Earnestly ICQ

What Did Jesus Christ Look Like?

2012-02-09T20:39:00.003-05:00

What did Jesus Christ look like?

Well, first of all, he was white, or black, had blue eyes, was skinny and had good hair. He walked around in a white bathrobe with a blue prom sash over his shoulder and wore epic screen-printed tee-shirts and Birkenstock sandals and, evidently, glowed. He carried a lamb around and placed his hand on the tops of little children's heads. I understand He also played baseball and football in the backyard with some of the kids in the 'hood.

If I spend too much time thinking about
the silliness of how Jesus has been depicted over the years, it actually trips me up. If I really pay attention to the way He has been represented by awful paintings, kitschy church stained glass, bad Sunday School flannel-graphs, Christian bookstore coffee mugs or even children's story bible illustrations and the yearly Easter pageants, not to mention on South Park and the movies, I begin to wonder if it could all really be true. Frankly, with Jesuses like this, I don't think I'd want it to be true.

Maybe that's why the Amish forbid any images of Jesus.

Don't get me wrong: doubts are as normal as can be, and any Christian who says he never doubts is either not being honest with you (or himself perhaps) or is not really thinking about it all very much. I mean, what Christianity asks us to believe is that God the Son, Jesus Christ, who was an invisible spirit, took on human form (they call it the Incarnation) and walked the earth for 33 years and then was unjustly murdered, buried, and three days later rose from the dead, returned to heaven for a time and is coming again one day to gather those sinners who have put their saving trust in His death in their place so that they may live with Him, never to be sick or sad, enjoying His Presence forever.

This is asking a lot. And we've piled onto that zillions of caricatures of Him that strain our ability to believe the story.

I was thinking about these things one day when it struck me like a lightning bolt out of a blue sky: yes, we do have these various and often ridiculous caricatures of Him....but if Jesus Christ really did walk the earth 2000 years ago, well, He had to look like something. I mean, if the Incarnation really happened, and God really took on humans skin and bones and blood and hair and everything, well, He obviously would have had some kind of looks. Facial features. Pores. Arm hair. Fingerprints.

This came as kind of a relief to me - to accept that He had looks. We've tried to represent Him, but every single man-made depiction cannot possibly be accurate, since there was no photography two thousand years ago. The only description the bible gives is that He wasn't particularly remarkable looking:

"...he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him." Isaiah 53:2.

It also kind of comes as a relief to not have a detailed description of His appearance. By not having a description of His looks, we are more able to consider His message without distraction. Because the big thing about Jesus isn't his looks, it's His message. The gospel message He brought, the story of freedom for captives of Sin, is so big that it defined history. I know they're changing the way we talk about the division of history, and are now using B.C.E. (Before the Common Era) and C.E. (Common Era), but the historical fact is that B.C. (Before Christ) and A.D. (Anno Domini - the year of our Lord) were in place for fifteen hundred years. All of history hinges on this man who really did walk the earth and revealed what God is like to needy human beings.

Obviously, all of this depends on the story of Jesus as related in the bible. So it begs the question: is the bible a historically trustworthy document? It seems that everything hinges on the answer to that question. Here is a link to a good article about the historicity of the bible.

Anyway, for myself, I just don't want to look at human depictions of Jesus anymore. The only portrait of Him I think I can trust is the character sketch that's given in the bible. It's the only thing that in my gut feels like it has the ring of truth. So maybe the Amish were on to something....

"And the Word [Jesus] became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14.

How To Be Hipster

2012-02-07T20:17:00.000-05:00

Becca's friend Beth has a knack for video production. Here's her latest masterpiece...that's Becca and Dan at the beginning. I don't think I own enough flannel to be hipster....

Don’t Rent That Clown Suit Just Yet…

2012-01-19T12:44:00.001-05:00

This is from The Blazing Center blog, which is maintained by a father-son pastor duo from Pennsylvania.

Don’t Rent That Clown Suit Just Yet…

by Mark Altrogge

We’re funny creatures, us humans. We ask our heavenly Father to provide for us then we try to figure out how he’s going to do it.

We pray, then our wheels begin to turn. Let’s see, I could get a second job. I could sell my signed Justin Bieber poster on eBay. I could rent a clown suit and do kids’ parties…

And when we can’t see how he will be able to answer our prayers, we worry. Our fertile imaginations construct all kinds of “what if’s” in our mind. What if I don’t have the money to pay my tuition? Then what if I can’t get a loan? And I have to get a job flipping burgers? And what if I don’t make enough doing that and I have to start living under a bridge and turn to a life of crime? And then get caught and put in prison next to an axe murderer?

Worry is essentially us trying to figure out the future. Or how God will work in the future. And when we don’t see how God can do it, we get fearful. If we can’t see exactly how he’ll provide, or deliver or heal us,
we worry.

But God’s not dependent on means. He’s not dependent on our company or the economy to provide for us. He doesn’t need doctors, medicine or technology. He often uses means, but doesn’t need them. He can heal with a word. Or put a gold coin in the mouth of a fish. Or multiply a few loaves and fishes.

“We never consider that God can open the eyes of the blind with clay and spittle, he can work above, beyond, and even contrary to means… “Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain, yet the valley shall be filled with water” (2 Kings 3:17). God would have us to depend on him though we do not see how the thing may be brought about.” Jeremiah Burroughs, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment

Did you catch that last sentence?

“God would have us to depend on him though we do not see how the thing may be brought about.”

Someday in heaven we’ll get to trace all God’s providences. Won’t that be fun? We’ll say see, here’s the day I offered that prayer. On that same day, God gave a man in South Africa a new idea and he did this….that changed the way people did this…which created a market for this. Which caused my boss to transfer me across the country….which led to me meeting my wife…

Part of the joy of heaven will be following all God’s providences and worshiping him for his infinite wisdom and goodness.

Our job is to depend. To trust. To pray and thank God for his faithfulness. To rest. God’s job is to run the universe and care for his children. He’s pretty good at it. And he’s got ways of answering our prayers we don’t even know about. So don’t rent that clown suit just yet…

The Walk

2012-01-09T13:27:00.002-05:00

Now that the Janie's Christmas Stocking project is done, I thought I'd add one more thing from Food For The Hungry.
The Walk from Food for the Hungry on Vimeo.

"If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." Galatians 5:25

You don't need to wait till the next Janie's Christmas Stocking project to bless needy people in the world. You can make a change all through the year by sponsoring a child...or giving to one of FH's many ministries. I don't want to "guilt" anyone into doing anything, but I am asking those who are feeling the tug, who are tired of resisting and are ready to follow God in this way, to follow through and commit to parting with some of your money. I know the video said that throwing money at the problem may just kick it down the road, but, well, if we can't personally go and walk with the needy, why can't we financially back those like FH that are?

This passage jolted me this morning, though I've read it a thousand times: "Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Jesus is calling us to invest in non-material things - peoples' hearts and souls - by spending a material thing: money. Have you ever sold something of yours so you could give it's "value" to charity? I haven't.

I think I'm going to give it a try...I'm starting with my kids' old gaming systems and I'm only half-way kidding! I wonder what else in my basement I can free myself of?

Janie's Stocking 2.0 Final Whizbang Wowie

2011-12-28T22:50:00.001-05:00

Don't you hate it when your kids are in the position to be able to say, "I told you so?" Well, that's me right now. Back in November when we were deciding on what item from the Food For The Hungry "Gift" Catalog we wanted to select for Janie's Christmas Stocking, I wondered about the idea of being so ambitious as to choose the largest gift in there. We'd seen God do amazing things last year, when over $1700 came in when we had hoped to "reach" $500. But still, this year I expressed a little reservation. It went kind of like this:

Me: "I have some reservations this year."

Carly (scoffing a bit): "Of course we'll reach $2500, Dad. You'll see. Have a little faith."

Me: *wince*

And with that, we decided to
take the plunge and commit to try and raise the $2500 needed to purchase a well for a needy village in Kenya. It could have been a million dollars for all the confidence I was feeling at the time, but I just figured we'd raise as much as possible, and if we reached enough for the well, that would be great, but if not, then we'd just use it for something else in the FH catalog.

On Thanksgiving day (only four weeks ago, but it feels like forever doesn't it?), I had a brief chat with my pastor, Dave Lind, and his wife Dawn. I had simply described the idea of the well, and asked if they might forward an email from me to anyone in the church who they thought might have known Janie and might like to get in on the well project. Doing his due diligence, Dave took it to the elder board at Calvary Bible Church here in Rutland and from what I understand, they went a little bonkers (the good kind of bonkers) on the idea. They actually suggested that a mere email forward was not enough, and they asked if we would mind if Calvary's Christmas Eve offering go to the project. I was thrilled of course, and with delight said yes! So to begin to let people know about it, on the first Sunday of December, Dave had me get up in front of the congregation to describe what we were doing. Then, much to my surprise, Dave announced that all of the December special offerings up to and including Christmas Eve's would go to the project! Amazing. (Encouraging side-note: this offering was intended to be in-addition-to-and-not-in-place-of regular giving, and I'm told Calvary's regular giving did not dip during December. That's pretty special, because Rutland is not a particularly well-to-do city, and as far as I can tell, the folks at Calvary aren't necessarily particularly well-to-do either.)

So the month went by, and we watched as Janie's Stocking got filled, so to speak. The online giving was slower to catch on, though I was amazed, just last night (New Year's Eve), as people continued to donate right up to the eleventh hour.

Alright Chris, enough story! Cut to the chase! How much came in?!

Well, Carly, you were right, I should have had a little more faith. I hadn't anticipated the four weeks of special offerings at church, and I hadn't anticipated the coin purses emptied into my palm (although I had kind of anticipated - actually publicly asked for haha - a certain creepy piggy bank). I hadn't anticipated the cash handed to me in the gas station line, I hadn't anticipated friends re-posting my blog posts about it, and the subsequent visits to the online giving page from literally around the world. In the end, though we were hoping to reach $2500.00, Janie's Christmas Stocking 2.0 brought in $8365.00, and I am more than a little stunned. That's well over 3 times more than we were looking to raise! Praise God, this will help hundreds (maybe thousands?) of needy people in other parts of the globe. It's a really humbling feeling, and it's been such a good experience to do this. It made the Booth's Christmas without Janie more bearable, even joyful in some ways, to know that people will be helped, since helping people is what Janie loved to do most.

So in practical terms, what this means is that we can purchase three wells (@$2500 x 3 = $7500) rather than just one! With the "leftover" money (about $800), we are *tentatively* talking about a fourth well in another country, possibly Haiti, since we have some connections there.

**Psst! If you go to Calvary, shhh, please wait to talk about it with anyone till after next Sunday the 8th, since we're making the announcement then during the service. Ok? Thanks.**

There truly are no words to express the kind of gratitude all the Booths, Browns, Linds and Karabenshes feel toward all of you who gave. So we say, humbly, thank you.

The Authoritative, Indespensable Year-End Roundup of EarnestlyICQ

2011-12-27T23:12:00.001-05:00

The Authoritative, Indespensable Year-End Roundup of EarnestlyICQ

Heh, I enjoyed that post title. Any guesses where I ripped that off from?

Anyway, I've never done a year-end roundup of the most popular posts of this (obscure) blog...and I'm not about to start now. However, I thought it might be fun(ny?) to put up some of the posts that I most enjoyed typing (or were most meaningful for me at the time) from the ENTIRE HISTORY (since July 2009 haha) of this blog....for your year-end reading enjoyment. So both of you reading this blog can
have a laugh...or a cry. Either way, enjoy!

Your Best Life Later

"I Thought It Would Make Me Happy"

How To Ride A Roller Coaster

Holy, Holy, Holy

Herman J

This Side

Cowbells and Colossians

Drainers And Fillers

Chagall's Abraham

Splash Of Rain *and* Yankee Candle Convert

"Everything's Amazing And No One Is Happy"

Typing Lessons

Running

In Which The Inexplicable Is Explained To Me

July 27th, 1985

Ping Pong

A Peewee In The Hallowed Culinary Halls

Beauty Will Rise

Jesus And The Plunger

Joyful Grieving?

Music: For The Soul

Pride Goeth Before A Summer

365 Days With Jesus

On Being Lifted Up

F.A.S.T.ing And Sacrifice

Wow, that was more than I thought there'd be...um, sorry about that. (But in all fairness, it is almost 2 1/2 years' worth.) Well, just pick out something that looks interesting to you (of course they were all brilliant to me at the time, heh) or, if you're smart, you'll go write your own posts instead of reading someone else's!

Final update on Janie's Stocking fund-raiser coming very soon!!!

Book Roundup 2011

2011-12-27T22:10:00.000-05:00

It's year-end-roundup time, and the blogosphere feels different for a week or so. We give our "funniest posts roundup," our "most popular posts," our thoughts on the turn of the year and......*pensive pause* ha! you thought I was going to give you my list of books I read this year, didn't you! Nope, I'm turning the tables....you tell me what books you read this year instead! Thanks to The Blainemonster for the idea. I'm always nervous about asking people to comment though...what if they don't? I'll feel silly gosh darn it. At least you'll comment, Blaine....won't you?

Creepiest Piggy Bank Ever 2.0

2011-12-26T23:27:00.001-05:00

Long-time subscribers to this blog (bwa-haha that's funny) may recall that last year when we did the first-ever Janie's Christmas Stocking fund raiser, my friends Steve and Ruth Hall contributed the contents of their spare-change piggy bank. Well, they've dropped off the bank again this year too, God bless them. It's a wonderful way to be a part of the fun, but they gave it with a few caveats:

1) I have to return the bank. No Problem...the thing gives me nightmares. This year, they dressed it up with some false eyelashes and a big red bow on the top of it's head. Yeah, that makes it much less chilling. Remember that awful shower scene in Psycho when the shadow falls on the shower curtain and the lady knows she's about to get it? "Reeee! Reee! Reee!" "Screeeeaamm!!" I wake up in a cold sweat having seen this pig, pretty eyelashes and all, appearing in the mirror when I closed the medicine cabinet. Or I get in the car and reach up to adjust the rear view mirror and there it is....slightly grinning. Or pushing me out of an airplane. Go ahead, click the picture. I dare you.

2) We have to remove the change ourselves from the
bank, which seems like it should be no big deal except that the maker of this particular bank made the hole in the bottom - the one for removing the coins - almost exactly the size of a quarter. Knowing what was ahead for me, Steve and Ruth I'm sure guffawed all the way home as they imagined me sticking my index finger into the pig's butt to extract their coins. I laughed a bit myself, actually, and reconfirmed what I'd known about myself my whole life: I do not want to be a proctologist.

Just a quick status update on Janie's Stocking: It's going great! It's going better than what you would see if you only look at the online giving page, which is only part of the story, as is evidenced above. I'll give a Grand Total Finale kind of thing on New Year's Day, and I'll tell the full story of all the wonderful people who have contributed as well as how this thing "took on a life of it's own."

Thanks so much for giving, my friends.

Janie's Stocking Is Going Great

2011-12-19T23:14:00.001-05:00

Janie's Stocking is cranking right along! Thank you so much for giving. People you will probably never meet, people like this, will have a tangible evidence of your loving them because you gave to the project! Thank you! Don't stop spreading the word and thanks again!

Anti-Facebook Snobbery

2011-12-18T12:16:00.000-05:00

Wait, let me explain. I'm sorry. I don't really mean to hate on you, Facebook, it just seems to happen. I just blurt stuff out without thinking. I'm really sorry. I hope you can forgive me. It's just, well, I've seen how you have changed things so much, and I feel like not all of it is for the better, honestly. It just seems to me that the last thing our already narcissistic culture needed was more stuff about me, me, me...us, us, us. Here's my list of reasons why I've hesitated to get a Facebook account for so long:

**I get concerned about the superficial nature of Facebook (here I go again, hating on you, but I don't know how else to get this said).

**Hyperconnectivity. Do I really want to be connected with so many people so continually? Is this even good for a person? I do know people who are addicted to checking in on their Facebooks.

**Is it just me or is Facebook a little creepy? Back in the day, didn't they use to call someone who peeks into another person's life a "peeping Tom?"

**I'm a really private person, believe it or not, and the thought of everyone reading what I've posted on a wall...well, it's just not for me I guess.

**Lack of real conversation in Facebook interaction. There's so much snarky banter.

What's that? You say I'm being an anti-Facebook snob? You're probably right, I think I probably am. I mean that sincerely, actually. I think I have become an anti-Facebook snob.

I feel like I owe some of you, my friends (and even family), an explanation on why I've held off for so long on starting a Facebook account. And for those of you who are aware that I actually do have an account (which I ignore), I especially feel like I owe you an explanation. I'm really sorry, first of all. I really don't want to ignore my friends. I think the nub of my frustration with Facebook is this: we have Facebook for the studio, and the studio has, like, 1400 "friends." I really do see so much "snarky banter" and other nastiness (mostly from high school seniors) that I just get weary of it. Plus, I find Facebook's terminology and (constantly changing) layout confusing. These days, since Janie went to be with the Lord back in May of last year, I've been working hard to simplify my life, and honestly, adding Facebook - and all that goes with it: the constant barrage of updates, feeling like I'm not 'keeping up,' and whatnot - seemed, frankly, like a little too much for me.

Anyway, I do actually have a Facebook account! I mostly got it, no offense, because Spotify seemed (and is) cool. And it looked like you couldn't get Spotify without having a Facebook account. So there you go.

I also know that I will not have 1400 friends, and that the friends I do have will be awesome people like you and you won't be snarky and you won't be a peeping Tom (you won't, right?). Plus, I'm probably going to set up a separate page for the blog for privacy's sake...if I can figure out how to do that....

