itunes dilemma

Well, as part of the bounty of Christmas I received $45 in iTunes gift cards. However, I am feeling out of the music loop. I am looking for some suggestions of your top two current artists or songs. Please comment with your ideas!

now for something ridiculous

David Crowder*Band and Jesus Is A Friend of Mine (see the original)

me vs. velociraptor

I could survive for 1 minute, 16 seconds chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor

Created by Bunk Beds Pedia

gasbuddy.com

FYI: If you want to check out the cheapest gas in your area GasBuddy.com is your friend. (San Jose peeps click here)

i'm kind of nervous about this

bubblewrap

Unwind by busting up some bubblewrap. Enjoy!

fighting kids

So, how many kids can you take?

22

superheros

Your results:
You are Superman
You are mild-mannered, good,
strong and you love to help others.

Superman              70%
Iron Man               65%
Green Lantern     60%
Spider-Man          55%

Superhero Personality Test

linkedin

Sean harassed me the other day to update my Linkedin profile. So I did.

desktop tower defense

This is my first post about video games, and my 100 post altogether. Now, hear my confession. Desktop Tower Defense has seriously been wasting my time today. While fun, I just can't get above 2,400 points.

the little engine that could

The toy of the Christmas season is by far the train set from Uncle Michael. Thanks for all the fun!

pink baseball

It begins . . . my daughter's love for playing baseball begins tonight (softball will be an acceptable replacement since she is a girl and I usually play in a church softball league).

We had 45 minutes to kill while waiting for our table at the Olive Garden (known as the O.G. to college friends). So we went to Big 5 to kill some time. The place was stocked for the beginning of the spring season of baseball (Little League sign ups have already begun, and I am stoked to start umpiring again). There in the corner of the baseball section was the 3-5 year old gloves in pink and purple (NOTE: Ashlyn is two and a half, but will be three once baseball is under way this year).

I gave Ashlyn the choice of what color, obviously pink.

We played catch outside the store and again outside the O.G. She wanted to keep playing "catch" in the restaurant.

She got real excited when I got my glove out at home and we played catch again. She said, "You're good Daddy." She already has an eye for talent!

(FYI: That's not gum in Ashlyn's mouth in the above picture. It's her pink, of course, Triceratops vitamin.)

repentance & expectancy

Come, let us return to the LORD;
for he has torn us, that he may heal us;
he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.
After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will raise us up,
that we may live before him.
Let us know; let us press on to know the LORD;
his going out is sure as the dawn;
he will come to us as the showers,
as the spring rains that water the earth. 
- Hosea 6:1-3

I spent some time reading Luke 3 today. It's on my "reading plan" for 2008. It's the passage that talks about John the Baptist preparing the way for Jesus. He calls the crowd to repentance (v.8), righteousness (v.10-14), and leads them into expectancy (v.15). So I began to pray about what it means for me to recognize and agree with God about sin. What it looks like to pursue generosity, honesty, and contentment. And finally how to develop a trust and expectancy in God's presence and work in my life.

I was greatly helped by my conversation with Caitlin, and then blessed by the above passage from Hosea quoted on her blog. Interesting that repentance and expectancy are linked here as well. Glad that this coincided with the first real "storm" for Northern California that began today.

Usually I pray for a verse or passage to be a theme for the coming year of prayer . . . I am wondering about this passage from Hosea.

Anybody care to share their reflections on these verses as I pray about them for the coming season?

how much is your blog worth?

My blog is worth $1,693.62.
How much is your blog worth?

daemons anyone?

Lots of drama around the release of The Golden Compass. I read the book, it was pretty good. It definitely seemed like more of a pre-teen story. There are significant "anti-Christian" and "anti-authority" themes in the book that directly go against a biblical worldview. While for some older kids (13+) this will be a great movie to interact with them about, any younger kids probably won't benefit from the complicated message below a beautifully creative story (good thing its is rated PG-13). Definitely disturbing that everybody has daemons (pronounced demons) that follow them along and act sort of like a conscience (that nobody else hears or can touch).

genius?

What's your blog reading level? I am sort of embarrassed because it probably got this rating because I quote smart people . . .

amazing toilet

An art exhibit of a usable toilet enclosed in a cube of one-way glass is seen across the road from London's Tate Britain Museum. The person inside the outhouse can see passersby while remaining invisible to them. Find out more! (Thanks to Scottie C for this.)

HP PSC 2355: gods grace

I have been taking some time listening to John Piper's sermon series on the content of his book Future Grace. I have been confounded by his assertion about the availability of joy (especially in suffering) in the Christian life. I am looking forward to more on this subject tomorrow . . . but for now . . .

As I pulled in to church this morning I realized I needed a scanner for a flier I wanted to distribute. I walked into the office and asked the receptionist if there was one at the church, she was not sure, and then looked at a printer left on her desk . . . it was a combo printer/scanner/copier (the entitled HP PSC 2355). She offered that I could borrow it (I began to wish in my heart I could keep it), but that it was for another person in the office. Unfortunately I did not have the right cable to attach it. So the printer/scanner/copier was left, and I was without my scanner.

Later in the day I went and asked the new owner of the printer/scanner/copier if it was set up yet. She said no and directed me elsewhere. So I proceeded out of her office to run an errand with friends.

As I returned from the errand, the owner of the printer/scanner/copier called me back in to her office. She offered the aforementioned printer/scanner/copier to me for my office. Delighted, I received it, and my friend carried it up the stairs for me.

In the midst of a trivial need, God provided in abundance. Unmerited favor. God's power enabling me to do what I could not do on my own. Grace. All done in foreknowledge by God even before I had the thought about needing a scanner and then wanting that one. Future. Future Grace.

Could he provide in such proportional abundance to greater needs like the woundedness of my character? Could he bless beyond measure the relationships I participate in? Could he guard my heart with peace and joy in the midst of suffering? Can I respond with rejoicing when I am persecuted or wronged?

I prayed for help with my unbelief . . . I am beginning to believe.

setting sail

For some time I haven't written. For two reasons. First, practically, my laptop is dying. Second, personally, I have had much going on I was not free to share publicly.

As many now know, I am moving on from South Hills, the church I grew up in and have served on the pastoral staff for the last six years. From the first days of talking with Crossroads Bible Church the words from God were, "It's time to set sail." An unnerving way of letting me know that the last three years of "harbor," in other words safety, support, and nurturing, were over. A new adventure awaited with unknown outcomes, and unseen storms.

While I wrestled with this picture, God would give me no other leading but, "Will you trust me? Will you trust my voice?" He even went as far as to have the missions speaker at Hume Lake (where I took high school students to summer camp) say, "Once God reveals His plan have the faith to follow."

So here I am. In transition. Finishing the work I began at South Hills when I volunteered in the Children's Ministry at 8 years old. I have known students in the high school group since they were 4. It is amazing what God has done.

If this has been a harbor, imagine what will He do when we hit the open sea?

blog rating

It's been awhile. A lot going on, but I thought this was funny, so I would share. You can get your blog rated:



I got this rating because "death" is mentioned twice and "sex" once.

Find out what your blog is rated!