Wowzy

I missed the 1st quarter of last night's big game but the last 3 were pretty entertaining. I hated to see Favre go out since that has been billed as the big matchup but Rodgers did a good job filling in after playing as Tony Romo in practice all week for the Packers. Romo looks so cool out there. I've lost interest in pro sports to some degree but last night was fun to watch.
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Another thing I've lost interest in is politics. I used to be an avid follower of the political landscape but like so many others, I have become disillusioned by it all. Politicians attempt to demonize one another when they have their own skeletons dangling behind them and very little is said to lift this country up. I was hearing bits and pieces of an interview on TV yesterday with one of the leading Republicans who wants to invest a lot of dollars in alternative fuels (sounds like a good idea) but couldn't offer one concrete way to raise the money (sounds a bit scary). Maybe it's because he has to spend so much time defending himself from the attacks of others. There lies the problem, at least for me. I don't trust a single one of them. Not a Republican nor a Democrat. I have no faith in the people elected to govern our country (I certainly don't feel I can use the word "leadership" for what they offer) and find myself more and more repulsed at listening to their babbling.
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I am thankful today simply that I am a child of God. I am so weak and the Devil is ever after me. While dealing with a labor issue yesterday, all I could think of was how much I wanted to beat down (figuratively) the person causing the problem. Today I will pray for that person and pray that God intervenes, changes hearts and helps us all find a reasonable resolution.

Yes, today I am thankful that I am a child of God.

Thank You

I want to thank you for your prayers yesterday. Judy is better and supposed to be heading home today. As I understand it, the doctors think it was a TIA (I think it's like a mini-stroke) but are still analyzing everything and will meet with her in a few days. For now, she's much better and I'm sure ready to get out of the hospital. Keep her in your prayers as she gets back to full speed ahead.
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Our church is blessed to have two ministers of the high caliber that our church now enjoys. I was able to spend time with both last night and they are great guys with a great passion for sharing Christ. They are both matched with wonderful wives who are also a great blessings to our family.
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Tonight is THE game, Cowboys and Packers. I've got basketball practice for my 6th grade team and will miss the first quarter or so of the game. I tried to move my practice time so I could see the game but couldn't find a spot. Our first scrimmage is Saturday and we certainly need the practice time so I'll just hope the 'boys are rolling good by the time I get home.

Please Pray

I ask for your prayers for my mother-in-law today. She went to the hospital late last night not feeling well and her blood pressure was elevated. They ran some tests last night but didn't find anything conclusive and kept her overnight in ICU to monitor her and run more tests this morning. I know God will hear your prayers offered up on her behalf.
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Nothing else I write seems too significant right now but I know some of you also sit on the edge of your seats waiting for information on the "fighting Christians" basketball team. We won last night pretty handily. Our "big-3" had a good game and we got some good play from Chris Lowery (yes, that Chris Lowery) and Steve Fry, a new guy to our church. Steve is one of those quiet guys that just shows up where the rebounds go. I finally got a ball to drop but have sustained a hurting rumpus and nose after taking a charge. Since I outweighed the guy by 200 pounds they gave me the foul but it was a charge. That puts us at 2-1 for the season as we start the second round of games.
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Thanks for your prayers today.

Now That That's Out Of The Way...

We've passed our time of giving thanks and have now entered into the time of "stuff." The shoppers were out this weekend and today is referred to as Cyber Monday, the day people will shop online. Here's hoping that the idea of thanksgiving stays with us a bit longer and that the season of gift giving isn't about what we get but that someone cares enough about us to give.
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It was a good weekend at my parents house with plenty of food, some shopping, football and basketball watching and more food. At church on Sunday morning, I reflected on growing up and the many people at that church that had a hand in raising me. They are older now but the smiles we share when we see each other hasn't changed and the memories are as vivid as ever. One of my close friends I grew up with was there with his children and it borders on overwhelming to think he has a daughter that will be driving soon and I have one that isn't too much further behind. I see him and still think we are kids roaming the streets of Tyler but I look at our children and realize how fast life is flying by.
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The worst part of the weekend was Texas losing to Texas A&M. I wonder if the fire Mack Brown crowd is going to be back on the rampage soon. There were a lot of other coaches that got the ax quickly over the weekend. It's a tough business.