That said, I think I am going to give the Facebook thing an honest-to-goodness try. However, I don't see myself as one of those people who constantly checks for updates, so please don't be offended if I'm sluggish about replying to stuff, or whatever I'm supposed to do on Facebook. I know you are all Facebook Jedi by now, but I'm just the padawan-learner, so go easy on me, Masters!

Beautiful Things

2011-12-15T12:30:00.002-05:00

Beautiful Things by Gungor

Another word for what they are artfully saying is the word redemption.
"He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit." Galatians 3:14

And that's the nature of the Christmas story, isn't it?

Koyaanisqatsi And Me

2011-12-11T19:21:00.001-05:00

When I was a senior in high school, I saw a film called, Koyaanisqatsi. That's a Hopi word which means, "life out of balance."

***

I lay awake the other night, thinking, like I sometimes do. I know, melancholies are weird like that.

I was in Boston, staying at a swanky hotel. If you know me at all, I'm pretty sure you would know that "swanky" is not really my style. I was there because the company I work for got hired to photograph the Christmas party of a very large, swanky company. I promise I will not us the word swanky anymore in this post. These people, virtually all 800 of them, were young, beautiful professionals. The party was at the absolutely gorgeous Boston Public Library. I brought Carly along so we could do some of the Boston-at-Christmas thing the next day.

The company put us up in a swank - uh, fancy hotel, called The Colonnade, and it was very euro-sleek and stylish. It had a view to the North - right toward the 50-story Prudential Center. Fabulous.

The next day, Carly & I took a stroll through the mall in the Pru, walking past the Anne Taylor store with the eight-foot tall posters of Demi Moore wearing (presumably) Anne Taylor's clothes in the store windows. We moved along to Copley Square and ended up, inevitably, on Newbury Street, aka the Rodeo Drive of the East. Everyone (that's not hyperbole -it's really everyone) on Newbury Street was beautiful. Their stylish clothes, their up-to-the-knee boots, their carefully managed handsome/pretty faces, and especially their silky and properly product-ed hair, was beautiful. I'm not troubled by the beauty - that's not what I was
losing sleep over.

It was just the contrast that got to me. The seeming extreme contrast between the multi-million (billion?) dollar company, the hotel, the shopping, the luxury cars, the Pru, the Anne Taylor posters, Newbury Street, all of it was such a gigantic contrast to all of the focus that I have had recently in trying to make Janie's Christmas Stocking a reality for 2011. In reading statistics, I've been seeing lots of pictures of the world's poorest people. They are very affecting pictures, pictures that stay with you after you've moved to a new web page. The pictures you see when you're flipping through the TV channels and you see a dirty, malnourished children and you skim past because they make you uncomfortable. Those pictures. Those are the ones that were in my mind the night after the big party.

Now don't get me wrong. I technically don't have a problem with people being wealthy. That big company I mentioned gives away a lot of money to worthy causes. I am not asking people to despise the very-wealthy, the pretty wealthy, the somewhat wealthy, the average wealthy, the middle income folks, and so-on. I get it that the world is broken and that a very few have ended up with most of the world's wealth and a massive number - I've heard 1.4 billion - is in dire poverty, and that there is a good number somewhere in the middle.

I don't even know that I want to say about all of that. I just feel troubled when I have the contrast glaring right before my eyes, and to have had a foot in both worlds, in a way. I've heard it said that if your family income is above $23,000 a year, you are among the richest 2% of people in the world. I just don't even know how to process that. That means that 98% of the world lives on less than $23,000. And I'm sure there is another statistic that would show that a good percentage of that 98% is subsisting and dying. This is Koyaanisqatsi, life out of balance, and it's ghastly and troubling.

No, I know that we won't fix world hunger and poverty overnight, but I guess for myself, I'm still trying to come to terms with how rich I am. It was a little shocking to realize that I'm far closer to the world's 'rich' than to the world's poor. I live in a nice house in a nice neighborhood. I have a lawn. I have a lawnmower. I have a car. I have a job. My kids are healthy, and so am I. I have a TV. I am typing on a computer. A nice computer. My home has heat, and air conditioning. And food in the fridge. I have been extremely blessed, and I know I shouldn't live in constant guilt. After all, God chose to bless King David, and especially King Solomon with material wealth. And He's blessed me. Now don't worry, I'm not going to go all Joel Osteen on you, but I do get it that God seems to (inexplicably, to me) bless some more than others. But I feel so bothered by the question, "why me?" I asked that a lot when I was losing Janie (it was, "why Janie?"), and I ask it again now in a different context: why me? Why am I so materially blessed? Why are others so needy?

In thinking about it, and to be reactionary about it, I suppose I could stop eating to try to better sympathize with those who are hungry. And I could quit my job and sell everything I own and give the money to the poor...to help them and to better sympathize with them. But in the end, what good would I have done? I'd have helped a few, but then I'd have become one of the sick, needy people myself and I'd become a burden to others. This doesn't make any sense.

So my thinking right now is this:

1. God has placed the well-to-do in a unique position to be able to be Jesus's hands and feet here on earth to help those in need.
2. We sin when we selfishly keep what He's blessed us with and don't use it to help others. Maybe we could do a lot more of this than we do...like sacrificially. Just thinking out loud here...
3. When we help others, we're 'helping' Jesus himself, right?

Is there more to this equation?

It's been a joy to see the interest from so many in Janie's Christmas Stocking project, where we're raising money to get a well installed in a village in Kenya through an organization called Food For The Hungry.

Will this one well solve the all of the world's problems of famine, drought, disease and hunger? No.
Will this one well end all of Africa's troubles? No.
Will this one well reverse Koyaanisqatsi and provide clean water in Jesus's name for a village in Kenya?
Yes!

So I'll still struggle with the problems of poverty, hunger and disease, but I'm not about to sit on my hands and do nothing when God has blessed me so much. Maybe He's calling you to do something too. If He is, then...what now?

2011-12-08T12:23:00.001-05:00

My friend (and Carly's youth pastor) Rob Townshend recently had some articles published on a blog for youth workers. It's been fascinating to watch Calvary's students "own" their youth group and take hold of the paradigm that Rob describes. My Carly has been really changed and blessed by it.

Here is the first one, and here is the follow-up.

Good job, Rob, and thanks for being so willing to be led by God "out of the box!"

Thanks For Sharing

2011-12-07T12:56:00.001-05:00

I'd like to say a public Thank You! to those friends and family - you know who you are - who tweeted, blogged, emailed and shared on Facebook about the Janie's Stocking project. As you know, spreading the word about something of this nature is the only way for it to succeed - people can't give to something they don't know about! I'm especially grateful to Calvary Bible Church here in Rutland for sharing via their email list (as well as letting me talk about it on Sunday) and to my friend Jared for posting about it on his widely read blog. Thank you all! I'm excited to see where God takes this!

Janie's Christmas Stocking 2011

2011-12-02T21:51:00.001-05:00

So it's time for the big reveal of a new twist on Janie's Christmas Stocking: Online giving! Yep, you don't need to mail a check or catch me in the hall with cash (unless you are Steve and Ruth Hall) or give me your firstborn or right arm or anything! Food For The Hungry has graciously set me up with a page for Janie's Christmas Stocking, and it's pretty cool.

If you don't yet know what this is about, click here, and for where it all came from, click here.

We are extending the deadline to December 31 this time.

Also, if you would still prefer to
contribute to buying the well by way of this old-school thing called a check (a check, evidently, is a way of paying for things by writing letters and numbers on a piece of paper and mysteriously, people accept it as payment! Groovy!), you can mail it to Chris Booth, c/o Calvary Bible Church, 2 Meadow Lane, Rutland, VT 05701. Make it out to Food For The Hungry and write "Janie's Stocking" in the memo. It will be tax deductible - huzzah!

You may have heard of Sara Groves, a singer songwriter who Janie (and I) listened to a lot. She is a big fan of Food For The Hungry...she wrote a very moving song about her visit to a Rwandan community...

I learned today that the well will be built in Kenya which is experiencing a terrible drought right now.

Please click over to the online giving page to see a 29 second video clip of one of these wells in action. The sound of the water is so beautiful, it kind of makes me want to cry.

Thank you again for being a part of this special Christmas giving event for the Booth family!

Thankful For....A Sock?

2011-11-24T10:54:00.000-05:00

Yes, I'm thankful for a sock this Thanksgiving! It's not just any sock, however: the mystery photo from the last post is Janie's Christmas Stocking (you can read what we did with the stocking last year here). It was a thrill last year to collect, alongside so many friends and family (as well as a few total strangers!), enough money to buy a cow for a family in Rwanda through a wonderful aid organization called Food For the Hungry. We also helped several local families. I honestly wonder who got the greater blessing, the folks who received the help, or all of us who were involved with giving it. So I'm thankful.

Before last year's project was even over, many were asking if we'd do it again this year. Well, we decided with a resounding, "yes!" We've decided this year to not only help one family with one cow, but to help a whole village of people by buying them a well! Can you imagine walking four hours, waiting in line for two, getting your jerrycans of clean water, and walking home another four hours with forty pounds of water? And repeating this every three days? That is what some families have to do to obtain clean water that won't cause sicknesses from water related disease. A well right in their own village can save people from all this, and it will help not only one or two people, but a whole village of people. Plus, Food For the Hungry gives these resources in Jesus's name, which is the greater gift of course.

The goal will be
$2500, which is substantially more than last year, but I've been amazed at how generous people were last year, even in the midst of a tough economy. I don't really know what the reach and impact of this humble little blog is, but I'd rather be ridiculously ambitious than play it too 'safe,' wouldn't you?

As before, anyone who wants to get involved can send (or hand me directly if you are local) your checks. This time around, though, make the check out to Food For The Hungry. I'll send them all in at once so all of it will be designated to this project. This way, you will get a receipt from FH. Tax deductible this time! Does that encourage you to increase your amount? I hope so!

Also, we are adding one more feature which I will announce in a future post, so stay tuned, because it's kind of cool!

When we decided to do this special project last year, we really hadn't anticipated the degree to which it would help us (especially me I think) to "get through" Christmas without Janie. But it was such joy. So I'm hoping to continue it in her memory, and in Jesus's name. So thank you so much in advance for contributing!

Tis The Season For Online Awesomeness

2011-11-21T18:11:00.000-05:00

I've got something cooking that I think you're going to like....so stay tuned!

Based on the photo, can you guess what this might be about? Click the photo for a closer look and leave a comment if you think you know.

Horace Silver's "Peace"

2011-11-18T23:14:00.001-05:00

A favorite song of mine, sung by none other than Nora Jones. I guess this recording is a little obscure...it's from Marion McPartland's Piano Jazz. I think it must be Marion on piano then. Both women are amazing, and so is Horace Silver who wrote the song way back when. Try listening late at night with very dim lights when all is quiet....mmmmm, nice.

F.A.S.T.ing and Sacrifice

2011-11-08T23:20:00.000-05:00

Becca and Dan have (probably) started the NEXT BIG THING, and it's called, Fantastically Awkward Sweater Tuesday, or, F.A.S.T. for short. The first Tuesday of every month, they wear really hideous sweaters, like from the eighties. Not like the awesome Bill Cosby ones, either (well, actually, they are exactly like those). So far, they've had great success at thrift stores finding some very dreadful selections. When they wear these haute couture masterpieces, and are inevitably asked why they are wearing them, they can reply, "I'm F.A.S.T.ing!" And after all, hideous sweaters are the new hipster thing.

So I trotted off to the local thrift store to peruse the ladies ugly sweater aisle. Oh, yes I did peruse the ladies ugly sweater aisle.

"Chris," you say, "why in the world would you risk your manhood and reputation by perusing the ladies sweater aisle for an ugly sweater?" Well, let me tell you about my mom.

My mom had noticed, when I was, say, six or seven years old, that
I could use a friend. There were the local neighborhood pals, but she saw in me a need for a true friend, one that would never leave, and always be there waiting for me on my bed. A friend. Of the stuffed variety. Now I was a sensitive little guy, and she wanted to pick out the exact right stuffed animal for my birthday that year. So here's what she did: she went to the toy store and looked over each stuffed animal, be it a dog or cat or some other stuffed creature. And with no regard for how she might be perceived by other shoppers, right there in the store she hugged each one. And she found Henry. And he was perfect, and was my constant companion and fit just right under my arm when I slept.

When I finally grew up and got married and had a son, I gave Henry to him. And now the son is big and hairy and has gone off to college, and Henry still sits on the shelf...in the back and on top and gathering dust with the old plastic models and Nintendo game cartridges. But Henry has now served two generations of boys, albeit with ripped and re-sewn ears, arms, legs and tail, and with no tongue. And a glued-in eye. And a silly putty stain that just would not come out. All because a mom risked her own reputation for the sake of her little boy's happiness.

As I stood there at the head of the ladies aisle there in the thrift store, hesitating lest I be seen in said aisle, flipping through the hangers of ladies sweaters, I thought of all this. And it was the image of my mom hugging stuffed dogs in a toy store that propelled me down the aisle. Now I wish I could say I found something truly, awesomely hideous, but actually, they were all rather nice. So I moved along.

My shopping excursion wasn't a total loss, however! I picked this up for $25! Yay for me!

Your Suffering Does Not Just Belong To You.

2011-11-02T09:00:00.001-04:00

This is from Tim Challies' blog. I've been around some suffering, and honestly, I had never thought of this before. I think this gives some much needed perspective, and it would help to think about these things before the trials come....

***

One of God's Purposes in Suffering
by Tim Challies

The more I grow in my knowledge of the Lord (by his grace) the more I see the utter centrality of the church, the local church, in his plan for his people. The more I learn of him, the more I see what a jewel the church is—what a blessing, what an honor it is to be part of something so amazing, so other-worldly. This is something that has been brought home to me in recent years primarily by the joy and privilege of being part of a faithful local church. But it has also been emphasized through many of the books I’ve read.

A little while ago I read Ligon Duncan’s book Does Grace Grow Best in Winter?, a book that deals with suffering. There was something in there that really grabbed my attention in this context of the local church.

You may be familiar with these words from the first chapter of Colossians:

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

These are words I’ve
read many times over the years, and yet somehow Duncan’s application of them was entirely fresh. In the chapter that provides the context for these verses he is explaining what God may be accomplishing through suffering and one of the four points he brings up is this one: Suffering serves to build up the church. Have you ever considered that through your suffering God is strengthening your church? He says, “Our suffering aids the maturity of the whole body of believers. It is extraordinary that our suffering is designed not only to work godliness in us as individuals, causing us to prize Christ more, but also to work maturity within the whole church.” And this is exactly what Paul points to in the opening verses of Colossians. “Suffering is God’s instrument to bring about the maturity of the whole church. God ordains for our suffering, as a participation in the suffering of Christ’s body, to bring about in the church the purposes of Christ’s affliction. In other words, sometimes God appoints his children to suffer so that the whole body will become mature.” We all know that as members of the church we are to rejoice together and to mourn together, but do we understand that these occasions of mourning are given for our maturity? If we truly are a body, each part dependent on the other, then it cannot be any other way. One person’s suffering is every person’s suffering; one person’s maturing is every person’s maturing.

Can’t you see how this must be true? Can you think about some of the Christian men and women whose suffering you have witnessed and see how their example has served to strengthen the church? I can think of all kinds of examples. Some of them are people who suffered far away from me, far from my local church, but whose suffering served to strengthen even those Christians whom they had never met face-to-face. Others are people who have been a part of my local church or still are a part of my local congregation, whose suffering has been witnessed by only a few; but those few have been strengthened by their witness. I think of people who suffered through illness or joblessness or the loss of a child; they grew in maturity through the suffering but, remarkably, so did those of us who wept with them.

Duncan says, “These ‘lacking’ afflictions of Christ’s do not indicate that his suffering was insufficient for our salvation. They are simply a recognition that when you become a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, you become a part of his body. Since you are part of his body, your sufferings are his sufferings. What are the sufferings that are lacking in Christ’s affliction? They are the ones that have not been experienced yet by his body, the church. They will continue to be experienced by his body until he comes again and makes an end of all suffering for his people.” Duncan goes on to say, “The apostle Paul is telling us something amazing. The afflictions of the body of Christ are intended to bring it to maturity. That is to say, God ordains, by the Spirit and by faith, for our suffering to bring about in the church the purposes of Christian affliction. These purposes are: Christ in us, the hope of glory, and every one of us being made mature in Jesus Christ.”

So I guess this is something we ought to keep in mind during those times that it is God’s will for us to suffer. Our suffering is not pointless; it is not meaningless. At least in part, our suffering is mandated by God so we can strengthen and edify our brothers and sisters in Christ so that they, and we, may strive toward Christian maturity. “Your suffering does not just belong to you. You are members of a body. Your suffering is for the body’s maturity as much as it is for yours. Your suffering is there to build up the church of Christ. It is there for the people of God to be given faith and hope and confidence in the hour of their trials. Your suffering is also the body’s suffering because one of God’s purposes in suffering is the maturity of the whole church.”

Goat Rodeo Sessions

2011-10-24T22:10:00.000-04:00

Oh, man, this will be incredible. Comes out tomorrow.........

Whole New World

2011-10-19T07:22:00.000-04:00

This is just plain happy. I can't help but wonder if, when I open my eyes (and ears) in heaven for the first time, it might feel something like this:

Or maybe it might be more like this little guy:

The girl's blog is here if you want to read her experience in her own words.

Steve Jobs: Death Is Life's Change Agent

2011-10-06T06:31:00.000-04:00

I know that Steve Jobs had a gigantic impact on technology - sort of like how Henry Ford had a gigantic impact on the auto industry or, perhaps a better comparison, how Gutenberg had a huge impact on communications. However, I didn't really follow his life all that closely, so I thought I'd re-post what Ed Stetzer said on his blog:

Steve Jobs died a few hours ago.

