me out of the sinking sand.

I don't want to be a religious person. Instead, I want to be a Christ-person. I want to live in Christ-likeness. I want to be the hands and feet of my Savior. I pray God will show me the way.

Living As Light

I was a part of an event recently that got me thinking about people who live outwardly (the appearance of a Christian) as Christians and people who live inwardly (having a Christ-like heart) as Christians. While I was being judgmental towards some people I saw that appeared to be living outwardly it got me to thinking that while I can easily look at them and make a determination of what I think or feel, it's not so easy to look inside Jeff and see what is going on. It reminded me I need to be focused on making judgment of my actions, I need to be focused on making judgment of my thoughts and feelings.

I live far too much living outwardly as a Christian but not living inwardly as I should. I do things I'm supposed to do most of the time but my heart and mind are not where they should be. I want to love God and live for God. I want to be a light and be Christ-like. To do so, I need to be sure I am walking in Christ's footsteps and not worrying about what someone else does. I need to be sure my heart and soul and strength are focused on Him, not someone else.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

A Great Day

Yesterday was Missions Sunday at church. Our missionary from Brazil is here and he along with some others made presentations about the missions work we support. The big part of the day for me was the special contribution. We have some specific needs we hoped to address for some of our missionaries and set a goal of $20,000 for the day. This was on top of our regular contribution and while I felt confident we would hit our goal, I felt it would be close.

I was standing next to one of the finance guys when he turned the adding machine towards me so I could see the total of $48,000+ and it took me a couple of seconds to make sure my eyes were adjusted properly. With a pledge of $1,000 to be paid in the coming year, we hit nearly $50,000 and I would guess a few more checks will roll in. Incredible.

God is amazing and He is good. He provides in abundance.

Yesterday was a great reminder to me of what can happen when we trust God to give us what we need.

Rivalries

Tonight is the Battle of Big Sandy, the annual football showdown between Decatur and Bridgeport. Decatur has been dominant the last several years but most are expecting a close game tonight. I grew up with the Robert E. Lee/John Tyler rivalry, one that was bitter at times and ended up in physical violence more than once. The stories I could tell...but my mom reads this sometimes so I'll just move along...

I forget what year of high school I was in when the John Tyler building was seriously damaged by a fire. Most of the classrooms were lost and there no place could be found that would house their students except-----the Robert E. Lee campus, the home of the enemy. The two schools shared the campus with Lee students coming early and leaving earlier (class periods were cut a little shorter) and John Tyler students coming around noon or a little later and going through the afternoon. Ribbons were tied around trees and banners were hung to welcome the John Tyler students to the Lee campus.

It was a time where people from two places came together and shared what they had. It was a community taking care of it's members who needed something. It was people working together the way God intends for us to work together.

Our church has a special focus on giving of our time right now. Give 60 is the theme and people are encouraged to give 60 minutes of their week to helping others. I remember that time in high school where we came together and it felt good to know we were part of making a positive difference. It still feels good today to help others. Whether it be our rivals, people we don't know or someone we do know, it feels good to help. I think God wired us so that when we did good things we would feel good.

I don't know where I'm going with all of this other than to say two things. First, I encourage you to find ways to give and help others. In doing so, you help them, you help yourself and you encourage others. The second thing is GO EAGLES!

Running for Starbucks

My daughter did well at cross country yesterday with what appeared to me to be her best finish yet. She cut her time down in the first mile by 47 seconds over her previous best. It earned her a Starbucks Frappa-whatever. She did great.
Her district meet is the same weekend as the youth group retreat at Camp Deer Run. She's planning on going to the retreat. Her decision process surprised me a little. I've grown up being ingrained with doing what is best for the team. She plans to go to the retreat. I assume some of her reasoning revolves around the idea that she won't have to run at the retreat but her spiritual growth trip over athletic event decision tells me something about her...something I am proud of.
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My son is taking band at school and playing the clarinet. It's not what I would have envisioned for him but today he was practicing before we left for school and playing the theme from Jaws, the movie from the 70's. It was pretty cool to hear him putting it together and then talking about learning all the different notes. I think he will be a child who blazes his own trail and I look forward to seeing where it takes him. He's a good boy.

How 'bout them Cowboys?

My remote was smoking last night from the continuous flipping between the Cowboys-Bills game and the Indians-Yankees game. It was good to see the over-hyped, over-priced Yankees go down in flames to a team most people can't name more than 1 or 2 players that are on it. Then, to see a rookie kicker boot a 53 yard field goal (he had to kick it twice because of a last milli-second timeout by the Bills coach) was just plain fun. Romo had an awful game and I'm still not sure how the Cowboys hung around and won. I know this, if they don't play better next week, they will get slaughtered. But for today, it's all about Nick Folk and his great leg. He's the hero today.
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Happy Birthday to Rick Ross today. I'm guessing he will celebrate by trying to recover from his State Fair eating tour yesterday.
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My daughter ran in the Decatur cross country meet last Saturday. It was a very, very, very tough course and I don't remember seeing as many kids walking during the race as I did Saturday. It was brutal and while she didn't finish high, she did finish the most grueling course I've seen. I'm proud of her for her effort and the heart she continues to show when finishing the race.
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Where's the caffeine?