This is my last year to coach my son and his friends in basketball. I hope I have given them so tools they can build off of as they go forward and I hope this season is a good one for our team. I'm going to miss these days of working with these kids but look forward to what the future brings them as I get to "relax" in the bleachers and cheer them on.

The Day After

People are crazy to be out shopping this early. Is there any reason sales couldn't start at 10AM instead of 4AM?

I survived Turkey Day in pretty good shape. I got up and went for a walk and the north wind reminded me it would be a cold day. We had a great lunch followed by a great Cowboys game and the kids played outside in the snow. Yes, I said snow. First little flakes and then the big, pretty ones. It was short lived but exciting all the same.

We're leaving early to head east and visit my folks in Tyler for the weekend. I'm sure it will include plenty of food and shopping. I'm looking forward to the sofa the most as I usually get a decent nap in on Saturday afternoons while the women are hitting the stores.

I hope everyone had a really good day yesterday wherever you were and gave thanks for what you have. My thoughts have been on people I know in Brazil who likely didn't have a huge meal and are not planning to go shopping because all they have is what they have on, but I know they are thankful for what God has given them and know it is all they need. I'm thankful for their example and their love and hope I can show more of that to those around me.

Planning For An Assualt

We got beat up on last night in basketball. Our big-3 (Jacob, Brad, Mark T) had trouble getting the ball to go in and the other team got on a hot streak we couldn't recover from. Hopefully we'll get back on track next week.
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It's time to start mentally preparing for how I will mount my assault on lunch tomorrow. Do I eat lighter today? Do I focus on one food area tomorrow? Important decisions as Thanksgiving approaches. Know what I mean?
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I'm still pondering the many things I have to be thankful for. I considered listing some but there are so many...so many people God has placed on my journey through life, so many experiences that have helped me see more clearly, so many opportunities...I know I would forget to write some down and take 3 days to finish writing all that I can remember.

I will write one. I am so thankful for a God who loves me like no one else, a God who showers me with people and experiences and opportunities, a God who surrounds me with mercy that is unworldly, a God who has given me the greatest gift, much greater than anything I would ever ask for. I am truly thankful to know and be a child of God.

Roundball Part 2

Our church team takes the court again tonight. Here's hoping the 2nd week goes as well as the 1st. Our ladies team has a bye tonight so they get to rest their bruises and bumps one more week.
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TO is all the rage again. While the preacher at the church has gone from...hmmm, shall I say not enjoying TO to now being a fan, Terry Bradshaw is slamming TO saying the new look will be short lived. I can't help but wonder what will happen the 2nd game TO doesn't have a touchdown. On the other hand, I hope the Cowboys don't have to find out.

I did hear one funny comment from Terrell last night. Bradshaw made the comment on Sunday that he "wasn't buying it" referring to TO's new attitude. Last night on the news, they played a sound bite of TO telling Bradshaw "it wasn't for sale" and flashing that grin he has. Good stuff.
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I'm internally incensed at the number of retailers who are now opening on Thanksgiving Day to sale their stuff. I realize they only open because people will show up and that is saddening too. It's Thanksgiving Day and people still can't stop themselves from shopping and getting the "deals." It's maddening, at least in my own mind.

Now you have to show up for doorbusters at 5 in the morning. It's crazy. Personally, I think it's a sad indictment on what is important to our culture. Admittedly, I'm caught up in it wanting to know what my wife and kids want so I can hopefully find great gifts for them and I've already started my list to give people who are asking me what I want. All the while, I wonder why I'm so materialistic. I like stuff, especially electronic stuff, but I hope one day I can kick the stuff habit.