His impact is hard to overstate-- his genius and inventions are ubiquitous. Earlier today, I blogged on tech tools I use-- and Steve Jobs impacts my life every day. Steve Jobs literally changed the world.
Yet, he was more than an inventor. He was also a public figure-- and few people have lived in the public eye like Steve. For that matter, few people have, well, slowly declined in public view. Watching his health over the last few years reminds us of our own mortality-- and Steve thought that death was a good thing for all of us to consider.

Steve Jobs faced death and, unlike some public figures, he spoke of it. Here is what Steve said in 2005 at the Stanford commencement address:

Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything -- all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor's code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I'm fine now.

This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope it's the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Worthwhile words.

It is a biblical thing to see life a fleeting (Psalm 89:47).

I do not know Steve's spiritual condition, but I do know that each of us must live in the light of eternity. Steve died today. I could be tomorrow. May I live my life in light of that reality-- that life is fleeting AND that eternal life is a gift to all that have been made new in Christ.

"You don't even know what tomorrow will bring--what your life will be! For you are a bit of smoke that appears for a little while, then vanishes" (James 4:14, HCSB).

Indeed.

On Being Lifted Up

2011-09-29T21:22:00.001-04:00

I've only ever had one brush with true greatness. I'm talking about me, myself, being great. Wait, let me explain. See, this moment of greatness came when I was in seventh grade, the grade where you are confused and finding out about life and yourself and everything and are confused about pretty much all of it. And there is no more intimidating place for a confused seventh grader than the middle school locker room. Why does everyone else, all the big kids (eighth graders) seem to know what's going on, while I feel so weird and uncomfortable just changing into a pair of gym shorts and a t-shirt? Why does that big, intimidating gym teacher have to shout at us all the time? And what in the world is this weird indoor gym-class game, with all these weird rules?

My middle school was big enough that there were multiple gym classes going on at the same time, with different intimidating shouting gym teachers. The intimidating gym staff must have had a meeting to try to come up with new ways to intimidate skinny seventh grade boys who don't like changing their clothes in front of others quite yet. So they decided upon a tournament of this gym-class game, the one with all the weird rules. Each class would compete against the others, until one at last
rose to the top to claim victory and bragging rights of being the best at this weird game.

My memory of this game is sketchy now, due to the many years since then, but it had something to do with dodge ball and, perhaps, a bowling pin. There was a line down the middle of the gym that the teams dare not cross, and now that I think of it, there may have been a capture the flag element to it. I don't know. I mostly just tried to avoid being hit by the ball until class was over. The object of the game was to knock over the pin, but it was invariably guarded by some super-speedy-reflexed kid. Probably a boy and probably an eighth-grader.

Anyway, our team somehow moved up through the rankings until, toward the end of class, we were in the finals. The pressure had grown and I began to actually care a little about this game: we could win this thing! One by one, each team's players began to be eliminated, probably by failing to dodge the ball, but I was somehow able to stay in until a FINAL SHOWDOWN: me versus one other kid. I was charged with both guarding my pin and somehow knocking over his pin without getting hit by the ball. By now, all the kids, it must have been hundreds, maybe thousands, had gathered around our section of the gym to cheer at the gigantic spectacle that this match had become. Me versus the other kid. Man on man. The crowd was chanting, "Maximus! Maximus! Maximus!" I don't know why. The other kid had the ball. I guarded my pin. If I caught it, he'd be 'out' and we'd win. If he hit me with it, I'd be out, and we'd lose and it would be all my fault. I felt my heart pulsing in my temples as the sweat ran down my face. Who was I to be in such a position? I was just another kid who didn't like big gym teachers and complex games. I was nobody.

The other kid fired the ball at me, but the shot was wild and it bounced harmlessly off the wall. I grabbed it, not quite knowing what to do next. The crowd began to chant, "Boofa! Boofa! Boofa!" I hated that knickname, but when a crowd of crazed middle schoolers is rabidly chanting it, it's no time to argue.

I don't know how it happened: the details are fuzzy, but somehow I managed to get near enough to the other team's pin that I might have a shot at it, except for this big eighth grader guarding the thing. I must have thrown the mother of all head-fakes or something, but miraculously he moved to the side, exposing the pin. I fired the ball, down went the pin, and up went the deafening roar of the crowd. I was their hero!

I swear I am not making this up: they went absolutely nuts on me, crowding around me and chanting "Boofa! Boofa! Boofa!" And they actually hoisted me up on their collective shoulders and carried me into the locker room. "Boofa! Boofa! Boofa!" After that, it was mister popularity and awesomeness. For the rest of 6th period anyway, and then it was back to normal and on to math class. But I basked in that glow for a while after. Chris Booth: hero for ten minutes.

I was reminded of this whole episode because it was such a contrast to what A. W. Tozer, that good old Christian & Missionary Alliance pastor from the mid twentieth century, said in his book, The Knowledge of The Holy. He said that God does not need to be "lifted up." "Elevated" was his word for it. He said, in effect, that when we "lift God up" (like the songs say, "Lord, I lift your name on high..." "be lifted up," etc.), we don't lift Him as if He were one of us. He's not one of us. He is Apart. Magnificent. Glorious. Other. And Above. He already is "lifted up." He already is "on high." So when we "lift Him up," we are really just agreeing with Him that He is glorious.

Here's how Tozer worded it:

"Since He is the Being supreme over all, it follows that God cannot be elevated. Nothing is above Him, nothing beyond Him. Any motion in His direction is elevation of the creature; away from Him, descent. He holds His position out of Himself and by leave of none. As no one can promote Him, so no one can degrade Him. It is written that He upholds all things by the word of His power [Hebrews 1:3]. How can He be raised or supported by the thing He upholds?" A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of The Holy, p.40

In 1996, Joan Osborne (thoughtfully? blasphemously?) sang, "What if God was one of us? Just a slob like one of us? Just a stranger on the bus, trying to make his way home?" This is a very small God, or should I say, god, that she is asking about. If God is God, then He's not first and foremost, in His nature, one of us. If God is God, then He's not like skinny little "Boofa," who got "lifted up" back in 1977. It's not as if He were one from among the throng, lucky enough to have knocked down the pin or something, so we can celebrate Him for a moment or two until the Next Big Thing comes along. No, God, in His very nature, is elevated. He is already lifted up. Already Grand. Already Heroic. Already Glorious. So when we "lift Him up," we are really just agreeing with Him that He is Glorious. And that is a happy thought, one that would satisfy us to the depth of our souls if we would allow ourselves to see Him as He longs to be seen, as Glorious!

And thank God that He did become one of us, in the person of the Son, Jesus Christ. He didn't abandon us to the fallen way we had chosen for ourselves. Instead, He took on flesh - the elevated One condescended out of true love and compassion - to live the life we should have led, died the death we should have died, and rose so we can enjoy LIFE as He meant for it to be: enjoying His perfections forever.

"The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." Colossians 1:15-17

Fist Bump

2011-09-25T15:44:00.000-04:00

If you come to me wanting a fist-bump, I'm going to do ALL of these to you. I really will.

And I think I'm getting an El Camino. That's a sweet ride.

Irene's Damage Here In Rutland, VT

2011-08-29T20:35:00.005-04:00

Here are just two images of the devastation from Tropical Storm Irene here in Rutland. These are roads we use every day. It will be a long time before these ares are passable again. Rutland is almost cut off from the rest of the world...There are more washouts to the north so our only major road is Route 4 to the east.

The power of water is just overwhelming. I can't help but think of Noah's flood and the terror the people back then must have felt.

Route 7 South, Rutland (headed toward Clarendon) photo by Vito Starinskas

I got these photos from the Burlington Free Press website where there are lots more.

Our hearts go out to the people who have lost property and their homes, and we are especially praying for those who have lost loved ones due to this storm.

Route 4 East in Mendon (headed toward Pico/Killington) photo by Vito Starinskas

Ready Or Not...

2011-08-28T15:24:00.001-04:00

When our first baby, Becca, was going to be born, a huge 'nesting' instinct settled upon both Janie & I. We set up the crib and stockpiled diapers and wipes and got a whole 'diaper changing station' set up. We were full of anticipation and wondered if we were missing anything.

Strangely, I felt a similar sensation of nesting (or you might call it 'gathering') as I saw the growing pile of 'stuff' that our 18-year-old son, Daniel, would need for college. Now he's a guy, and had far less to take to college than certain girls I know (cough *Becca* cough) but there was still a nice little pile in the dining room prior to our jetting off to Roberts Wesleyan College on Thursday.

As we rolled across the New York thruway,
I kept checking the lists: did we get him everything he needs?

***

My friend Dwight spoke in church several years back just after he had dropped his own son off at college. And forcing his warbly voice to work as he tried to hold back his tears, he shared the worries and doubts and anxiety that a parent of a first-year college student has: "Have I taught him everything? Have I showed him everything? Is he ready?" There wasn't a dry eye in the place, and his emotion made an impact on Janie and I, being a few years behind his stage of life. We wanted to be sure to teach our kids well and be sure to cover all the bases. So even though Janie was sick, we ramped up, as much as we could, our efforts to relate and be together and 'teach' our kids. It wasn't through direct methods like a classroom, but more through just living life together with God and letting it rub off on them.

There is no real diagnostic way to look at a kid and gauge if you have succeeded in your goal to teach them well; it just doesn't work that way. However, I can say with all confidence that I see wonderful things in my kids and I'm so proud of them.

So as I type this, two days after dropping our second-born child off at college, I'm thoughtfully, but not fretfully, asking: "Have I taught him everything? Have I shown him everything? Is he ready?" The fact is, no, I have not taught him everything. I have not shown him everything. But he is ready. Ready enough, despite having not been told and taught everything. The reason I can say that with such confidence is that Daniel has a great and good God who cares for him, and this great and good God knows Daniel's name and knows where he is and what he is doing and cares for him even more than I can or could even imagine. And this comforts my parental anxieties.

***

So I had just gotten some lovely peace about all of this on the five hour drive home from Daniel's college and - I swear I am not making this up - I arrived home to this piece of mail for Carly, who starts 9th grade next week:

Lipscomb University
One University Park Drive
Nashville, TN 37204

Dear Carly,
Thank you for inquiring about Lipscomb University. I am excited that you would like to learn more about us.....

Caleb Chapman at Soulfest

2011-08-15T13:44:00.000-04:00

A highlight of Soulfest for me was a set from Caleb Chapman (son of Steven Curtis Chapman). He has started a band called 'Caleb' with his brother Will and a couple other guys whose names I don't know, and they are really quite good.

So they were playing their set but
it was getting a little later at night and evidently Soulfest has 'quiet hours' so people camping nearby can have some quiet. So they asked the band to unplug, which is really difficult when you're not in a living room. There were probably 50 or 100 people gathering around in this big tent, and they did what they could to play unplugged, and I was impressed with their patience with what seemed to me to be an unreasonable request to play so quietly at a rock festival and it wasn't really that late yet. They decided to come down off the stage with some of their gear, all unplugged, and so we cleared a hole in the middle of the audience and they played a few songs like that.

This song, Where Did We Go Wrong, has some sobering lyrics.

The reason that I wanted to share them here is because of what happened after: as we were walking away, Anna caught a glimpse of the band backstage. Rather than raging and striding around angry at the Soulfest organizers for making them play in such poor conditions, she saw them in a circle, praying.

Here's another song, Kingdom of Me, which has fantastic lyrics (and is a 'real' recording so you can actually understand him...):

Manifesto by The City Harmonic

2011-08-12T21:30:00.004-04:00

We saw these guys three times at Soulfest last week. Love it, love it.

The Sound (John Perkins Blues)

2011-07-29T00:28:00.001-04:00

Since we'll be seeing them next week, here's what Switchfoot frontman Jon Foreman had to say about their song, "The Sound (John Perkins Blues):"

"The Sound (John Perkin's Blues) is a very important song for us as a band. I see so much hatred and fear around me, I see so many people living out their pain. I hear it on the radio. I see it in the headlines. John Perkin's story needs to be heard. This song was inspired by a man who sang a louder song than hatred. In a world where we are defined by our differences, Mr. Perkin's life of service and compassion is a tangible demonstration of what it means to live a life of love. Love is the loudest song we could sing. Louder than racism. Louder than fear. Louder than hatred. John Perkin's said it right, love is the final fight. We're excited to hear this song on the radio, louder than pain."

Read about John Perkins here.

This is an unpolished, "alternate take," live studio recording. Don't play it if you don't like louder music...

From The Mouths Of Babes

2011-07-20T06:02:00.000-04:00

Carly sent this to her grandfather in response to his birthday request that everyone in the family send him a bible verse that meant a lot to them. Not bad for a 13 year old kid who at 12 lost her mom.....

*****

Happy birthday, Popsie! I didn't know you were turning 70 this year! I hope you had a good birthday, and that you've found a place to put all the chocolate.

I would like to ask if the whole Bible can be my "favorite verse" because there are too many good ones to pick just one. But I suppose that I can just share a few that have really stuck with me.

My verse for this year is Hebrews 12:1:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

This verse has really come to mean a lot to me, because I realized that I haven't really been doing my part in the Great Commission. So I am trying to look for opportunities that God has most certainly be providing me with. The question is just whether I see them. That is my verse for this year. However, I really like Isaiah 41:10:

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

This verse just really comforts me. It's a reassurance that God is holding us close to him. It's the verse that comes to mind for me when I get scared because there are sketchy people at the Library (which is where I am volunteering, if you didn't know) or some other situation. It reminds me that God is with me, and I don't need to be afraid. This then brings to mind Matthew 10:28:

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

While it reminds you that you don't need to be afraid, it also brings a reverence for God that might not be on your mind just because. I don't know about you, but I've never experienced a feeling so great as fear of the Lord.

I think that a verse that has really meant a lot to all of us is Philippians 1:21:

For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

I think that this verse can be looked at as simple, but is easy to dive into and find something else hidden. Looking at the first part of the verse, to live is Christ, could be something that we overlook. But really, when you think about it, is living really "Christ"? Would you really describe your life as "Christ"? Some people say that they would, yet they complain all the time. It is clear that they aren't happy. I think that "living Christ" should mean contentment with what you have. Taken from another point of view, it could also mean to live in a Christlike manner. However, looking at the second part of the verse, it sounds like it should be "living Christ."

Lots of people are afraid of death. Sometimes I feel like I am, too. But then I think, "What's to fear?" After all, we will be going to heaven, and it will be a million times better than Earth. Even better than that. I think that another thing that people fear is losing everything that they have on Earth. I guess they don't think about what's waiting for them in heaven. As said in Matthew 6:20:

But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

What is what we have on Earth, compared to what we will have in heaven? And even so, what are we going to do with it? What will we need with it? God is everything that we need, so what else do we really need? On Earth, we would say food, water, clothes, shelter. All of which are essential to this life. But in heaven, what will we need? Nothing. Won't that be wonderful, to never need anything? Never be hungry, never be thirsty. In our culture, that isn't really a big deal. You're hungry? Okay, go pick up something from McDonald's. But think about those in Japan [after the earthquake], Africa, or in Haiti, who aren't afforded that luxury. How will heaven seem to them? It will certainly be gain. I'm not saying that we should all go commit suicide, because heaven will be so much better. It's just something to look forward to. Death is not something that we should fear.

-Carly :)

So Much To Say

2011-07-17T17:36:00.003-04:00

Pastor Dave spoke on James 3 today; that's the part where James strongly suggests we bite our tongues rather than giving our two bits all the time. We just have such a hard time controlling ourselves: what we say can hurt others and even have a corrosive effect on our own hearts.

So I thought I'd put up a few more verses about how careful we should be with what we say. By the way, the self-control needed to do this comes not from our own strength but from God's Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). That's so easy to say (or read) on a blog and so hard to do in the heat of the moment...when our anger is getting stirred up and we want to use words to lash out. God, we need help!

James 3:3-8 "When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. ⁴ Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. ⁵ Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
⁷ All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, ⁸ but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
⁹ With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. ¹⁰ Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be"

Proverbs 10:19 "When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise."

Proverbs 12:18 "Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

Proverbs 17:27 "The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint, and whoever has understanding is even-tempered."

Job 13:5 "If only you would be altogether silent! For you, that would be wisdom."

Ecclesiastes 5:2-3 "Do not be quick with your mouth,
do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God.
God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.
³ A dream comes when there are many cares,
and many words mark the speech of a fool."

Ecclesiastes 10:12 "Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious, but fools are consumed by their own lips."

....and maybe most importantly, Matthew 12:36-37 "But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. ³⁷ For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

photo: Jacob Botter

Mark Altrogge: The Best Sermon You'll Ever Preach

2011-07-15T08:19:00.000-04:00

Mark Altrogge is a pastor in Pennsylvania and maintains a great blog called The Blazing Center. I thought his post today was fantastic and decided to re-post it here.

*******

The best sermons I ever preach are those I preach, not in my ministerial capacity, but as a poor sinner preaching to sinners. — Spurgeon

This is how to help others. As one who is weak. As one who can sympathize with them in their struggles. As one who has sinned himself. As one who knows what it’s like to be forgiven repeatedly.

We help others best as fellow recipients of mercy. As those who have failed many times. As those who fear the Lord if they were to judge others. As those who walk with a limp. As those who have no merit of their own, only the righteousness of Christ. As those who walk alongside.

We help others best when we help them with gentleness, long suffering and patience. We help others best when we don’t get frustrated with their many doubts because we too have doubted. We help others best when we express compassion before telling them how they need to change.

