w00t!

Found this online and had to share it.  Someone speculated as to how God might have disseminated the 10 commandments today - via text message.

GOD TEXTS THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.
BY JAMIE QUATRO

1. no1 b4 me. srsly.
2. dnt wrshp pix/idols
3. no omg's
4. no wrk on w/end (sat 4 now; sun l8r)
5. pos ok - ur m&d r cool
6. dnt kill ppl
7. :-X only w/ m8
8. dnt steal
9. dnt lie re: bf
10. dnt ogle ur bf's m8. or ox. or dnkey. myob.

M, pls rite on tabs & giv 2 ppl.
ttyl, JHWH.
ps. wwjd?

What About Me?

The search and drive for autonomy consumes our society.  We believe that we deserve it all, that we have a right to happiness, that we should answer to no one and that we are allowed to do whatever we want "as long as it doesn't hurt anybody."  There are churches that teach that God wants to pour out riches on you, that God wants you to prosper (in this world), that God will heal anything at all if you "just have enough faith."

What a bunch of crap!  The truth is that the prosperity God promises us is in the eternal not the temporal (as is the healing).  The bible reminds us over and over that we are accountable to God and the people around us.  The Word states clearly that what we can expect are trials and temptations.   My parent's generation understood that you had to work hard for everything you wanted - that nothing came for free.  My generation understands this but imperfectly.  My children's generation seems to have no clue at all.

God wants us to be dependent on Him.  He wants to have control of our lives - to be involved in all our decisions and to get the credit for all the blessings.  When we surrender and give up on our quest for autonomy a lot of the stress and frustration fades.  When we realize that He does a much better job of managing our lives than we do we have the chance to truly understand what peace is.

Who is in charge of Your life?

Quiet

Not a lot going on today, it has been pretty quiet.   I heard from J a bit ago.  She sent out the address of her brother so we can get some snail-mail to him during basic training.  It rained a bit today and the forecast still calls for rain tomorrow which might put the make up game for Noah at risk.

We had a new person join our Tuesday night men's group and we had one drop out.  I will miss Sam, he is a great guy and such a vibrant part of the group.  I hope he drops by from time to time as he is sorely missed.

RIP Douglas Adams

A Rough Start

My pager started screaming at me when I dropped Noah at daycare this morning.  My System Administrator had me on the phone before I got out of Roseville and met me at my desk when I arrived.   Never a good way to start the day, ya know?

The rain is supposed to be back this week.  We are only 12 days away from setting a record for the coolest spring on record (and one of the wettest I can remember).   Hard to believe the hype about Global Warming when my garden won't grow due to lack of sunlight and heat.  

BTW, if you have never see Dr Horrible's Sing-along Blog, check it out on iTunes.

Away We Go

The boy left for boot camp at 5:45 this morning (EDT).  He will be in TX (near San Antonio) until the end of July.  We basically get no contact with him until graduation.  After he graduates, he will head to the Carolinas for tech school where he will earn to work on avionics.   I know Andrew will do well.  He is bright and very capable.

Musing

It seems that over the past several years, most of my (our) life has been a struggle.  Very little has come easily, simply or quickly.  I know the whole thing about seasons and how we go through various seasons at different times.  However, I feel like we are over due for a season of rest and simplicity.

There have been so many changes over the course of the last few years and now it appears that God is getting us ready for yet some more changes.  Fortunately, today has been a quiet day at work.   I have had the opportunity to clean up a few things that were left over from the maintenance runs over the weekend.   The clouds are slowly moving in and it looks like we are in for another 2-3 days of rain.   Some days I think we are living in Vancouver, B.C.

When is it easy?