This muggy Monday morning has me feeling like I need a double dose of coffee through an IV. The idea of laying my head down and dozing off sounds very enticing this morning.

My wife and kiddos are headed to the State Fair of Texas. I'm battling mixed emotions - glad to avoid the crowds but wishing I was going to see the sights and eat some corn dogs. I'm looking forward to the report from my wife who has fried guacamole bits on her mind. My son wants to ride the ferris wheel and see the Cooperstown exhibit (the biggest reason I wish I was going) and my daughter...I just hope she will get out of the car and go in. I pray they have a safe and very, very fun trip today.

My 7th/8th grade Bible class yesterday discussed the parable of the lost coin. I hid a quarter in a Bible and asked them if they would look for lost money the way the widow did in the story. They rummaged about the room and one or two even looked at the Bible the quarter was in but they were not invested enough in the lost coin to look hard for it. To me, God's investment in us is the beauty of that story. He loves us so much that He gave His son for us. The lesson I walked away with is that I need to have a much greater passion for finding His lost coins, the people who need a relationship with God but have been lost. I can't casually glance around for them, I must be keenly aware of finding them. I pray today my eyes are opened to the lost coins that God so strongly wants to find.

Leadership

Good leadership is something that is easy to appreciate and hard to find. Leadership takes intention and practice. It takes perseverance and patience. It requires building relationships and building people.

I have taught a leadership development course and through it realized how much I need to do to scratch the surface of decent leadership. I have watched people be willing to lead but fail because they didn't know how or didn't commit to what is required. I have watched people become leaders without intending to but the way they conduct themselves made people want to follow.

I'm reading some books on leadership now. By virtue of my position at work, I need to become a better leader and studying how to do so is important to me. Studying it opens my eyes to some people through history who have been leaders and it is fascinating to learn more. Last night, I was reading a brief passage on Theodore Roosevelt and now I want to know more about him. He worked hard to achieve certain things in his life and in doing so, led and inspired many, many others.

I do appreciate leadership in it's many forms. In the class I taught, the earliest premise was "wherever two or more people are gathered, someone will be the leader." I wanted to make everyone aware that in our company, whether someone worked in the executive office or the shipping department, there was an opportunity for leadership and someone would take it...for better or for worse.

I don't know where I'm going with my thoughts today other than writing what has been on my mind this morning. I hope today I will become a better leader than I was yesterday.

Roast Beef

I love the roast beef story. It goes something like this; new bride cooks roast and new husband asks why she cut the ends off before she cooked it. "That's the way mom always did it" comes the response. New husband gets new wife to call mom who tells new wife that Grandma did it that way. New wife calls Grandma and asks why and Grandma tells her the oven was too small for the big roasts she bought so she had to cut the ends off.

I get in a habit of doing things the same way because that's the way they were always done. I have two meetings today that are about looking for ways to do things better, not just the way it's always worked. My hope is that we will find better ways that bring improvement but even if we don't, maybe a paradigm shift will bring new enthusiasm for a better tomorrow.

Surprise...NOT

My honey passed her big test. Hooray!!!!! I knew she would do it and I think she knew she would do it but she was still nervous. It's a big deal to get that behind her and all that is left should be smooth sailing.

I don't know what she will end up doing once the student-teaching is over but she has done an amazing job in each step of this endeavor. She's been a great example for the kids of dedication to accomplishing an achievement.

You go girl! You've done great.
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Roger Egle is a friend that I've coached baseball with. His dad had heart transplant surgery Monday night. I ask you to say a pray for the Egle family and I will post an update when I hear one.
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Speaking of prayers, add Jerry and Anna Nicholas to your prayer. Jerry is battling cancer again and it's been been tough the last few weeks. Jerry has been such an incredible example of faith and courage to so many as he has dealt with cancer. His outlook on life and what awaits him after this life speak volumes about the heart of this man. I'm praying that God will take away this cancer because I need the encouragement I get from him. Pray for Anna too as she fights the battles right next to him. They are a beautiful couple and I am glad I know them.
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I spent a good part of Monday beginning to plan for our trip to Brazil in 2008. I'm excited to go back and wish I could go before next June. I love the people and even though it's 90 degrees in the dead of winter, I am so uplifted by the love and friendliness of our Brazilian friends.

Ciao.