We fail to help others when we dole out quick advice, when we tell them how we just decided to change then did it, when we can’t understand why it’s so hard for them to believe. We fail to help others when we judge their weakness from our strength.

We fail to help our children when we get angry when they sin. We fail to help our children when we sigh or can’t believe it when they’ve failed again. We fail to help them when we tell them we’re disappointed in them. We fail to help them when we tell them we’d never do that.

The best advice we ever give is that of a poor sinner to another poor sinner. As one who looks to herself, lest she also be tempted. As one who knows he needs to be encouraged as well. As one who doesn’t assume to know another’s heart and pain.

As D.T. Niles said, “Christianity is one beggar telling another beggar where he found bread.”

The best advice we can give is not look at me and my example but look at Christ and all he did for you.

Janie's Last Journal Part 22

2011-07-12T07:07:00.008-04:00

Janie's final entries in her journal...continued (read what this is about here.)

******

Well, here we are, 22 posts later, at the end of Janie's journal. Thanks for reading them with me. As you can see, her focus on the Lord became acute as she continued walking by faith through her struggle right to the end.

I love that these are her very last written words:

"The Lord challenges us to suffer persecutions and to confess Him. He wants those who belong to Him to be brave and fearless. He Himself shows how weakness of the flesh is overcome by the courage of the Spirit. This is the testimony of the apostles and in particular of the representative, administrating Spirit. A Christian is fearless. - Forgotten God, Francis Chan (quoting Tertullian) p.45

Janie's Last Journal Part 21

2011-07-11T06:57:00.002-04:00

Janie's final entries in her journal...continued (read what this is about here.)

(For the next few weeks, I'll be posting these quotes that meant a lot to her as she neared the end of her life here on earth. If you read them closely, you'll see a common thread there....I'll let you find it without any commentary - except to encourage you to take the entries to heart and be blessed...and perhaps store them away in your own journal....)

******

Today's entry, as well as the rest from Janie's journal from here on in, aren't dated by her. If they have a date, it's the daily reading date from the book she was quoting from. Since I don't know the exact date she jotted these things down, I am breaking them up in a way that seems logical to me.

"We walk by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinth 5:7

(It thrills me somehow to know that for her, with mere days left to live, she would quote this verse. She knew, I am sure, that soon, the faith would become sight!)

Tomorrow's post is the last thing she ever wrote on earth.

Janie's Last Journal Part 20

2011-07-10T06:54:00.003-04:00

"Faith does not say, "I see this is good for me; therefore God must have sent it." Instead, faith declares, "God sent it; therefore it must be good for me." -Streams In The Desert, L. B. Cowman, May 1

Janie's Last Journal Part 19

2011-07-09T06:52:00.002-04:00

"No power on earth or in hell can conquer the Spirit of God living within the human spirit; it creates an inner invincibility." -My Utmost For His Highest, Oswald Chambers, April14

Janie's Last Journal Part 18

2011-07-08T06:47:00.002-04:00

"My children, there is no good thing that I would withhold from you. I have not left you to fend for yourselves nor to make your way by your own devices. I am the Lord your God. I am your Provider and Defender. I care for you with a deep and tender love. I am all-wise and all-powerful and will be your defense against every onslaught of the enemy." -Come Away My Beloved, Frances J. Roberts, pg 204

Janie's Last Journal Part 17

2011-07-07T06:43:00.003-04:00

"God's love is unchangeable, and He is just as loving even when we do not see or feel it. And His love and His sovereignty are equal and universal. Therefore He often withholds our enjoyment and awareness of our progress, because He knows best what will actually ripen and further this work in us." -Francis Ridley Havergal

Janie's Last Journal Part 16

2011-07-06T06:41:00.005-04:00

"Even the weakest saint can experience the power of the deity of the Son of God, when he is willing to 'let go.' But any effort to 'hang on' to the least bit of our own power will only diminish the life of Jesus in us. We have to keep letting go, and slowly, but surely, the great full life of God will invade us, penetrating every part. Then Jesus will have complete and effective dominion in us, and people will take notice that we have been with Him." -My Utmost For His Highest, Oswald Chambers, April 12

Janie's Last Journal Part 15

2011-07-05T06:40:00.003-04:00

"I willingly bear witness to the fact that I owe more to my Lord's fire, hammer, and file than to anything else in His workshop. Sometimes I wonder if I have ever learned anything except at the end of God's rod. When my classroom is darkest, I see best." -Charles Spurgeon

Janie's Last Journal Part 14

2011-07-04T06:32:00.003-04:00

"That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinth. 12:10

The literal translation of this verse adds a startling emphasis to it, allowing it to speak for itself with power we have probably never realized. It is as follows: "Therefore I take pleasure in being without strength, being insulted, experiencing emergencies, and being chased and forced into a corner for Christ's sake; for when I am without strength, I am dynamite." -Streams In The Desert, L. B. Cowman, April 5

Janie's Last Journal Part 13

2011-07-03T06:29:00.003-04:00

Janie's final entries in her journal...continued (read what this is about here.)

(For the next week or so, I'll be posting these quotes that meant a lot to Janie as she neared the end of her life here on earth. If you read them closely, you'll see a common thread there....I'll let you find it without any commentary - except to encourage you to take the entries to heart and be blessed...and perhaps store them away in your own journal....)

******

Today's entry, as well as the rest from Janie's journal from here on in, aren't dated by her. If they have a date, it's the daily reading date from the book she was quoting from. Since I don't know the exact date she jotted these things down, I am breaking them up in a way that seems logical to me.

"There is a perfect passivity that is not laziness. It is a living stillness born of trust. Quiet tension is not trust but simply compressed anxiety." -Streams In The Desert, L. B. Cowman, April7

Janie's Last Journal Part 12

2011-07-02T06:29:00.005-04:00

"Most Christians lead a treadmill life - a life in which they can predict almost everything that will come their way. But the souls that God leads into unpredictable and special situations are isolated by Him. All they know is that God is holding them and that He is dealing in their lives. Then their expectations come from Him alone, We must be detached from outward things and attached inwardly to the Lord alone in order to see His wonders." -Streams In The Desert, L. B. Cowman, April 5

Janie's Last Journal Part 11

2011-07-01T07:00:00.000-04:00

March 19, 2010

"When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your unfailing love, LORD, supported me.
When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy" Psalm 94:18-19

Janie's Last Journal Part 10

2011-06-30T07:00:00.000-04:00

March 18, 2010

"The name of the LORD is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10

"For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God.
Teach me your way, LORD, that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name"

Psalm 86:10-11

"Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom"

"Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days."

Psalm 90: 12, 14

Janie's Last Journal Part 9

2011-06-29T07:00:00.000-04:00

March 16, 2010

"Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God?
You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples." Psalm 77:13-14

"Help us, God our Savior, for the glory of your name;
deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake.
Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?” Psalm 79:9-10a

"Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you." 2 Thessalonians 3:16

Janie's Last Journal Part 8

2011-06-28T07:00:00.001-04:00

March 15, 2010

"...be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen" 2 Peter 3:17-18

Janie's Last Journal Part 7

2011-06-27T07:00:00.002-04:00

March 19, 2010

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust." Psalm 91:1-2

Janie's Last Journal Part 6

2011-06-26T07:00:00.000-04:00

March 10, 2010

Why is it that God leads us in this way, allowing such a strong and constant pressure on us? One of His purposes is to show is His all-sufficient strength and grace more effectively than if it were free from difficulties and trials. "We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." (2 Cor. 4:7)

Another purpose is to bring us a greater awareness of our dependence upon Him. God is constantly trying to teach us how dependent we are on Him - that we are held completely by His hand and reliant on His care alone.

L.B. Cowman - Streams In The Desert, March 7

I do not see You, Lord, nor do I feel Your presence, but I know for certain You are graciously here - exactly where I am and aware of my circumstances.

Streams, March 10

Trust God's word and His power more than you trust your own feelings and experiences. Remember, your Rock is Christ, and it is the sea that ebbs and flows with the tides, not Him.

If we cower in the lowlands of feelings and emotions, we will find ourselves entangled in a thousand nets of doubt, despair, temptation and unbelief. "Put your hope in God." Psalm 42:5. When I cannot feel the faith of assurance, I live by the fact of God's faithfulness.

Streams, March 10

Janie's Last Journal - Part 5

2011-06-25T07:00:00.000-04:00

March 7, 2010

"Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord." Psalm 31:24

"You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you." Psalm 32:7-8

"By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of His mouth." Psalm 33:6

"We wait in hope for the Lord; He is our help and shield. In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name." Psalm 33:20-22

"Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him." Psalm 34:8

Janie's Last Journal - Part 4

2011-06-24T07:00:00.000-04:00

March 6, 2010

"The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 26:1

"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy, and I will give thanks to Him in song." Psalm 28:7

Janie's Last Journal - Part 3

2011-06-23T07:00:00.001-04:00

Janie's final entries in her journal...continued (read what this is about here).

(For the next few weeks, I'll be posting these quotes that meant a lot to her as she neared the end of her life here on earth. If you read them closely, you'll see a common thread there....I'll let you find it without any commentary - except to encourage you to take the entries to heart and be blessed...and perhaps store them away in your own journal....)

March 5, 2010

"For a man's ways are in full view of the Lord, and He examines all his paths." Psalm 5:21

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall lack nothing." Psalm 23:1

"Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long." Psalm 25:4-5

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" Phil. 4:4

Janie's Last Journal - Part 2

2011-06-22T07:00:00.005-04:00

March 4, 2010 continued

"I will praise the Lord, who counsels me, even at night my heart instructs me. I have set the Lord always before me. Because He is my right hand, I will not be shaken." Psalm 16:7-8

"Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings." Psalm 17:8

"You, O Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness to light. With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall." Psalm 18:28-29

"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer." Psalm 20:14

Janie's Last Journal - Part 1

2011-06-21T08:03:00.001-04:00

Janie kept journals that accompanied her daily quiet time and bible reading. Sometimes she wrote down her own thoughts, but mostly she wrote down bible verses that were very meaningful to her. She also jotted down quotes from people whose books really helped her. People like Oswald Chambers (My Utmost For His Highest), and L.B. Cowman (Streams In The desert) as well as hymn lyrics and so forth. She wrote these things down, especially toward the end, so she could get to them quickly when she felt the need for extra courage and strength. It buoyed her to have a good word that spoke directly to what she was feeling at the time. This is a good practice which I should probably do more of.

One thing that I especially like about her writing these things down is that I can look back and see her handwriting which is so happily familiar to me, and read 'where she was at' on any given day. Which brings me to the upcoming series that I will be doing here on the blog.

For the next few weeks, I'll be posting these quotes that meant a lot to her as she neared the end of her life here on earth. If you read them closely, you'll see a common thread there....I'll let you find it without any help from me - except to encourage you to take the entries to heart and be blessed...and perhaps store them away in your own journal....

March 4, 2010

"-Through a multitude of tests, you will learn courage. You will find yourself put in a place of training and discipline, so that when the moments of crisis come you will not become faint-hearted and you will not be the victim of unwanted fear." Come Away My Beloved, Francis Roberts, pg 72

"-By the Word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of His mouth." Psalm 33:6

"-Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm." Proverbs 4:23, 26

I Love Ya Craig Groeschel....

2011-06-14T21:30:00.001-04:00

....but I don't think I can wait this long to download your stuff ;-)

The Bible Is Not About You

2011-06-06T23:46:00.000-04:00

One of the best things about Rick Warren's mega-bestselling book, "The Purpose Driven Life" is it's very first sentence: "It's not about you."

Here's Tim Keller reminding us that the Bible is not about you. This is something to be happy about, actually. Something to get very, very
jazzed about.

Thanks to my friends at Sixten for posting this...so I could repost it :-)

Don Miller On Joseph's Troubles and Yours

2011-05-19T13:12:00.000-04:00

How Deep The Father's Love For Us

2011-05-18T23:33:00.000-04:00

365 Days With Jesus

2011-05-08T11:00:00.002-04:00

Happy Mother's Day!

The photograph to the left is the spot where I proposed to Janie (she said "yes," but I honestly have never figured out why haha). The view is spectacular and Janie & I had taken many walks to this spot up above her parents' cottage in Vermont.

I had gotten the ring in the summer of 1984, and I just had to show it off to the cool waitresses I worked with at the Piccadilly Deli where I was a cook at the time. Afraid of losing it, I
tied a string to it and attached it to my belt loop and stuffed it - no box - in my pocket! What a goon. I had planned to give it to her and pop the question on her birthday in October. We'd be up at the cottage in Vermont, it would be peak foliage, it was her birthday....all the stars aligning for a dramatic and romantic Proposal. When the Day actually came, however, my heart said, 'yes,' but my body said, 'no!' My palms began to sweat, my cheeks sucked in, my eyes bugged out of my head and my ears got all hot...and I panicked and couldn't do the job. I bailed. Just too many people around on a birthday...yeah, that was it.

So I actually proposed the day after Janie's birthday, standing right on that rock under the swing. I had already given her a nice ring (an opal) to wear that showed we were committed to each other...a 'promise ring' if you will. Now, finding the courage that had abandoned me the day before, I brought up the subject of finally getting married and she said that she did want to marry me like we had talked about someday. Not to be deterred, now that I was in it, I pressed it and said that I wanted to marry her, and right now if I could, and I asked her to marry me. She said yes.

We had already kind of agreed that, were we to get engaged some day, we'd use the promise ring as an engagement ring so as to save money. So I said I wanted to take the ring off and then put it on again as a symbolic gesture kind of thing. I asked her to close her eyes and I took off the opal. That's when I deftly made the switcheroo and put the diamond on in place of the opal. Did you see that? Smooth. Her jaw dropped of course and she began to cry.

I, being true to my drooling, hairy, knuckle-dragging gender, said, "why are you crying?"

"Because!" she said, "I'm so happy!"

Sheepishly: "Oh."

I'll save the wedding story and the rest of the intervening twenty five years for another post. To sum them up, we moved to Greenfield, MA where I attended photography school and she worked for a dentist's office. We moved back to central MA and I began my career as a photographer, and she continued hers in medical offices. Then Rebecca was born, and along came Daniel and then we moved to Vermont and along came Carly.

All the while, God was carrying us along and preparing us, in so many unnoticed ways, for what was ahead.

****

So now it's been one year since Janie went home to be with the Lord. One year ago today, we had the high privilege of watching the exact moment she entered into the joy of His rest. In a way, it was a very beautiful thing, though it was awful and sad and scary too. Janie did so many things so well; I'm so glad that she died well too. Does that make sense to you?

But boy! How can can it have been a year already? Honestly, I really don't feel like I've lived 365 days since then - it feels more like three or five months, tops. But a whole year?

We all miss her terribly of course; her radiant smile lit up the room, and her energy and love for God energized everyone around her. She loved life and lived it well. Like C.S. Lewis said about his wife, "she liked more things and liked them more than anyone I have known." Sounds like Janie, huh?

She was a marvelous wife, a brilliant mom, a delightful daughter and a faithful and true friend.

Now don't get creeped out by this, but: I actually see Janie every day. I see her in Rebecca's den-mothering in her dorm and her kind, gentle spirit. I see her in Daniel's playing music at church and his great tennis swing. I see her in Carly's ready laugh and her walk with God. Yes, I do see Janie every day, and I thank God that so much of her has remained behind in my three wonderful children.

So maybe you had guessed that this was coming, but I decided to make a little slideshow of the last few years with Janie. So grab your box of Kleenex and enjoy....

Oh, by the way, the music is by my kids' band, Till We Have Faces. The song, "Promise," was one of her favorites....

I haven't been as diligent in giving family news as I should have been, I suppose, so here's a quick rundown of our year since May 8 of 2010, including a few links to some of my previous posts:

May: Janie's Memorial Service was really quite something. I can't speak for everyone there, but for me, it was the most positive and upbeat funeral I've ever been to. And that says something about Janie and her great God doesn't it? Here's her obituary. We also welcomed Emma and Pippi into our family!

June: Carly's birthday, the end of school, the start of summer...all while still a little shell-shocked of course.

July: more summer stuff. Work gets busy for me, kids had their work, Carly had tennis, etc. Our Anniversary was July 27th.

August: my birthday month. First birthday without Janie. Weird. Everyone was quite wonderful to me, I must say. We went to Soulfest, a big Christian rock music festival. Back to school happens at the end of August around here. Becca & her boyfriend Dan got off to Houghton for sophomore year, Daniel started his Senior year of high school and Carly went into 8th grade at RACS.

September: Transitioned from summer mode to hitting-our-stride-everyone's-in-a-school-schedule mode.

October: Janie's birthday month. More weirdness but it turned into a very positive experience for me. I spent some time alone with God on the Appalachian Trail with a camera. I felt calm and peaceful and relaxed afterwards. Oh, and the studio got burgled too....

November: Here's where some excitement came along: Janie's Stocking started up the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Read about this here, here, here and here if it's new to you. This was a very happy thing - it really put a spring in my step, and how many people can say that during their first Holiday season after losing a loved one? Plus, Janie would have loved it.

December: Really all about the Stocking thing, and getting kids home from college and working hard at making Christmas about Jesus and not missing Janie so much that we become incapacitated. I think we did really well.

New Year's: We had a hoe-down! And a worship-event-thing. I know: sounds weird. You had to be there.

January --> Today: Lots of daily life routine stuff: school concerts, report cards, phone calls to the college kids, science fairs, and, in the winter, shovelling, shovelling, shovelling! I don't think I personally have ever been so busy as February/March/April. I took on the design work for the RACS yearbook. Some of Daniel's scholarship applications needed the rather comprehensive Fafsa (the standard federal college financial aid application) forms filled out (a Janie thing) and in order to do the Fafsa, it goes better if your taxes (the long form) are done (another Janie thing). Plus I was the speaker for Forge, and did I mention I decided to refinance the house? Crazy!