I had a conversation with someone about how hard life is at times.  My (internal) first reaction was "when isn't life hard?"  I understand why they asked and I listened and did what I could to encourage and comfort.  In my experience very little that has true and lasting value is easy.  Sometimes I find myself in the midst of the struggle and the pain because that is just where I am - and sometimes it is the result of trying to pick up the broken pieces of my life after my own monumentally poor choices.  Regardless of which it is for you in your life (and I decline to judge any of the casual readers out there), I do know that Our Lord is faithful to provide the healing that we need.  This isn't to say that the pain is taken completely away (although He can if He choices) or that the consequences of our bad choices (if that is the issue) are vanished.  God expects us to grow and to learn from our pain and the trials that He places (or we grab onto) in our lives.

Working through the pain, the hurt, the trials is what causes us to grow.  I know people in their middle years that are still as shallow and superficial as a teenager.  I know young adults that are strong, mature and decades older than their driver's license would indicate.

Regardless of the trial or the pain you are struggling with I encourage you to keep your feet moving through it.  Don't avoid it, don't stuff it, don't disregard the value of it.  Jesus knows each one of our tears and can match them to the wounds inflicted at the cross.

blessings on your day

Pray For Us

The VOTD was from 1 Thessalonians this morning where Paul talks about constantly thanking God and praying for the church in Thessalonica.  I know that this is something I need to do better at.  We should be praying for our families, our church, our leaders and our country as a regular part of our time with God.  All too often we get stuck on what we need, our problems or the immediate circumstances in our lives.  We forget that we have an obligation to pray for the people in the list above.

I suppose I could go off into a rant about Christians who slam the government and the leaders but I won't.  I will however, remind all the casual readers that ALL authority has been ordained (approved) by God and that He isn't blind-sides by elections, appointments or hires.   Either He is in control or He isn't (ok, I did rant a little bit).

Sometime today, take a moment to pray for your church and your leaders.  If all of us did this, who knows what blessings God would pour out.

My Eyes Are Dry

One of Keith Green's songs has been running through my head this morning.   It reminds me that we can't get complacent about God or growth.  I find it easy to get complacent about the things of God - taking His blessings for granted, thinking I have "arrive" (that one about killed me a decade or so back), slacking on daily study and prayer....   It is easy for me to get complacent about growth - especially in my recover.   Lose touch with my sponsor, start missing meetings, forget to read/review my study guides.

Complacency leads to all of the things in the song below.  It leads to apathy, indifference and eventually to a fading that slides into death and destruction without us ever realizing what is happening.   Wake up, get that virtual coffee and start moving your feet.   Without movement, God can't direct our steps, lead us on the path or work in our lives.  And without those things, we might as well be dead.

 My eyes are dry

My eyes are dry
My faith is old
My heart is hard
My prayers are cold
And I know how I ought to be
Alive to You and dead to me
But what can be done
For an old heart like mine
Soften it up
With oil and wine
The oil is You, Your Spirit of love
Please wash me anew
With the wine of Your Blood

They Are Here!

The pictures from the cruise are posted in my Picasa folders.  Email me if you don't have the link.

Enjoy

How Do You Do?

One of the greatest challenges that evangelists face (well, at least in MY opinion) is how to present the Gospel in a way that people can hear and receive.  Paul stated that he tries to be all things to all people when preaching the Gospel.  This is a key concept and crucial to the effective evangelist.  The ability to meet people where they are without judgment, pretension or barriers is one that few of us have mastered.   I know that I struggle with this very thing.  I have prejudices, biases and preconceptions.  I make snap judgments based on language skills, hygiene and style of clothing.  The result is that I probably miss out on opportunities to have relationships, meet new people and share Jesus.

While there are certainly other issues that can impede our ability to evangelize, this is certainly one of the things that has to be addressed to be effective and to be open and willing to go where God sends us.

blessings on your day

Home At Last

We had a great time on our cruise.   Noah tried all sorts of new foods (including escargot which he loved).  We ate like kings (gained about 3 pounds which is darn good considering) and were treated like royalty. Royal Caribbean is a wonderful cruise line.  The service is incredible and the amenities are superb.  The picture above is from the Pirate Parade that they had the last night.