Cowboys and Ramblings

How 'bout them Cowboys? Tony Romo is certainly on track to be the golden child this year and TO is catching balls, scoring touchdowns and keeping his mouth shut. Wow.

I don't get very excited about pro sports - I'm just so tired of the money and drama that emanates from it all - but I do listen to sports radio almost all the time and it is interesting to hear the comments this year compared with what I remember from last year. I think people are moving from being happy if the Cowboys would make the playoffs to analyzing what they need to do to beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl. There's nothing like expectations.
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I still haven't fully grasped that Thanksgiving is on Thursday (not Sunday as I originally wrote). It seems like it should be several weeks away still yet I look at the calendar and there it sits.

I want to spend this week reflecting on what I am thankful for. I heard another great sermon yesterday that is challenging me to be more thankful to the Lord for what I have. It's a long list and I need to spend time thanking Him who provides it all for me.

On The Road Again and Again and Again

I was out yesterday at one of our locations and leaving again this morning for another. I'm booking flights today for Denver and New York for January. My son and I are headed to Graham tonight to see the Decatur vs. Abilene Wylie game and up early tomorrow to get a few things done. Whew.
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My 6th grade team has started basketball practice. It's always tough this time of year because I try to start teaching some plays and then we get into the holidays and school programs and lose practice time in the gym to learn. Our first game is December 1 which doesn't give us much time. Most of the guys played for me last year so that will help and the new ones will add something to the team so I'm excited to see how we will do.
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The benefit of today's travel is getting to eat at one of my favorite bbq spots in Texas-the Hard 8 in Stephenville.

Have a great day.

Aliv

I'm aliv. We played our first church league basketball game and I ended up playing much more than I thought I would and survived pretty well. I got to sleep late and have a few sore muscles today so I think I'm about 80% (4/5 of the word "alive"). To top it off, we won! I'm looking for an undefeated season now. haha

Our ladies team played before us and lost by 1 point but played hard. I'd be scared to play them.
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I read an article on Joel Osteen this morning that has me thinking. While I don't agree with all of his philosophy, one thing he said is resonating with me this morning. He said something to the effect that his gift is to encourage people and lift them up. He stays away from doctrinal preaching, instead choosing to focus on what will help people today.

I thought it was interesting for him to say his gift was one of encouragement. What a great gift to share. Again, I don't know if I agree if being an encourager is a gift or an attitude but that doesn't really matter as long as I go out today and try to encourage people. Whether it's my gift or not, it's still a precious gift to give someone else.

Blog Blahs

Today is one of those days where there is nothing in my head to write about so it will be just wild ramblings of things that pop into my head.

Today is our monthly store manager meeting. We spend most of the day discussing what is happening in the stores and what our plans are for the coming months. The holiday selling season will be the main topic of conversation today.

I cannot believe Thanksgiving is next week. It doesn't seem possible.

Our church basketball teams play our first games tonight. I've signed up for one but don't know how I will hobble down the court on a hurt knee and out of shape. The last time I played, I tore my calf muscle so I hope paramedics are standing by. I remember when I was younger and expected to play all the time. That's certainly not the case for tonight.

The Decatur cross country teams both performed well at the state meet last weekend. The boys got 3rd place and the girls claimed 5th. Those kids spend HOURS preparing for something that lasts 15 minutes and my hat is off to them for their hard work.

Decatur football plays Abilene Wylie this Friday. Wylie has been our nemesis in football and baseball over the past few years but especially in football. They seem to be the team we just can't figure out.

That's all from me. I hope you are having a great day.

Love

I had the great fortune of attending church at Fortress yesterday, an inner-city mission in Fort Worth. We had a good time and got to meet some fun young kids but the lesson of the morning really struck a chord with me. Sometimes I read scripture over and over and out of the blue, something pops out to me in a way I hadn't thought of it before.