As a last bit of news, let me just add that though not perfected, my attempts at Janie's world famous chocolate chip cookies have had some success.

And finally, I'd like to make a very public THANK YOU to Janie's parents and her sister Dia (and the rest of the Linds), who have given to our family far beyond what we could ask or even imagine with their continuous help in the every day comings and goings of the Booths.

Thanks for reading - I know this was a long one! We love you all and are so grateful for your prayers for us.

"Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you." Psalm 63:3

Pride Goeth Before A Summer

2011-05-01T13:32:00.003-04:00

Growing up on Cape Cod in the summer is a very wonderful thing: beaches, bare feet, sailboats, bikes and...lawnmowers.

Once when I was thirteen or so, I was mowing the lawn with my family's Snapper riding mower (this one didn't have a steering wheel, but rather, strangely, handlebars like on a three-speed bike). I was listening to the radio in those pre-ipod days, so that meant wearing
these big headphones like the road-crews wear to block out noise and save their ears. Only these had a radio in them and speakers inside. So the Doobie Brothers and Reo Speedwagon were blaring in my ears and I had my 'cool' shades on and I was really in the groove. I was moving at a pretty good clip for a 13-year-old and was really thinking I was 'all that.' I remember in my pride imagining someone from a lawn service approaching me and begging me to work for them because I did such an amazing job and did it with such high-speed efficiency. Or maybe that cute girl from school might be driving by with her parents and notice my cool shades...and my great mowing technique, especially at these drag-racer speeds.

I was under the big apple tree in the front yard, the one with the classic swing made of a pine board and two ropes. Moving at a very fast clip - too fast for under an apple tree with a swing, I reached across the 3-speed bike handlebars to sweep the swing to the side so as to mow under it. Of course being a gawky 13-year old, I missed, and the swing caught perfect hold of the handlebars. The engine kept propelling me forward, thus lifting the entire front end of the mower off the ground with me still on it. In a panic, I leaned forward to keep it from flipping over on top of me, and there I was, trapped: handlebars firmly engaged on the swing and me with my cool shades and giant headphones leaning against said handlebars at a 45 degree angle from the ground. I looked down over my shoulder, and there were the knobby tires grinding away, three or four inches under the soil now and spewing dirt five feet behind me like I was in a monster truck rally.

There was nothing for it: I had to bail out and save myself. I wriggled myself till my feet were on the seat and, gathering all my strength, I leaped away and rolled across the ground just in time to see the whole machine explode in a giant fireball that reached 50 feet in the air! The whole apple tree was set ablaze and the whole neighborhood turned out to watch it burn to the ground.

Ok, I made up that last part. But the real ending, the one where I realized I could hit the kill switch and walk away, is just so boring.

With either ending, though, I end up hanging my head in shame. It was embarrassing, and made worse by my thinking how cool I was. I learned a lesson that day about swagger: when you are swaggering your swaggiest, watch out! Danger may be just around the corner!

Pride is a dangerous thing. It messes with our heads and puffs us up. And clouds our judgment, even judgment about how fast is too fast on a piece of machinery with a sharp blade on the bottom spinning at 3000 rpm.

"Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.
It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor than to divide the spoil with the proud."
Proverbs 16:18-19

Ballet In The Kingdom

2011-04-26T23:11:00.000-04:00

Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, recently told of meeting a wonderful little girl named Ella Mae.

Read on...you will be inspired.

The Kingdom of God in the Life of Ella Mae

Our eternal life does not begin on the day we die; rather, it begins on the day that we meet Jesus and it alters the course of our life. It then ushers us through this life into something called the kingdom of God. Ultimately, that’s our eternal destination according to the teaching of the Bible. And today in Luke 17:20–37, Jesus is addressing the issue of the coming of the kingdom of God. And it’s a big idea that’s predominant and prevalent throughout much of the Scriptures. And lots of people debate over how Jesus is going to come back and when Jesus is going to come back and exactly how the details will play out. And lots of arguments rage about the nature and essence and details of the kingdom of God.

And so I thought it might be helpful to make it a little bit more practical and introduce you to my newest friend, somebody I had the privilege and honor of meeting yesterday and looking at the kingdom of God in the life of one little girl. Her name is, fantastically enough, Ella Mae, best name ever.

My son, Zachariah Blaise Driscoll, buddy Zac, had a baseball tournament yesterday in eastern Washington over in Wenatchee. So buddy Zac and I drove over and while hanging out at the baseball fields watching him, the Acts 29 church planter from that town came to visit and hang out for the course of the day. Great guy, wonderful guy with a great church.

And if you’re new, the Acts 29 Network is our church-planting network. We give 10 percent of all of our dollars to Acts 29 and we help plant churches. So there are four hundred Acts 29 churches in the U.S., five hundred potential church planters being assessed continually, and we love church planting.
And so this young man came to hang out for the day and he brought his daughter, Ella Mae. She’s about five years old with brown hair, big eyes. She’s really smart. She’s hilariously funny and exceedingly cute. And if the guys have got the photo, I’ll show her to you. I snapped this on my iPhone. As you can see, she’s got a walker because she has spina bifida.

And I’m not an expert on this by any stretch of the imagination, but as I understand it, that means her spine is external to her body. There are some serious biological, neurological complications and implications for her condition. The lifespan is into the teens or twenties. I guess in part because a lot of fluid collects in the brain. She showed us over dinner last night as we were eating chips and salsa that she had a shunt put in with a drainage cord that goes down her neck. Her daddy, with tears in his eyes, explained that that will perhaps extend her life course into her thirties, if Jesus doesn’t heal her, something that we’re praying for.

When I first met her, she had her little walker and was at the little league field and she’s just really fun and really cute. And I noticed she had a brace on one leg and she had a pink cast on the other. And she has no functionality below the waist, so bowel movements, standing up, walking, is not possible for her. But she’s the most happy, conversant, pleasant little girl you could ever meet. And I wanted to buy her candy. So I got down on one knee, “Ella Mae, my name is Pastor Mark.” And she said, “Pastor Mark, you are more handsome in person than you are on the computer.” So she has the spiritual gift of discernment, obviously. And I looked at her, I said, “You need candy.” So I picked her up and I carried her over to the snack shack and gave her some money and we got her some candy. And I just got to visit with her and she is a wonderful little girl.

And now what’s interesting about Ella Mae is that she’s already experienced the kingdom of God. The theologians, when they talk about the kingdom of God, they’ll talk about the already but not yet. That the kingdom of God is started, but it’s not yet concluded. It’s in process, but it’s not fully done. And she’s experienced the kingdom of God. Ella Mae’s a Christian, she loves Jesus. She’s been born again, she has a new heart, the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit radiates joy through her in a remarkable way. Her countenance and her disposition are a compelling sermon.

Buddy Zac and I took her and her family out to dinner last night and afterward I asked Zac a question that I ask my kids a lot, “So what did you learn today?” And buddy Zac said, “I learned that if you love Jesus, you don’t have to be bitter even if your life is hard. You can still have joy.” Now that’s a great lesson for an eleven-year-old boy to observe from a five-year-old girl. And he really liked her. She told him, “Zac, you’re very cool.” So Zac thinks she’s pretty awesome too.

And it was interesting as we were having dinner with her, you can see that the kingdom of God has begun in her life, her sins are forgiven, she belongs to Jesus, she’s filled with the Holy Spirit, she has a daddy who’s a pastor. And he absolutely adores and loves her. And in the providence of God, she has a wonderful, believing mother who’s a nurse by trade. And so she has the best physical and spiritual care that perhaps a little girl in her condition can have.

And as we walked into the restaurant, I noticed that everyone came to her. She knew all of the workers, all of the servers, and the owner. And she, with her walker, would put it out, and then drag her legs along because they’re not functional. She holds herself up by her arms and then would reach up with one hand and hug everyone and greet them. She’s a citizen of the kingdom of God, she’s a servant of the kingdom of God, and she brings the presence of the kingdom of God with her. She’s lovely.
She’s still waiting, though, for the conclusion of the kingdom of God. That one day she, like you and I, will die. And her body, your body, my body, will go into the ground and our soul will go to be with the Lord in a place called heaven. We don’t reside there forever. There is a day upon the second coming of Jesus, the return of our King, when our body and soul reunite and as Jesus resurrected from death, so we too rise in a new body to live on a new earth, free of sin and all its effects. Just like Jesus rose. And that will be the culmination of the kingdom of God and that’ll be the final experience of the children of God, including Ella Mae.

So the kingdom of God has begun in her life and there is still more to come. And in the meantime, she’s journeying, she’s venturing toward the kingdom of God. And she has trials and tests, as we all do, along the way. The most recent was not long ago. Her daddy, with tears in his eyes, explained that—she said, “Daddy, my hands are very tingly,” and then all of a sudden, they became paralyzed. “And Daddy, my arms are very tingly.” And they became paralyzed. She’s already paralyzed from the waist down, and now she’s having neurological complications from her spine that are causing her arms to become paralyzed as well.

Well, her daddy, obviously terrified, put her in the truck and made the almost-three-hour drive to Seattle in an hour and twenty minutes to get her to Children’s Hospital, where they performed an emergency surgery on her. And she reported to me, she was telling me the story. She came around to sit near me, which was my day’s highlight. I said, “Well, what did you do?” She said, “I was very scared. But then when they did the surgery, I woke up, I could move my hands so the first thing I did is I stretched them out and I said, ‘Praise the Lord,’” as an act of worship. That’s Ella Mae.

And so as we were visiting last night over Mexican food, she started telling me that one day she plans on being a ballerina. A ballerina. Now God could heal her in this life, but no matter what, in the kingdom of God, upon the resurrection of the dead and the full healing of the body, Ella Mae is going to be a ballerina. See, that’s the full unveiling of the kingdom of God. And I already asked Jesus, “Can I please have a front-row ticket? I want to see Ella Mae dance for the first time.”

And as a further evidence of the kingdom of God, in telling that story today, a gal at Mars Hill who loves Jesus and is a ballet dancer for the Pacific Northwest Ballet said, “Next time Ella Mae is in town for a surgery,” which will be shortly, “we’d love to have her come to the ballet and meet all the ballerinas.” So that’s going to be her little treat.

Ella Mae is one story of one little girl who’s wonderful. She has Jesus as her King, she’s a citizen of the kingdom, she’s on a kingdom mission to share the love of Jesus. She’s experienced the kingdom of God already, but it’s not yet completed in her life. There will be a day that Ella Mae rises from death and dances with Jesus as a ballerina.

And it’s important for us when we think of the kingdom of God to think of people whom Jesus loves and lives that he changes and eternities that he alters. And sometimes it becomes massive theological conjecture and speculation, as opposed to the simplicity that when we get to Jesus, everything’s going to be okay. The world as we know it is going to come to an end and Jesus is going to remove sin and all of its effects and usher in a perfect world that never ends, the kingdom of God.

UPDATE:

In this week’s sermon, Pastor Mark told us about meeting Ella Mae, a young pastor’s daughter in eastern Washington. Ella Mae has spina bifida, but has always dreamed of being a ballerina. When Pastor Mark mentioned this in an early sermon, a young woman who was in the service and is a ballet dancer with the Pacific Northwest Ballet came up afterward to say that they would love to have Ella Mae come meet all the ballerinas next time she was in Seattle.
So Pastor Mark wrote her dad to let them know the good news. This was Ella Mae’s reaction, as told in her dad’s reply:

Dude. Huge. I don’t even know what to say. I read your note to her this afternoon. Ella Mae’s eyes got big and she exclaimed, “Really??!! Truly? I get to meet a REAL BALLERINA? Mom, Mom, guess what Pastor Mark did for me!” Oh man, I should have videoed it … it would have put gas in your tank for miles. Her face was priceless. Good stuff.

We’ve sometimes wondered whether or not we should “encourage” the whole ballerina thing, for obvious reasons. And then I overheard her telling Levi a couple days ago driving home, “Levi, do you know what will make heaven so wonderful?” “What?” he said. “Heaven will be wonderful because there won’t be any walkers, braces, wheelchairs, or Spina Bifida, which means I’ll finally get to run and play with you like I’ve always wanted to do,” —said in her excited voice, as only she can— “and I’ll be able to dance for Jesus too. He’ll love it. He’s amazing you know, and he really likes ballerinas. I can’t dance now because my legs don’t work, but he’ll fix them in heaven, and then I’m gonna dance my heart out. He can’t wait to see me dance.”
Word for word, from her mouth. My eyes watered and I almost drove off the road.
So bring on ballerinas. One day, here or there, my daughter’s gonna dance. So thanks for blessing our family with this gift. It’s a little like Christmas in April. Seriously, we’re overwhelmed, humbled, and grateful. God is so good.

You can watch the sermon here:

Updike's "Seven Stanzas At Easter"

2011-04-25T16:11:00.000-04:00

My friend Jared recently posted this on his blog, and I wanted to share it here. It's a poem by the late, great John Updike about, well, I'll let you discover on your own what it's about....

Seven Stanzas At Easter
by John Updike

Make no mistake: if He rose at all
it was as His body;
if the cells’ dissolution did not reverse, the molecules
reknit, the amino acids rekindle,
the Church will fall.

It was not as the flowers,
each soft Spring recurrent;
it was not as His Spirit in the mouths and fuddled
eyes of the eleven apostles;
it was as His flesh: ours.

The same hinged thumbs and toes,
the same valved heart
that–pierced–died, withered, paused, and then
regathered out of enduring Might
new strength to enclose.

Let us not mock God with metaphor,
analogy, sidestepping, transcendence;
making of the event a parable, a sign painted in the
faded credulity of earlier ages:
let us walk through the door.

The stone is rolled back, not papier-mâché,
not a stone in a story,
but the vast rock of materiality that in the slow
grinding of time will eclipse for each of us
the wide light of day.

And if we will have an angel at the tomb,
make it a real angel,
weighty with Max Planck’s quanta, vivid with hair,
opaque in the dawn light, robed in real linen
spun on a definite loom.

Let us not seek to make it less monstrous,
for our own convenience, our own sense of beauty,
lest, awakened in one unthinkable hour, we are
embarrassed by the miracle,
and crushed by remonstrance.

Death In His Grave

2011-04-21T08:07:00.000-04:00

A profound and poetic description of Jesus' mission at the cross, enjoy "Death In His Grave" by John Mark MacMillan.

"The man Jesus Christ laid death in his grave!"

You can read John Mark's line-by-line commentary about the lyrics here. (thanks for the link Becca:)

Happy Easter everyone!

Though the Earth Cried out for blood
Satisfied her hunger was
Her billows calmed on raging seas
for the souls on men she craved

Sun and moon from balcony
Turned their head in disbelief
Their precious Love would taste the sting
disfigured and disdained

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke with keys
Of Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

So three days in darkness slept
The Morning Sun of righteousness
But rose to shame the throes of death
And over turn his rule

Now daughters and the sons of men
Would pay not their dues again
The debt of blood they owed was rent
When the day rolled a new

On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke holding keys
To Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave

He has cheated
Hell and seated
Us above the fall
In desperate places
He paid our wages
One time once and for all

Spring Is Here

2011-04-10T13:01:00.000-04:00

This brief exchange actually happened 5 minutes ago:

Carly: "Dad, will you get me something I can ride?"

Me: "Sure - let's have a look out in the shed for our bikes."

Carly: "I was thinking of something more like a giraffe."

April Fools!

2011-04-04T18:14:00.001-04:00

My two favorite April Fools Day posts were:

http://donmilleris.com/2011/04/01/my-review-of-love-wins/

http://www.google.com/mail/help/motion.html#utm_source=en-et-na-us&utm_medium=new-features-link&utm_campaign=en

Take Advantage Of It While I Can

2011-04-04T16:25:00.003-04:00

Here's what Bethany Hamilton, the girl who back in 2003 lost her left arm in a shark attack while surfing, said about being in the spotlight:

"I try not to make a big soap opera out of the shark attack. I would rather focus on what God has allowed me to do in picking up the pieces of my old life and adjusting to parts that are new and different for me. Most of all, I want to use my story as a way to tell people about God's story. It seems like he has given me the attention of the world for a moment, and I had better take advantage of it while I can." (from her book, Soul Surfer, 2004).

That is an unbelievably mature thing for a 14-year-old kid (at the time of the book) to say about such a loss. "Most of all, I want to use my story as a way to tell people about God's story." Outstanding. From the mouths of babes....And she feels much the same today, as her true-story movie is about to be released. The rest of the story is that she got back on her surfboard and competes....with only one arm. Fantastic.

Watch the trailer at the movie website - there are also some good interviews and such.

This girl is inspiring. I hope I, and anyone else who catches her story, can measure up to this kind of excellent attitude in the face of a great trial!

Obsessed With Facebook

2011-04-03T20:27:00.002-04:00

This guy Alex created this short clip for a design class, I guess. Extremely nicely done, though I don't read as fast as he can.

I feel alarmed by the statistics, though I don't know why.

I guess the thing that bugs me is: if social networking like Facebook is supposed to be about "us," why do I have this nagging feeling that somehow its still all about "me?"

The World Is Obsessed With Facebook from Alex Trimpe on Vimeo.

Fate or Free Will?

2011-03-17T23:54:00.001-04:00

I haven't seen the movie yet, but The Adjustment Bureau explores the concept of Fate vs. Free Will. Which controls our lives? We make our decisions every day, don't we? Paper or plastic? Decaf or high test? Medium or supersize? Did we really make our own decision or was it decided for us? If decided for us, then by whom or what? Is our path predetermined for us, or do we truly - really - make our own destiny?