We took the time (and money) to do a lot more excursions than we usually do as Noah was with us for the first time.  In Haiti (well the private island of Labadee actually) I did the zip line which was ok but not as thrilling as I had hoped. In Jamaica (Ocho Rios) we visited a cave and climbed the Dunn's River Falls (a mile long cascade that climbed over 900 feet) which was my favorite.  Our guide carried our camera and got some awesome shots of us.   In Georgetown, Grand Cayman we went snorkeling on a coral reef and went for a sail in a catamaran (no, I wasn't driving).  In Cozumel we swam with dolphins at the National Park.   We got to pet them, hold them and have them push us on a boogie board.  It was a blast.  My contacts worked very well and I was actually able to see while snorkeling and swimming with the dolphins.

Anyway, I will get back to my regular program here later today.

Waiting at MIA

Well the vacation is over and we had a blast. Noah loved the excursions (swimming with dolphins topped the list).   We have another 9 hours before we get home, then back to work tomorrow.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

A Last Breakfast

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Cozumel National Park

At the dolphin experience

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Ice Show

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Main Dining Room

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Flowrider

Some random person

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Pirate Parade

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Sunset in the Caribbean

From the Viking Lounge

Main Promenade (Night)

All decorated for a parade

Flow Ride

Surfing wall  :D

Main Promenade (Daylight)

Water Zone for Kids

Port of Miami

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Mariott in Miami

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

We Have Arrived

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Bon Voyage

We will be leaving early tomorrow morning.   I will email pictures to the blog when I can.  Expect them to be sporadic as it will depend on where we are and if there is service for my cell phone.  We are having friends stay at the house to watch the menagerie.  My boss will take over my project for the next week.

Blessings and I will talk to you when I get back.

Odds & Ends

I finished up my main project at work over 2 days ahead of schedule.  This will allow my colleagues to test the work while I am still around to make changes (a "good thing").   We still have a few things we need to get for our cruise next week so Emma and I will be running errands later in the evening.   I am really anxious to be sitting on the pool deck watching the waves :o)   I will admit that I am a bit unfocused today as half of me is trying to figure out what I need to hand off here in the office before I leave tomorrow and the other half is already sitting in a lounger.

All That I need

I am pretty sure I have posted on this before and in all likelihood will do so again.  As human beings we have needs that we can not meet or fill on our own.  For most (all?) of us, we look to the people in our lives to meet those needs.  We look to our parents when we are children, to our peers and girl/boy friends in our teens, to our mate and our children as adults.  We seek out friends that can fill some of the void and may medicate to cover over other parts.  When we find someone that does a good job of meeting those needs, we put them up on a pedestal and quickly come to depend - depend on them to meet our needs, always be there, never let us down.

The result is that eventually and inevitably they fail us. When they do we end up broken and bleeding.  Sometimes the scars run so deep that we may never fully trust anyone again.  If this has never happened to you then you are very blessed indeed.

The only real solution there is (and I don't consider becoming an emotional hermit a real, viable solution) is to stop looking to people to meet those needs.  For those that God calls His own, the promise is absolute - He will supply all our needs.  Some people will fight against that and restrict Him to meeting spiritual needs and to "911" style emergencies.  The truth, however, is that God promised to meet all our needs. 

One of the reasons we struggle with this is that He never promised to supply all our wants.  The result is that often we are missing things in our life that we think we need to survive.  The only solution?  Trust - if we trust God to keep His promises (besides supplying our needs He also promises that He will cause everything to work out for our ultimate good) then we have what we need to survive even if we don't have what we want to be comfortable.

This lesson is never an easy one and it is one that is repeated in my life time and again.  Too much of who I am wants to be in control, in charge and in comfort - and that is not His plan for my life.

blessings on your day

Celebrate!

VOTD

"Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding."