The topic was love and the question the teacher asked was "what does love look like?" We read the scripture in 1 Corinthians 13 about love but I read it in a way different than I usually do. I inserted "God" instead of "love" in the verses and got a better understanding of what love looks like.

God is patient, God is kind. God does not envy, He does not boast, He is not proud. He is not rude, He is not self-seeking, He is not easily angered, He keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. He always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. God never fails.

Wow, that is love. I kept thinking about what love looks like right now, today, here in Decatur and I read the scripture again.

Jeff is patient, Jeff is kind. Jeff does not envy, he does not boast, he is not proud. Jeff is not rude, he is not self-seeking, he is not easily angered, Jeff keeps no records of wrongs. Jeff does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. Jeff always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Jeff never fails.

If only that were true. If only. However, it is a great reminder to me what I should be, how I should act, what people should see. I'm not those things as much or as often as I am but I know what love should look like. It should look like me being patient and kind, not easily angered, not failing and the rest.

Oh God, help me to look like love.

Relevance

I am often confused by the term "relevant" because it so often seems what is relevant to one person is not at all relevant to another. I had a discussion the other day with a friend about what people are looking for from a church, what is relevant to them. It's a question that has been in my head for some time now. In the Churches of Christ, one of which I attend, we have long held the tradition of having church on Sunday night and Wednesday night and for as long as I can remember the attendance has been significantly lower than on Sunday morning. I can imagine several reasons for that over time but today's biggest complaint is usually that those services are not relevant and I have had trouble understanding what that meant until a recent conversation I had with another friend who attends a different church. To paraphrase, he said he didn't want to be sitting around with a bunch of people acting religious, he wanted to be out doing what Jesus would be doing. He is a guy who will be at church every Sunday morning and believes the worship time is a very special time and something he will always be active in but the rest of the week he wants to devote himself to study and to serving others. Service to him is more relevant than sitting in a class a couple of nights a week.

I know these ideas can open up a can of worms with people but the idea of service to others is not one that can be debated, not one that can be ignored and is certainly one of relevance. So is the fact that what is relevant to one person is not always relevant to another and our church leaders need to be aware and helping secure opportunities for all members to serve God.

There is much left for me to think through on this and I hope no one will take this as my definitive stance. This is my blog and my space to post my thoughts, many of which are half-baked at any given time. For me, writing my thoughts is my best and easiest way to start thinking through them so share this time and space with me. My challenge for me and for you today is to think about how you are serving God and how you are making yourself relevant in the pursuit of His glory.

Cellphonelessness

My cell phone quit on me yesterday. I was loading an upgrade to the software, followed all the rules, and when it was done there was no service. I called tech support to no avail. I've been with Sprint for several years and keep contemplating a change because Sprint has delivered the absolute worst customer service on a consistent basis that I can imagine. It's difficult to get anything done and I don't remember ever calling and having to speak to less than 3 people to find out they couldn't or wouldn't do what I was asking.

My only quandry at the moment is how long to go with the "broken cellphone" theme. It's a step back in time to a more peaceful era and I kind of like it.
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Basketball season is cranking up - my favorite time of the year. I have a draft for my 6th grade team tonight. I'm playing on a church team that starts games next Tuesday. The high school team has their first game next Tuesday, college basketball is getting rolling and the pros (not real basketball in my mind) have already started. I think I've already watched more pro games this year (3) than I did all of last year so I'm ready for the college season to get started in earnest. I can't wait for March Madness.

Who's your favorite team?

Consensus

I have been serving on a committee for the school district looking at the current facilities and preparing to make suggestions for what needs to be considered for the next 5, 10, 15 years. There have been 20-30 people at each meeting and it's been interesting to watch and listen to other people's perspectives when we went to a facility. Everyone can be looking at one thing and seeing many different things but there was one place we visited that people either seemed to see black or white - the football stadium. I missed the big powwow Monday night where the final recommendations were made but heard that when it came to proposing a new football stadium, there were definitely two different camps.