I am pretty sure the movie will have the hero exercise his own free will and defy Fate (the 'Adjustment Bureau') and get the girl and live happily ever after. Kind of a David vs. Goliath thing. I found an interesting statistic at the movie's website though: 55% of the people surveyed at the site (as of today, 3-17-11) believe that Fate decides what happens to them every day. 55%! I confess to being a little surprised. I really thought people would overwhelmingly say that they, themselves have their own free will and that nothing can get in their will's way. "I make my decisions and live by them. Nothing controls me. Gosh darn it, I'm an American!" End of story.

All of that leads me to this: why then do people object so much to an infinite, personal, Sovereign God providentially and lovingly, directing their lives?

Just sayin.' I'm curious.

Music: For The Soul

2011-03-16T00:16:00.001-04:00

The little electronic voice that emanates from this little blue dog toy, called a "Talking Babble Ball" is nothing like a real voice. The closest it comes is to make recognizable sounds that emulate a voice that sort of pronounces syllables to make you think you heard it a say words. Words like, "Good Doggy!" or, "Oh, you got me!" or "I'm gonna get you!" Kind of like the fake voice on the "pull the string" dolls my little sister used to have. Nothing like a real voice, right?

Admit it: you're a shower singer. Or a car singer. Or a living room conductor. We love music. We kind of need music, don't we? Can you imagine life without music? It's like trying to imagine life without trees. Picture the entire earth with no trees. Like the moon. Life without music would be airless and dry and suffocating.

Little Jonathan has music in his soul...not just accenting the fringes of his life...it's in his gut. He gets it about music. This kid is really conducting...in his own mind and hearing, he is conducting Beethoven's 5th. He clearly knows and loves every note. And it's hysterical how he has, shall we say, a little nose trouble part of the way through. I love his love for the music and his humor as well. Not taking himself too seriously: he is only four years old after all.

So, inspired by little Jonathan, I put aside my usual Switchfoot and John Mark McMillan and put in some Bach. The Toccata and Fugue in D Minor to be exact. It was the middle of my day off, the kids were in school and there were no neighbors at home. So I cranked it. And I have a decent enough system to rattle my windows....but probably not the neighbors'.

I wish the Toccata and Fugue had a more evocative name, like Holst's, "The Planets" or Wagner's "Siegfried Idyll." I wish it had a big name like that so you could catch a sense of the splendor and magnificence of this music. The Toccata and Fugue is a pipe organ masterpiece and from what I understand, Bach meant for it to convey to the listener a sense of dread and awe - as if transported into the very presence of God in all His Holiness. We fling around the term, "awesome" very lightly these days; Bach had in mind the "awesomeness" of God in the original meaning of the term: inspiring awe in the listener. The piece is supposed to rock you to your core. This is best done at rather high decibel level. Like the day I had the privilege to stand right in the middle of the pipes at Saint Cecilia's (the patron saint of music) Church in Leominster, Massachusetts, once. You lose your breath when they pull out all the stops. Makes you weep.

So I'm standing in the "sweet spot" in my living room, where the sound waves converge for the most perfect sound, and I'm overwhelmed by the majesty of Bach's perfect music. Almost to the point of tears, like at Saint Cecilia's. As the final echos of of the final, awful, awesome chord reverberated around my living room cathedral, I stood there under the full weight of the music, very seriously enveloped in it all.

And I got a sweet gift from God that day. At that very moment, as the final vestiges of notes pattered away, I stood there breathlessly. And the little Talking Babble Ball chimed in it's opinion with it's blue, electronic voice: "Hot diggity dog!" Followed immediately by "Ba-da-bing, ba-da boom!"

I just threw my head back and laughed hard, all alone there in my audio sweet spot.

And I thanked God for not letting me take myself too seriously.

Rant: What's Wrong With This Picture: Part II

2011-03-14T15:55:00.003-04:00

What's wrong with the picture? What's wrong with the picture? I'll tell you what's wrong with the picture: how the heck old is that guy? He has got to be at least thirty years old, right? What in the world is a thirty year old man - or a twenty year old man for that matter - doing playing a Nintendo DS? What's wrong with that picture - that full page magazine advertisement - is that Nintendo clearly sees a viable sales demographic for their video games in the over-thirty male crowd.

If this is you, and I must speak rather directly here, you need to give up these games and I mean now. Or to phrase it like the bible does: you need to put away childish things: "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me."1 Corinthians 13:11.

Where are the men? Are we becoming the nation of the man-child?

Now if you are a dad and you have a kid who likes to play video games, of course get right down on the floor and play video games with your kid. You're being a good dad. I'm not talking about you.(Of course, if you play them all alone without a kid...we need to have words...)

I'm referring here to the "Omega Male." As opposed to the Alpha Male (or perhaps the Beta or the Gamma). This is the dude who will end up an unshaven, jobless slug inhabiting his parents' basement playing video games by himself or perhaps with other Omegas. He has no girlfriend or wife and no prospects - the girls hate his lack of discipline and laziness and self-centeredness - and they hate the video games. He'll come in last place because he refuses to grow up.

If this is you, please, I beg you, put the game down for long enough to watch the clip below and repent.

If you feel the tug on your heart to make some changes, then watch this sermon from Mark Driscoll. He'll slap you around a bit, but in the end you will thank him. If you won't give him the hour, at least read this article.

Do I sound overly aggressive in this post?

Will anything else get your attention?

Maybe if I design a video game that says the same thing....

What's Wrong With This Picture?

2011-03-12T19:20:00.003-05:00

I am irked. The problem is just not going away.

I don't very often ask for direct interaction on this blog, though sometimes some of you cool people out there add your comments, which I love.

But this time, at the risk of looking silly for asking and getting no responses, I'm asking for your feedback: what's wrong with this picture? Hint: there's nothing wrong photographically with the image.

My answer / rant in the next post........

Still, My Soul Be Still

2011-03-09T20:51:00.009-05:00

Gospel Vs. Social Justice Smackdown?

2011-03-08T08:05:00.007-05:00

Which should be the primary concern of Christians? Should our primary concern be to "proclaim the gospel" or to "promote social justice?"

I think the answer is, "yes!" Actually, I'm not really sure why there has to be a tension between the two, like somehow we are expected to choose between them evangelism and helping others.

It's got to be both.

Promoting social justice (relieving suffering) is a primary concern of God's:

"He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humblywith your God. " Micah 6:8

Proclaiming the gospel to relieve eternal suffering is a primary concern of God's:

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Rom. 6:23

Or, to put it another way: Micah 6:8 and Romans 6:23 are not at odds! It's the same message: God sees sinners suffering (whether temporal suffering or eternal suffering ahead) and in the mystery of His divine will and ways, He graciously helps them! He does this both directly and through His Church. So Christians should care about helping others too.

I like John Piper's take on it - and he came up with this statement after long thought and prayer and study:
"Christians care about all human suffering, especially eternal suffering." (see his whole address at Lausanne here.)

For the Christian who is serious about these things, what this should mean is more effort at helping and evangelizing. If Heaven is a place of 'eternal rest,' shouldn't we rise to the higher calling of service and sharing the gospel and just flat out expend ourselves in the meantime? I mean the gritty stuff: 'missionally' caring for others, not chasing after health, wealth and prosperity. I mean more work and harder work as a lifestyle for the Christian. As it turns out, its a more joyful - though tiring- way to live. I don't know about you, but for me, I'd rather collapse into heaven, worn and bruised and depleted.... and hear the words, "well done, good and faithful servant."

Happy To Get The Bible

2011-03-03T21:11:00.004-05:00

I saw a girl at youth group kick her bible. Not a Beckham-like drop-kick across the room or anything, but she did give it a firm 'skootch' across the floor a little ways. What bugged me was that she touched a Bible with her feet. Scripture. God-breathed. The very words of God. With her feet.

Contrast that to these people:

The Kimyal People Receive the New Testament from UFM Worldwide on Vimeo.

God's word is precious. A greater treasure than any shiny plastic thing the internet has to offer, from Amazon to Zappos.

From Psalm 119:

33 Teach me, LORD, the way of your decrees,
that I may follow it to the end.
34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law
and obey it with all my heart.
35 Direct me in the path of your commands,
for there I find delight.
36 Turn my heart toward your statutes
and not toward selfish gain.
37 Turn my eyes away from worthless things;
preserve my life according to your word.
38 Fulfill your promise to your servant,
so that you may be feared.
39 Take away the disgrace I dread,
for your laws are good.
40 How I long for your precepts!
In your righteousness preserve my life.

Every Thought Captive

2011-03-01T19:53:00.007-05:00

Janie sent this email back in 2006. If you are struggling with panic in whatever your battle is, let Janie's email sink in and help you!

----- Original Message -----
From: chris booth

Sent: Thursday, August 17, 2006 1:57 PM
Subject: Here's the latest. . .
Hey y'all! I'm sure you've been waiting with bated breath for the next installment in my medical journal. I shall try to spare you ALL the gory details but here goes.

I finished radiation last Friday and have noticed a significant improvement in my right hip. The radiologist feels that in about 6 weeks I should be as good as new! (I asked him if I would be more intelligent and strikingly beautiful, too. He said no. For crying out loud, you'd think for the cost of this stuff they could come up with some better side effects.) Anyway, the healing is much the same as if I had broken a bone - it takes time to repair itself.

So yesterday I started my chemo, which consists of two pills in the morning and one at night. You can all breathe a sigh of relief that I have not sprouted any hairy tufts or grown a third arm (yet.) Actually, I'm feeling quite good and we're hoping that this will be the case as I take this medication. I take it for two weeks then have a week off. If all has gone well I'll begin the process all over again. Unfortunately the cost is quite high but we are working on ways around that. (I've already donated my right arm and our firstborn. Ha ha, not really!)

I have been going again and again to II Corinthians 10:5   "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ." It is very easy to let my mind start running down paths that are really not productive. I often have to literally say to myself "Stop" and remember that I can, with God's help, take thoughts captive. "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." 2 Tim 1:7

Thanks once again for all your prayers. They have strengthened and encouraged our family immensely. Please don't stop!

"The most dangerous thing in the world is the sin of self-reliance and the stupor of worldliness. The news of cancer has a wonderfully blasting effect on both." (J. Piper)

We are praying for all of you that you would be encouraged to live each day for Christ - without having to have the "blasting" effect of cancer. I'll be in touch!

Love, Janie

Rescued From Death, or, Two Years of Sobriety!!

2011-02-19T08:51:00.003-05:00

This is a re-post from a guy named Mac Mitchell. I don't know him personally, but I'm interested in his story. Not so much because of his clean life now, but, for my re-posting usage, and for the sake of the 'older brother of the prodigal' readers (those already in the family of God), I'm interested in the paragraph 1/2 way down, the one in bold type. I'm interested because this guy Mac saw something different in the Christians around him: joy that he himself didn't have. And its significant that Mac had Christians around him, they weren't tut-tutting from the sidelines. They were there with him in the trenches...at least as much as they could have I guess. Mac knew them as his friends. So they weren't tucked away in the cloister; they were in Mac's life. That's good but it can be scary for those still in the cloister. How do they get out, right? I think by opening the door and walking....and praying.

Rescued From Death or Two Years of Sobriety!!

Posted in Philippines by Mac Mitchell on 1/6/2011

Note: This may be one of the most personal, most in-depth blogs I write this year. (In other words, it's kind of long, but also probably kind of awesome. You should read it.)

If you’re willing, I’d love to paint a picture of my life two years ago. Great. Thanks. You're the best.

I was 27. I lived in my own totally awesome apartment (with a sweet book collection, hip posters of old cigarette ads I got in China and a fridge always stocked with good beer) in the “cool” part of town where my two favorite bars were in walking distance from my front door. (Or as I used to brag, they were in perfect stumbling distance from my front door.)

I worked for a newspaper as a photographer and writer. As long as my stories and photos were in by deadline on Thursday afternoon, no one really kept tabs on me. So, my week looked like this (I’m not even sure my family has a full grasp of what it looked like. I think they might, I was too busy not communicating with them to really know):

Monday: I’d sleep in, lounge around, call my editor, let him know my story ideas for the week and then proceed to eat leftover pizza for breakfast and play Xbox. By lunch, which, who are we kidding, was about an hour after I woke up I’d be ready for a beer. Or a margarita. Or Jack Daniels. You know…whatever seemed to fit the mood. The rest of the day was spent on video games and drinking, knowing I had the rest of the week to work. At night, I’d be at a bar, already drunk, so that I could save money. (Later on I was a part of a group of men who got together for about 3 hours every Monday night in order to share our lives with one another.)

Tuesday: I’d sleep in, wake up hungover, and have a beer for breakfast, a firm believer in the hair of the dog mentality. The best way to get rid of a hangover was to get a buzz going. I’d start the day with just an hour of video games, which without fail, turned into a day of video games (steadily drinking, of course). Back to the bar at night…again, already drunk in order to save cash.

Wednesday/Thursday: Work my tail off in order to make up for two days of sitting on my keister. Thursday night I’d be so stressed that the only way to unwind would be going out to drink…and since I had probably only had 2 or 3 drinks during the day by that point I was ready to make full use of the bar without wasting anymore time.

Friday: Sleep in, waking up hungover. I’d deal with that the same as always, start drinking…a little slower this time knowing I had a whole weekend. But by evening I was drunk, and ready for a Friday night out…drinking.

Saturday: Pretty much like Friday.

Sunday: Go to church if I could muster the energy. Be home in the evening, drinking.

Repeat. And repeat. And repeat. Now…on top of that add in smoking almost a pack a day, recreational use of marijuana, casual sexual relationships and a very, very bad relationship with pornography, without much of a second thought. That was my lifestyle, more or less, for a number of years.

(There were days where I'd do stuff that didn't involve drinking. It's not like I was just walking around drunk all the time. But, life constantly revolved around drinking. That had somehow, over the course of my 20's become the sole focus of my life.)

I had no ambition. No hope for anything greater. No real concern for myself or others. No nothing. The only reason to get out of bed was to drink. And on the days I had to work, my motivation was to get work out of the way, so I could have money, so I could drink. And I was miserable. Completely and utterly miserable.

I was depressed. I hated myself for being such a waste. I hated myself for being fat and lazy and not reaching my potential. I hated myself for going nowhere in life. I hated life for having nothing deep or meaningful to offer. Before I bore you with rambling, I’ll take a shortcut and say that I had given up on living, life had worn me down and I was going with the flow until the flow stopped, at which point I expected to be relieved of it all.

That was two years ago. Drinking tequila on the rocks because I didn’t want to pay for margartia mix. Hating myself almost every single minute of every single day. Being fully disappointed in life. Not caring about a single thing. Two years ago. Just two years ago.

And then something changed. I began to realize people around me, and people I read about, were experiencing something that I wasn’t. Something deep. Something rich. These people were Christians. The ones I read about had amazing stories of life and God. But so did the ones I saw in church. Real people. People I knew (vaguely) and could talk to. People that were in my life. There was something in them…a spark, a joy, a hope, a sense that life was huge, adventurous, worth exploring fully. They seemed to really be experiencing that stuff…and after awhile, I wanted it. What I had going was, for lack of a better phrase, complete and total crap.

So on January 5, 2009 I told a group of nine men that I had come to know as deeply as men can (and I mean that with every word) that I was going to sell my stuff for Jesus…because that’s what the Bible says to do. I was willing to take a chance on Jesus, because He might be better than what I had going on. Now, these guys knew me. And so, while commending me on wanting to passionately pursue Jesus, they challenged me to give up drinking instead. And honestly, that thought, the thought of never drinking again scared me more than anything. Why would I even want to live without being able to drink? How would I enjoy anything? Why….why would I ever want to be alive without being drunk? I couldn’t imagine life without drinking. Honestly…I’m not exaggerating. I could not imagine it. I didn’t want to. But the look in their eyes spoke louder than words. They were serious about that challenge…they knew it was a matter of life or death.

So after double checking, then triple checking, to make sure we were on the same page, that they were asking me to give up drinking, forever…all drinking…and truly forever…I consented. (Partly to back up the “big game” I was talking about wanting a life change, but mostly I agreed out of a desperate hope that maybe it would be worth it. And if not, well heck, I’d never really kept my word on much before…if it wasn’t worth it, I’d just go back to drinking.)

Two years later I am still choosing not to drink because it has proved itself time and time again that it’s all worth it.

Please read this if nothing else: Today, January 6, 2011, I have lived life two years fully, without a single drink. And it’s not the “not drinking” that has changed everything…that was just an outward catalyst for the change. It’s been Jesus. Only Jesus. Jesus. Jesus rescued me from a life of destruction and hopelessness. For two years I have put my trust and hope in Him, and He has delivered, and delivered and delivered!

Life…all of life…hope, joy, worth, identity, value, ambition, success, direction…everything…it is always and only found in JESUS.

I don’t know if that makes sense to you. You might be asking yourself, “Um, dude, how can a guy who they talk about in the Bible change your life? You mean his philosophy has given you direction and hope? His teachings? You mean like that?”

No. Jesus. Himself. Because He is alive. Truly…not metaphorically or “spiritually” or anything…but He is alive. Actually…He IS life.

In telling you this part of my life, I want more than anything for you to know the joy, the freedom, the hope, the LIFE that has come as a result of living with Jesus…not in his ideas, not in following a “good, Christian life”…but in living with Jesus. It has changed everything. Everything! What life is. What’s important. Where joy comes from. What truth is. Who I am. Why I exist at all. All those big life questions, the big big ones…they all end with Jesus. (It’s fine if you think that’s totally nuts…but it is totally true.)