Proverbs 3:13, NLT

Let Them Eat Cake

Since we will be gone for Mother's Day, Jocelyn made Emma a cake this last weekend.  She has been taking decorating classes, reading, studying and investing in equipment and supplies.  She has really gotten quite good :o)

Looking Good

Self examination is one of the things that the Word instructs us to do on a regular basis.  To do it right can be difficult or even painful.  While the Word does a great job of reflecting our true selves there is another way that can be even better - marriage.

One of the best places to go to find out who you really are is your marriage.   Our spouses see us at our best, worst and everything in between.  If we are open and honest, they know more about us than anyone else ever will.  They see us when we are trying to impress the neighbors and when we drop a garbage disposal on our head under the sink.  They see us lose our temper, give in to temptation, celebrate victories and embrace defeat. In short, they see us for who we truly are.  In the process they decide to love us anyway.  The result is an accurate mirror of who we are - whether we like what we see or not.

There are three challenges in this that need to be addressed in order for this "mirroring" to be effective.  The first challenge (perhaps obviously) is to be open, honest and transparent with our spouse.  For an addict, this is brutally difficult and something I have failed in for most of my marriage.  It is only in the last 6 months or so that I have begun opening up, sharing my true feelings and releasing my secrets.

The second challenge we face is that of asking.  We sometime feel that if we don't ask we won't hear things we don't like.  While that may at some level be true, it is also called "avoidance."  Avoiding issues really don't make them go away.  Failing to check in with our spouse and ask the hard questions ("what do you really think about how I look/responded/handled that/treat you") doesn't change the reality.  It is like turning the mirror to the wall and pretending you look great.  Take a chance - ask a question.

The last challenge is about love.  Whether we are hearing what our spouse has to say or sharing the answers to THEIR questions, ultimately it comes down to how we present ourselves.  Lashing out in retaliation for an answer we don't like or brutalizing the one we love is wrong no matter what the situation.  We need to swallow our ego, remember who we are and stand in humility regardless of which side of the conversation is ours.  Mirrors don't work well (or last long) if we throw rocks at them.  Likewise our spouse won't answer questions (or ask them) if our responses are ugly, angry and unloving.  Providing a safe environment is crucial for this to work.

Have you polished your mirror today?

Where Do We Go From Here?

If recovery is a journey then I am in Nebraska.  There is a point in recovery when motion and progress seems to stop.  Now I recognize that this is basically an illusion as I am still adding days of recovery and working on myself in the process.   At the same time, the huge gains and milestones are mostly behind me for now.  I continue to work on self-evaluation, determining the impact others have had in my life and practicing emotional intimacy.  The last item, of course, is the one on which I focus most of my attention as it is the one area in which I am weakest.

When addicts start their decent into addiction something happens - they stop growing emotionally.  For me this happened in my mid-to-late teens.  I didn't develop the coping mechanisms nor the ability to open up and share completely.  Like all addicts, the secrets I carried prevented me from allowing anyone to see the depths of my heart and soul.  The result was a stunting of growth, I was effectively an emotional bonsai.

Now that I am putting off the chains and bonds of my addictions, I have freed my little bonsai from the root bound pot it was in and an watering, fertilizing and nurturing it.  Already I can see new growth and the promise of even more.  I am sure that with time and care it will grow into a healthy, vibrant tree with deep roots.  In the mean time I travel through Nebraska content to simply be continuing on the journey.

Weekend Recap

Emma worked this weekend so it was just the boy and I for the most part.   This weekend we focused on getting the tasks completed that needed to be done before we leave next weekend.  We got the tub faucets repaired; lawns mowed; batteries in the smoke detectors; suitcases down; receipts filed; etc.

Saturday night we had a game (which we won) and I had to work.  Although things looked good and I finished early, I ended up getting paged all night and had to do a fair amount of cleanup and repair.  I guess it just goes to show that even perfect days can end in rain.   Sunday we celebrated Mother's Day at our house as next weekend we will be on a cruise ship.  Noah made his mom a planter for the kitchen table  :)

I am in early today as I have tons of project work that has to be completed by the time I leave Friday.   I hope you all have a wonderful Monday and we will talk again soon.