The hope for our group is that we would reach a consensus, not a majority rule but a consensus where we could make a recommendation that all might not agree with but there was some common ground. It sounds like that happened with the football stadium...down the list aways...with plenty of reservations. It will be interesting to see how it turns out someday down the road.

Yet what struck me was the idea of consensus. An idea of agreeing to find common ground. It might require compromises, adjustments, modifications but it's the idea of working together to get to a common point - not my point or your point but a common point - that struck me about this exercise and this group.

I enjoyed my time on the committee, saw things I hadn't seen before and met some people I didn't know. It was a good experience and I hope to see the recommedations come to fruition because most of them will certainly enhance the academic experience and opportunities for our children. Secretly, I hope we get a new stadium too.

Going Home

I head back home today and I'm ready. I miss being with my family and I'm ready to get back to them. It's really cold today. The high is going to be 42 and with the wind, it will feel more like 35.

I went to see American Gangster the other night, not realizing it was 3 days long. I had mixed feelings but in the end wasn't overly impressed. Both characters were flawed in opposite but similar ways but the storyline had a hard time of really exploring the characters. It was part action and part narrative, never really developing much traction on either side. On the other hand, it was interesting to see what both people went through and provoking some thought on how they got to where they were.

Speaking of movies, the keynote speaker at our conference with Chris Gardner who the movie Pursuit of Happyness was about. He was interesting and he told a good story, was funny and sobering. I can't imagine living the life he went through but it does show what hope can do for you. One of the interesting things I learned was that his son was only 14 months old when they were living on the street. The movie version has an older child because, as Gardner said, 14 months old don't carry much of a dialogue. There were a few other differences but nothing significant and Gardner says they are considering a sequel.

No others thoughts of interest (as if the above was) so I'm off for a shower, a very cold stroll and a haircut before getting the bags packed and heading out.

I Love The Big City

I really enjoy coming to Chicago. It's a great place to be...for 3-4 days anyway. I find it an interesting place compared with Decatur. All the people, the houses jammed together, the greenspace for the dogs that are couped up in apartments and condos and the people picking up the dogs mess in a bag, the shops on Michigan Avenue, the frenetic pace of people going here and there, the street performers...and the food...yummy. I feasted at Gino's East Pizza last night. Chicago pizza is my favorite and Gino's does it really, really well. I want to eat at Gibson's before I leave but don't know that I'll make it this trip but it's one of my favorite places to sink my teeth into an incredible steak.

I'm surrounded by this mass of humanity and I wonder how many know God. I wonder how many have the same hope that I have, the joy in a Savior that I have. I hope the number is much bigger than I think but I hear their conversations and get a sense of their direction and it makes me wonder. Maybe I'm walking a mission field, I don't know.

I do know this. The Republicans are not poised to win in Chicago. In the elevators, on the street, in the hotel lobby all I hear is Obama, Obama, Obama with some Hillary thrown in. Not one good word about Bush which seems to be the new synonym for Republicans.

I'm off to class...and then back into the mass of humanity.

I Thought Baseball Just Ended

I'm taking my baseball playing boy to Flower Mound tonight to try out for a team. It's getting harder and harder to put a competitive team together in our small town so we are hitting the road to see what options are out there. The deck is stacked against him. He's trying out for a team that has been playing fall ball while he's been taking it easy. They are in Flower Mound and the coach is already hesitant I'll make the haul on a regular basis.

I think he's ready though. I've asked several times if he really wants to do this and he affirms it each time. I just hope he will perform well and see improvements in his own abilities.
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We missed Halloween! It was a church night and by the time we got home, most trick-or-treating was done. The kids didn't seem to mind as both wanted to be at church anyway and I don't think the lack of all that candy will do us any harm. Still, it was odd not to be hauling them door to door to get their loot.
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I leave tomorrow for the Windy City. I ask for your prayers for safe travel and for my family while I'm gone.