My life has been completely, completely changed. Forever. And it is real. The evidence is the person typing these words right now. From hopeless to forever hopeful. From bitter, depressed and angry to loving, thriving and joyful. From dead to ALIVE!

No, my life isn’t perfect. No, I’m not perfect. Not even close. So when you see me screw up, rest assured that it isn’t a dent on my “new Christian identity.” It’s just part of life that happens as I walk through this life as a human being experiencing conflict between the depths of the spirit Christ has given me, and the world to which it’s opposed. (Ugh, I’m getting way, way to “Christiany” with all this. Just know I’m still human. Not a goody two shoes who does everything right the first time now. Okay? Okay.)

So…whew….with all that said. Today I celebrate! I celebrate the work Jesus has done in my life! I celebrate his Holy Spirit that lives inside of me! I celebrate that I never, never have to return to a life of emptiness! I celebrate that in Jesus I have discovered life to the full! And I celebrate the adventure of discovering more life, more fully every remaining day of my life! And all of it…all of it…is because of Jesus! Jesus!

Jesus. My God. My friend.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

(And thank you so, so much to my family: Dad, Mom, Zach, Sam and Katherine for all of your support, encouragement and love. I am thankful for each of you. Truly...thankful. Annnnnd....thank you to my friends who have poured so much into me. Jesus has used your love and help to change my life forever. Thank you! And there's way, way more of you than I could ever represent with photos here!)

Wherefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature: the old things are passed away; behold, they are become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17

**Mac is now with The World Race....interesting.

Happy Calvinist Valentines Day

2011-02-14T14:11:00.000-05:00

Becca just sent this to me...I wonder if Calvin ever tried any of these awesome guaranteed fail-safe lines?

Jefferson on Cairo

2011-02-13T14:22:00.000-05:00

What Thomas Jefferson said about toppling the regime of a tyrant:

To secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed—that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience has shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776

I'm glad the Egyptian revolution was so much less bloody than our own. It will be interesting to see who comes into power. The Egyptian people have shrugged off authoritarianism...will they establish a democracy in Cairo?

Being Missional May Kill Your Church

2011-02-10T19:56:00.006-05:00

Ok, one more ditty on 'missional' church and then I'll stop for now. This is from the Resurgence and it quotes Ed Stetzer who is a church planting guru.

Stetzer gave the following list to help describe the missional 'shift' going on. I think it's a good thing, though some churches will be very uncomfortable with tweaking out their ministry paradigm or, for that matter, their very reason for existing. This is from Stetzer's book, Breaking The Missional Code. Please take your time; taste and digest slowly.

Missional churches move:
        * From programs to processes
        * From demographics to discernment
        * From models to missions
        * From attractional to incarnational
        * From uniformity to diversity
        * From professional to passionate
        * From seating to sending
        * From decisions to disciples
        * From additional to exponential
        * From monuments to movements

Be challenged! Why do you go to church? What's it for? Is it what God would want?

Confused? It'll help a lot to watch the little video in the previous post. So why could being missional kill your church? Read the whole Resurgence blog post here.

Missional Church Defined

2011-02-05T14:55:00.000-05:00

Have you heard the term, "missional" in reference to a church and wondered what that meant? Here's a handy little guide.

And here is Tim Keller of Christ Redeemer Church in New York City discussing "missional" back in 2006.

I appreciate Keller so much. He has more to say about being the church in the 21st century at his church's website here..

Here's Keller on one way Christians can impact the world....by living in the city:

"Once in cities, Christians should be a dynamic counterculture. It is not enough for Christians to simply live as individuals in the city. They must live as a particular kind of community. Jesus told his disciples that they were "a city on a hill" that showed God's glory to the world (Matt. 5:14-16). Christians are called to be an alternate city within every earthly city, an alternate human culture within every human culture..."

What this may call for in the lives of Christians who want to truly follow Christ this closely is risk. We may be asked to step out of our comfortable cocoons. I've been out of mine a few times in the last few months....sure, it can be a bit scary.....and exhilarating.

Unconventional Church Plant

2011-02-03T19:08:00.001-05:00

How many pastors like this guy have you met?

An Intentionally Missional Lifestyle from Acts 29 Network on Vimeo.

Ten Questions To Ask At A New Start

2011-01-28T06:12:00.003-05:00

I just found this in Janie's folder in our computer. I don't know if she created this list or got it from a book or the internet, but it would have made a great New Year's Day post...

Ten Questions to Ask at a New Start

1. What’s one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God?

2. What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year?

3. What’s the single most important thing you will ask God to do this year?

4. In which spiritual discipline do you most want to make progress this year, and what will you do about it? (The two most important spiritual disciplines: talking to God (praying) and listening to God (studying Scripture.)

5. What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?

6. What habit would you most like to establish this year?

7. For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?

8. What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year different than last year?

9. What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?

10. What single thing that you plan to do this year will matter most in ten years? In eternity?

“You must have long term goals to keep you from being frustrated by short term failures.“

“Only one life, ’twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.”

What Would Janie Do?

2011-01-24T12:57:00.001-05:00

I'm sure that when our friend Kim Winters innocently asked Janie to write a post about God and having cancer, neither of them could have foreseen the far-reaching effects that post, called, "The New Normal," would have. We gave it out at Janie's memorial service, and many people have said they've made copies and handed it out to friends and co-workers. Thanks to the World-Wide-Computer-Net-Inter-Web, people all over the U.S. and even beyond have been blessed by Janie's simple essay.

Yesterday, I received

an envelope in the mail with a magazine called Vibrant Life inside, with an attached note that said something like, "I thought you'd like this magazine, especially page 30. - Celeste" Confused, I flipped to page 30 and there was the article's title: What Would Janie Do? "Wow," I thought to myself, "that's a funny twist on the famous What Would Jesus Do? phenomenon. How funny that they chose the name Janie...." I went on to look at the article's author, and was delighted to see that it was written by Celeste Walker, the mom of one of Carly's schoolmates. I instantly realized that the name Janie in the title was no coincidence - the article was referring to my very own Janie!

Please take a minute and peruse the delightful article (click the picture)...and be blessed all over again by Janie. Celeste, thank you so much!

Forge Was Good

2011-01-22T22:59:00.002-05:00

Several years ago, Janie & I had envisioned a worship event very much like Forge was tonight. It was really sweet to see it actually happen and I'm sure she would have liked it very much. It was just a joy to set up and watch the college-aged people filtering into this cool little downtown venue called The Brick Box for the purpose of worshiping God. We had a good time of singing and the Jared gave a really good talk from 1 Peter 2:9: "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." He challenged us all to, among several other things, see ourselves as God sees us:

-chosen people
-royal priesthood
-holy nation
-God's special possession

We're really hoping and praying that this would be the start of something special in His Kingdom work here in Vermont!

First Forge

2011-01-20T12:32:00.003-05:00

If you are a 20-something and/or college student in the Rutland, VT area, you are invited to (the very first) Forge, a once-a-month worship event right in downtown Rutland! We'll meet at the Brick Box on Center Street on Saturday January 22 at 7:00 for some coffee, conversation, and a time of worship in singing as well as a message from Pastor Jared Wilson from Middletown Springs Community Church.

Friend us on Facebook.

Also save the date for the next one: Feb. 26!

See you there!

New England Church

2011-01-09T18:54:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I've been in churches like yours, little guy. Don't be discouraged...keep at it!

Janie's Christmas Stocking Final Update

2011-01-01T23:57:00.001-05:00

Carly, when contra-dancing, if a little kid gets in your way....take her out! Buh-bam! I'm so proud of you!

Just kidding. But we did have a contra-dance hoedown for New Year's Eve! And I must say, all ninety or so of us non-experienced contra "dancers" did alright. For myself, I know I am more 'contra' than 'dance.' Just picture Rocky Balboa staggering around in the 12th round. Oh, and to all of you whose toes I stepped on, I'm really sorry and I hear broken toes actually heal pretty quickly.

The evening was rounded out by a time of worship songs and an 'out-with-the-old-year-in-with-the-new' challenge from my friend Rob, or as I like to call him by his rapper name, L'il Robby T. It was a good way to round out 2010 for our family: a celebration and worship....just like Janie would have liked.

Speaking of Janie, it's time for
the final update on Janie's Christmas Stocking! When we first started raising the money for the cow, I really, really hoped we'd reach the $500 price tag. Knowing that we could always get a less expensive animal, with high hopes we went ahead and announced the fundraiser for the cow. Well, not only did you contribute enough for the cow, you also donated an additional $1181.50! That's a grand total of $1681.50, far exceeding what I had hoped for! You'll remember that the amount above and beyond the $500 for the cow would go to local families in need, so thank you, thank you, thank you!

I know I have already said it, but this whole thing has been such a blessing to me and such a help in not just surviving the holidays, but in enjoying the holidays. I got to sit down with three people and listen to their stories and hand them money at Christmastime! And actually, some of that grand total came in last night at the contra-dance, so I am adding one more family.

Anyway, Happy New Year and thanks again for your contributions!

Creepiest Piggy Bank Ever

2010-12-24T00:32:00.000-05:00

I really have a lot to be happy about this Christmas. I've got so many blessings, not least of which has been the wonderful opportunity to give money away and to buy a cow to give away! Because of your generosity (and your love for Janie, I know), I've been able to help three needy families in the Rutland area. And that's over and above the money that will soon be sent to Food For The Hungry for the cow!

I must say that sitting with these people and hearing their stories, and being able to help them has made this Christmas exciting and happy for me rather than depressing.

Another highlight along the way was when some friends delivered
their frightening looking piggy bank loaded with coins....mostly quarters, it seemed....which of course added up quickly! However, I'm sure I'm going to jolt awake in a cold sweat out of a dream about being chased down a narrow alley by that thing. Man! Just look at it...those shark-eyes staring in two directions at once (to make sure no one is looking when it pounces, presumably) and don't let the pretty flowers fool you....that grin is not a friendly grin, regardless of how many quarters it carried in its bowels. *Shiver*

Seriously, though, thank you all so much for your contributions! I'll give a final tally at the end...but let me just say for now that you/we have exceeded my hopes for this special project!! Christmas is better for someone else because of you.

By the way, did you know that there is another telling of the Christmas story outside of the gospels? Yep, it's in the book of Galatians:

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons." Gal. 4:4-5

Merry Christmas!

December 20th 'Deadline'

2010-12-19T15:53:00.003-05:00

Thank you so much, all of you who gave to Janie's Christmas Stocking project! Money is still coming in, and we will be giving away the first batch of cash to a local needy family sometime this week before Christmas.

There is still time to give, though, because the check for the cow to Food For The Hungry won't go out till after Christmas.

I try to imagine the looks on the faces of whatever far-off family is going to be receiving this cow...when they first hear they are going to be getting it. Or the look on the faces of
the local family when they open an envelope full of cash when they need it so badly! What a great privilege to be able to help someone else on a planet where so many have a 'what's-in-it-for-me' attitude. So when I say 'thank you,' what I mean is thank you for helping us to help someone else in a bigger way than we could have by ourselves! And, by the way, helping someone else has helped me immeasurably to 'make it through' the holiday season without Janie. So you have helped more than a financially needy family....you have helped me and my family as well. It has been a joy for me to watch the mailbox for your checks. And as you know, both the cow and the cash will be given in Jesus' name, which touches hearts deeper than any cow or cash alone could.

Anyway, that's the update for now. To those of you who have already given to Janie's Stocking, a hearty 'Thanks!' and watch this space for the total that came in once I've tallied it. And of course there are still a few more days left in December, so it's not too late.....

Janie's Christmas Cow

2010-12-12T19:11:00.001-05:00

Well, this is just an epic piece of art sent by a close family buddy, Becca Hall. Doesn't that make you want to give lots of money for a cow for a needy family? A note Becca included said that she made the cow purple because that's what Janie would have done. And she is exactly right, isn't she?

(If you don't yet know what I'm referring to, click here, or, if you are on the blog's main page, just scroll down one post.)

To those of you who have sent in money for the cow (and for the yet-to-be-determined needy Rutland family), I'd like to send out a great big THANK YOU! It's been very encouraging to open your envelopes and I can't wait to pass it along. What a blessing to me.

We've given a deadline of
December 20th so the local family can get the money before Christmas...can you imagine their faces as they open an envelope full of cash? Wowie! The cow money will go out after Christmas...

I know folks say that the holidays will be very hard to get through, but I'd just like to encourage you and let you know that we are all doing fine so far. Thanks for praying for us. Our God is very good and is able to be ENOUGH for the Booth family.

I've kind of latched onto this verse for the last week:

"In peace I will lie down and sleep,
for you alone, LORD,
make me dwell in safety." Psalm 4:8

Janie's Stocking

2010-12-04T00:00:00.001-05:00

I want to get a cow for Christmas. I know that sounds funny, but really, I want to get a cow for Christmas.

***

So we went ahead and decided to set up all the Christmas decorations. Janie had a few rules about Christmas 'set-up' at our house. First: on the day we get our tree we will play Bing Crosby Christmas music and eat those gross frozen 'delights' from the grocery store freezer that we would never, ever eat otherwise. I mean the frozen puff pastries and the frozen snack trays and little weiner hot dogs wrapped in Pillsbury pastry. Actually, those are delectable. Second: the Christmas tree must be taller than her. Period. Third: We must purchase our tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving. No earlier, no later. This third one, I am sure, was to extend the deliciousness of the Christmas season for as long as possible. Janie loved Christmas.

I decided that we would honor these traditions in the Booth household, but I was a bit concerned about
the kids' emotions (and by that I mean mine of course) as we set it all up without her here. It's all sentimental stuff we're setting up, you know? We could try and get along ok, but the elephant would still be in the living room regardless of the twinkling lights and tinsel draped over him. Janie is not here to enjoy her favorite holiday. How am I going to do this? Solution: set everything up as usual, but have some of the kids' friends over. And behold, it was good! No giant crying jags or anything! So thanks, Abby, Beek, Chris and Emily.

As we unpacked all of our Christmassy stuff, I came to the green plastic bin, opened it up, and there it was: Janie's Christmas stocking. Ugh. I hadn't thought of that. Hmm, do we hang it up with the rest of our stockings? Do we not hang ours since she can't hang hers? We chatted and somewhat resolutely decided that we mustn't be controlled by sentimentalism: Janie is in heaven and we must move forward. So back in the green bin went the stocking.

The next day, Janie's parents mentioned that it was a little hard seeing her lack-of-stocking at the fireplace. Yup, I agreed, it is a little hard. But it seemed best. And then it came. The wonderful, brilliant idea. And it wasn't even mine. It was Janie's mom: "why not put it elsewhere in the house and drop spare change into it...and then give away however much there is by Christmas?" Zowie! I like it! Now the creative juices were flowing: why not make her stocking available to anyone else who would like to contribute? Why not mention it in emails and on the blog? And why not make it more than a 'spare change' thing and let it grow to a substantial amount and really help someone in need? Or maybe more than one someone in need?

So we are 're-purposing' Janie's Christmas stocking.

So I want to get a cow for Christmas. By that I mean that I want to get a cow for someone this Christmas. They cost $500 through a neat organization called Food For The Hungry. The kids' band raised over $1000 to give to them this past summer. And we ended up with a catalog of things you can buy for needy people in the world: and a cow, a whole cow that is alive and healthy and everything, costs only $500. A well, a whole well with clean water for a village, in, say Africa, costs only $2500. A goat costs $150. FFH has gifts for every price range. So......I'd like to invite you to contribute: however much money gets deposited in 'Janie's Stocking' will be invested in the lives of needy people. It will be given in Janie's memory and in Jesus's name.

I would also like to help a needy family right here in Rutland. I'm putting out feelers even as I type to find out who God might have us help. However much comes in, I'm thinking I'd like to split between a local family and one overseas.

Here's the catch: this whole thing is going to go through my family. No 501(c)3 organization (except Food For The Hungry of course) and no tax write-off. Also, no credit cards. So if you already know me (I think most regular readers of this blog do....) and trust me to actually give the money away rather than buy myself a Hover Scooter, then if you'd like to be in on it, just send a check to me. Plain and simple. You can send it to: Chris Booth, care of Calvary Bible Church, 2 Meadow Lane, Rutland, VT 05701. The church is only a mailing address; make the check out to me, thanks.

If you don't know me and think this could be a scam, then of course don't send anything. That's fine. But we're doing this thing and I think Janie would really like it. But if you like the idea, then let's team up and see what God will do to help someone this Christmas!

*Here is a page about Food For The Hungry's financial stewardship. 93% of your money goes to the field. That is an unusually high percentage.

Janie's Stocking Teaser

2010-11-30T21:05:00.001-05:00

Watch this space for something special about Janie's Christmas stocking..............

What Jon Acuff's Dad Said

2010-11-29T19:47:00.000-05:00

Some of you read Jon Acuff's hysterical, satirical commentary on the church and Christianity at his blog, Stuff Christians Like. It turns out his dad used to pastor a church in Hudson, MA where we used to live back in the 80's. Anyway, Jon just put up a really nice, and useful bit of father-to-son advice...

Last week, I asked my dad, a pastor in North Carolina, about something I read in Proverbs 1. Here are what two verses I read said:
8 "Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.
9 They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck."

After reading that, I thought I’d ask my dad
what he would consider his “instruction.” I was curious what he and my mother would say. Here’s an excerpt of his response, which I think probably applies to a lot of us:

Jon, that’s a great question. My primary prayer is for your private, interior life to keep growing so that it can support your growing public life. The other half of my prayer is great thankfulness for you and the opportunities that God is giving you.

So, my immediate thoughts:
Read Scripture deeply (not for material but for life, like what you are doing with Proverbs, guarding and sustaining the good habits that you have had.)
Pray deeply – e.g. Prov 3:1-6. Turn what you are learning into prayers.
Read devotional authors deeply – find out from people you respect who they read (that would be a great list to develop down the road).
Share deeply with someone – a friend or counselor

Without missing the fun, sustain a healthy paranoia about your heart and your temptations. I think it is possible to have a healthy paranoia without living fearfully or cautiously. A healthy paranoia not only keeps us alert and honest, but hungry to keep learning. Success dulls our eagerness to learn.

Only One Life, ’Twill Soon Be Past...

2010-11-18T23:20:00.005-05:00

Janie often quoted this little poem, which we first heard in John Piper's Don't Waste Your Life series (listen to him speak here, but prepare to have your mind blown).

"Only one life,’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last."

We even thought of (but never got around to) having Barbie Carr calligraphize it (I know, I made that up) on our living room wall... over the opening to the kitchen.

It does put a certain perspective on everything you decide to say, think, and do, doesn't it? Janie thought so, and those of you who knew her can probably remember her quoting it to you.

So imagine how pleasantly surprised I was tonight, while browsing at sermonindex.net, to discover that there is another (seemingly anonymous) verse!

"Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
And when I am dying, how happy I'll be
if the lamp of my life has been burned out for thee!"

I like that very much, especially since it was so special to Janie & I...though I'm sure she's more than happy now to have missed it since she's got the real thing and not just a verse, eh?

I wondered, however, if there was even more to it....maybe these two little lines are part of an even larger poem. So I did what any self-respecting blogger (there's an oxymoron haha) would do: I googled it. And I found that there is indeed more, though not with that second verse that I just discovered. This version was penned by missionary Charles Thomas Studd (1860-1931). It turns out Studd was a winning cricket player in Victorian England. He was offered a life of luxury and, I think, fame of sorts for his expertise. He met Jesus, however, and gave it all up to become a missionary! It turns out that there is a book about C.T. Studd, called, "Cricketeer and Pioneer." You can get it for me at Amazon.

I wonder if he had heard that little refrain somewhere (he says so in the first line), or if he was just being artsy? Whichever, it is an enduring, thought-provoking, and, if we'd let it be, life-changing verse.

****

“Two little lines I heard one day,Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgment seat;
Only one life,’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its clays I must fulfill, living for self or in His will;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore, When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way, Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep, In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e’er the strife, Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Oh let my love with fervor burn, And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone, Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, “twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say,”Thy will be done;”
And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say “twas worth it all;”
Only one life,’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.”

****

I sense, now more than ever with Janie gone to heaven, the tug of this simple verse.

Only one life,’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Janie's Piano Students

2010-11-15T23:05:00.000-05:00

Here is a photo of Janie's piano students at an end-of-the-season recital party in 1999. I'm not sure which is cooler: the fact that she taught 14 kids (plus Carly) or that epic full sized piano keyboard cake!

If any of you kids read this blog, can you share where you are at today? Still playing music?

Joyful Grieving?

2010-11-13T23:10:00.005-05:00

I mentioned in a previous post how I get a little concerned sometimes when people ask me how I'm doing. My concern is not with them, though, but with me. My concern is that unless I brush them off with a quick, "fine thanks," I end up talking about myself and my situation too much, which I don't like. Even here on the blog, I'm talking about myself right now and my way of dealing with talking about myself so much. Guh.

And that reminded me of Marcel.
Marcel is tiny and has one eye and lives in a shell and wears shoes. She is strangely amusing...

The thing is, I know people who are like this. People who, like Marcel, only seem to be able to talk about themselves and their little world: the predicament they've found themselves in, their limitations (like Marcel's being small), the things they like, the way they do things, and on and on and on, never really listening to what others have to say, and never investing much in others. Only very focused on their own stuff. In a word, they are a bore. Or, to put it another way, they are 'Drainers, not Fillers.'

In light of that, I don't know how to talk very well about myself when I'm asked. So if you ask, I'll try to give a decent answer, but if I seem hesitant, it's because I don't want to be a bore. Ok?

I've found a big, gaping problem with this whole grieving thing: it's pretty self-centered. I find myself thinking about how sad I'm feeling or how much I miss Janie, and I've noticed that I'm pretty tuned-in to my emotions at all times. Sometimes I'm sad, and can identify that as sad. Sometimes, this, sometimes that, blah, blah, blah. You get the point: Grieving is a pretty 'inward' thing. Natural, yes. Normal, yes. But inward nonetheless.

Here's something that I have found to be helpful: when I turn my thoughts outward, to other people, and if I can find ways to be more into them, if you know what I mean, I feel better.

And here's another even bigger thing: when I turn my thoughts outward even further, and think about God, I do even better.

For example, today I got pretty 'inwardly' focused (which I suppose is what any self-respecting psychiatrist would recommend), and spent some time and emotional energy thinking about how much I miss Janie. Now, don't get me wrong, I think it's ok for me (or anyone) to miss Janie. What I've noticed, though, is that the inward focus can be a rather slippery slope, and if I'm not careful, I can find myself sliding into a depressive funk. Do you know what I mean?

Should I stay right there, pining for Janie, as if pining hard enough will bring her back? I don't think God has that in mind when he says, "In [my] presence is fullness of joy" Psalm 16:11. But feeling sad can, sickishly, make us 'happy.' And by that I mean that it's a familiar place, and we don't want to leave it. But we must. That much inward focus is bad. Bad for the soul. And I'm a natural introvert, so take that look off your face, you introverts, and keep reading.

So as I began to notice that I was headed down that road today, I identified it as one of those challenging moments, and brought up iTunes and drank in some John Mark MacMillan. The song, Carbon Ribs, to be exact. Carbon Ribs talks about how we're stuck in this body, 'within the confines of these carbon ribs, and one day when when I'm free, I will sit: the cripple at your table, the cripple by your side.'

Grace, grace, grace!

And that reminded me of how King David found Mephibosheth, the crippled son of his best friend Jonathan, who had died (2 Samuel 9:1-13). David created a permanent place at his table for this crippled orphan. Let me say that again. David, King David, made a permanent place at his table for a crippled orphan. I just marveled at the fact that even now I, in a sense, am seated at the table of God, albeit as an adopted 'crippled' orphan, because of how he extended his grace to me in Jesus.

And of course Janie is experiencing God's 'table' right now, and that lifts my spirits right up to the heavenlies and so I weep with joy for her at the freedom and wholeness she is now enjoying.

And as I think on that, I'm not feeling that heaviness and dread I had been feeling before. I feel lighter. Do you see?

If Inward: sad.
If Outward: glad!
If God-centered, even gladder!

A friend asked me once about what I do to 'cope.' What are my 'strategies?' Well, I don't know if these are 'strategies,' but this is what I intentionally do when I feel sad, and they help some, maybe most, of the time: I read my bible; I listen to good, God-focused music (which can be as good as a sermon sometimes); I choose books carefully (meaning not too heavy for now), I walk and pray out in the woods; I blog; I make Janie's chocolate chip cookies and eat the whole batch (not really) and I just try to 'get on with life.'

Janie, looking to the future, said several times that she did not want me to make a lifestyle out of grieving, like this is all there is. Because it's not. It's a season, and it will take as long as it takes. But I'm determined to not be a Marcel, in my shell, and get all focused on myself and my grief, to the annoyance of everyone, including me. So, yeah, I'm going to keep on missing Janie. But I have an escape hatch for the heaviness, and its called, "run to God as fast as you can."

Tools To Find Your Freedom

2010-11-11T22:41:00.001-05:00

I Am Second has a good page, called "Find Freedom Tools," that has some great links for people seeking bible answers to problems that they are experiencing.

The help pages are connected to the Hope For The Heart Biblical Counseling pages, which are part of the Logos bible software.

I know some readers of this blog are navigating some pretty rough waters...maybe there will be help for you in the links on this page....why not have a look and ask God for help?

Jesus and the Plunger

2010-11-08T14:57:00.005-05:00

Cue action-packed, newscast-ish music: Trumpets, drums, and whatever that instrument that goes, dit-dit-dit-dit, dee dit-dit-dit-dit, dee dit-dit-dit-dit......

Our Top Story tonight: "Local photography business, ******** Studio, was burgled sometime late Saturday night through Monday night! Details at eleven."

Ok, I made up that word, burgled, but I like it and the TV news should start using it: burgled. Sounds even better out loud. Say it: burgled. Not "robbed," like at gunpoint, just "burgled." Like what a burglar does. He burgles.

Yes, about a month or so ago, baddies really did break a window at night snuck around and
stole stuff from the studio. Actually, it was all the camera gear that I use to earn my living. And some cash. About $600, actually.

The two-person staff where I work - we felt pretty weirded out by it. We could easily imagine people tiptoeing from room to room by the light of a dim flashlight. And touching our stuff without permission. And then making off with it. Just like that. I can't possibly tell the whole story...much too long and boring, but there were some cool parts to it...like how the police caught the guy because of
an offhand remark about how the tenant upstairs maybe didn't like us too much. I'll call him Clyde. Clyde Jones.

The detective asked us at the very tail-end of all his questions, "So, is there anyone who would want to do this to you, like, to get back at you for anything?" I laughed, not being the enemy-making type. "No," I said. "Well, maybe the guy upstairs...he's not too happy with us since we have had to speak to him about so many things he shouldn't be doing. But really, he lives right here; he's not about to burgle the place where he lives, right?"

"Oh, Clyde, Clyde, Clyde," said my co-worker.

"Clyde?" said the cop. "Clyde Jones?"

"Why, yes." I said, surprised at the cop providing the last name. "you know Clyde Jones?"

"Oh, we know Clyde Jones. We know Clyde Jones very well..."

And so his name was added to a "person of interest" sort of list.

And don't you know but he got pulled over by the state police about an hour south of Rutland the next day? With all the camera gear, projectors, flash cards, batteries, flashes (everything easily portable and sell-able for drugs of course), right in his car. I could hear the cell door bang shut from all the way up here in Rutland. If my co-worker hadn't just casually mentioned his name, it really wouldn't have come up. And as it happened, it "blew the case wide open."

As it turns out, he only spent the one night in the slammer and then the state cops, we were shocked to hear, let him out. "Procedure," they said. "That's what they do if the guy's crime was non-violent. Release with a court date." And here's the thing: guess where he went to lay down his weary head after such a busy time of burgling and driving and getting caught? You guessed it: back upstairs in the apartment with his girlfriend! What! Yes, that's right...we were more stunned at his coming back to live upstairs than we were at the cops letting him out. So the landlord contacted the girl - I'll call her Bonnie - since it was her name on the lease. He told her that she cannot let him stay here, after what he'd just done. We were still feeling weirded out and violated and now a little frightened that Clyde was out of jail and now on the premises, coming and going with his hoodie hood up.

They were able to pick him up again on some other parole-breaking-type of charges, so it was back to the Big House for Clyde. We breathed a sigh of relief. Safe again. Or so we thought....

********

All the way through this whole business I had remained very calm, even peaceful. I was amazed and wowed as the facts of the case rolled out, but aside from a little anxiety the night we heard Clyde had been released, I had a calm that surprised me. Maybe I would have freaked out more if all of the equipment was mine, rather than the business's. I remember thinking about what a broken world this is and really was just focused on getting other cameras to shoot with for a wedding that Saturday. The police, on the other hand, still had some unfinished business with our tenants.

Bonnie had a lengthy interview with them about Clyde, and after a while - are you ready for this? She finally admitted that she, too, was part of the burglary! I should also mention that Bonnie and Clyde had just had a baby a mere three weeks prior to their 'visit' to the studio. Three weeks. We were aghast. They broke in to the studio together and cleaned us out while their three week old baby slept (I presume) right upstairs. That's heartbreaking. That's awful.

Right away the police filled me in on her confession, and then, as I came back from lunch, there was Bonnie having a smoke on the back porch! Oh, man! What am I supposed to say to her! She'd just stolen from me, and yet had returned to live at the very scene of the crime that she, we now knew, had a part in! And there she stood, looking exhausted and nervous and miserable. We had to talk; there was no avoiding each other. She started by saying how sorry she was about the whole business, which I suppose would have been appropriate, except she then proceeded to lie directly to my face. She said she was just finding out all kinds of things about Clyde that she didn't know. She even said, with watery eyes and quivering lower lip and wobbly voice, "and how could he do this? He's got a 3 week old baby! How could he do this?"

Remember now, she had just one hour prior confessed to the police of her own involvement. So as she said this to me, I was just plain revulsed. But having just seen my Janie go through six years of cancer hell, I have been continually asking God to make me a better person because of it. If Janie was going to have to endure her illness, and even die of it, then, like I had said at her memorial service, I (and she) wanted it to have been for something...to have been worth something. And that should start with myself. So as I looked at Bonnie with her puffy eyes, sallow complexion and track marks (or were they cigarette burns?) on her left arm, I wanted God to give me compassion for her.

"And how could he do this? He's got a 3 week old baby! How could he do this?" She said it so convincingly, right to my face. I decided that it would be in the studio's best interest to not tip my hand yet by telling her that I knew she was involved. It might be best, I thought, if she continued to believe that she had me fooled. I'll not divulge the details, but my hunch was correct and it was good that I didn't say anything. I decided, instead, to send an indirect-yet-direct message that drugs (it was obviously done for drug money, right?) make people do crazy things, even lying to people and even burglary....since it makes them so desperate. I said I hoped that Clyde (and in veiled way, Bonnie) would find freedom from the terrible grip of drugs. And I think I said I'd pray for her Clyde and the baby.

A few days went by. Little did I know that the tables were about to be turned on me.....

********

Bonnie was still living above the studio (evicted, of course, but still there...). We at the studio were doing our best to go about our normal business, getting the broken windows repaired, lining up better security and borrowing backup equipment from our headquarters studio upstate. We were still a little in shock at Bonnie's involvement, and the fact of her audacity in returning to the scene of the crime to live. I was just returning from lunch when my co-worker smiled: "guess who was just here and looking for you?"

"Not Clyde!" I gasped.

"No, he's still locked up. But Bonnie was just in and said her toilet is plugged and wants to ask you if you might go up there with a plunger!"

And I think my co-worker busted out with a classic, "Bwahahahaha!" kind of laugh.

And I also think that the look on my face would properly described as, "more shocked than Mike Tyson at a spelling bee."

Stunned, I said, "you have got" (that's a drawn-out 'gaawwt') to be kidding me!"

"Oh, yes, Bonnie said it's plugged and she can't get it unplugged and needs some help........Bwahahaha!"

"Well, we both know that's not going to happen," I snapped. "She's on her own. She's done. Forget it! Let's replay the events of the last few weeks, shall we? 'Hi, I'm Bonnie. I robbed you. Can you plunge my poop?' Nope. She's on her own this time..."

That is the moment when God stepped in. Right there in the office, as I strode around, angrily doing my work. God stepped in and made me even more angry.

"Remember that conversation you had with your friend the other day about hypocrites?"

I strode around some more. There he was again.

"Remember the chapel talk you gave once about 'loving your enemies?' How's that working for you?"

I strode around some more, closer to the wall this time.

"Remember the bit about you wanting to become a better person because of Janie's illness and death? How's that working for you?"

I tried to stride around some more, but I was cornered.

And there stood Jesus, so to speak, and he was holding out a plunger in his hand.

I was fuming by now. "Really. You are asking me to go plunge the poo of this woman?" It wasn't a question.

He looked at me. Just looked with that stupid plunger held out.

There was a long pause.And it occurred to me how he himself had done much the same when he took on human flesh so that he could die because of my filthy sins.

Finally, I snatched the blasted plunger from him and marched upstairs. Bonnie wasn't even there. One of her druggie friends was.

Me, feebly: "I hear you've got some toilet trouble."

Him: "Yup, right this way."

And there it was. The toilet with the telltale floating toilet paper. Plugged.

I shoved the plunger into the dirty water. *Plunge* Nothing. *Plunge* Still nothing.

And then the most wonderful thing happened. On the third try, the thing cleared out and sucked the poo right down the drain, and with it went my anger and my disgust and my prejudice and loathing toward the drug-addict-burglar-liar. And replacing all of these was good, old-fashioned joy. Contentment. Something snapped with that third plunge and I was free! Free to love the sallow-faced wretch with the track marks on her arm. Growing inside me, like the Grinch's new heart, was a compassion that I knew, deep inside, I should have been feeling all along.

But what to do now? Here's the thing: though I felt great, it still would do her no good at all if she never knew that I'd plunged her toilet in response to God's prompting. As far as she knew, she still had the wool pulled over my eyes about her involvement in the burglary. So it wasn't over yet.

********

Here's the end of it. I just couldn't rest thinking that she didn't know about my true motivation for helping her. So I wrote her a letter, spelling it all out. Now she knows that I know she was involved and she also knows why I plunged her toilet anyway. She has since moved out and I don't know what contact I'll have in the future.

So would you please pray for 'Bonnie'...and 'Clyde'....(God of course know their real names) and their little baby? They both will do jail time and I'm pretty sure the baby has been taken away by the state. The way they are living their lives now, that's probably for the best...but Jesus changing everything would be even better, right? I put a New Testament in with the letter, in which I also laid out what the gospel is and how Jesus can even cure drug addiction. If God has the power to speak the universe into existence he certainly has the power to speak life into Bonnie's heart of stone. So would you stop reading, even now, and just pray for them?

********

Do you have an enemy that needs you? Let me ask you this: if you get the chance to love your enemy.... well, what will you do with that moment? I hope and pray that maybe God will bless you, too, with something as fantastic as your enemy's poo.