The day that was Sunday

This time of year is always busy in my world; this weekend was a great sampling of that. To borrow a phrase; the following took place between midnight Saturday and midnight Sunday...

• worked until 0730
• ran home for about an hour nap
• worked 1100-1500 for commencement
• Bethany LL pictures
• very short nap
• caught the end of the race... Jimmie woulda got him if the could have run the last lap and a half.
• Boys' LL pictures
• few hours sleep
• back to work at 2300, which got off to a bang with a medical run in the first half hour!

Monday could be another marathon day. Several things that must get done, a great number more that should get done, an almost insurmountable list of things that would be nice to take care of. Time to make the most of the rest I can get and remember that "I can do all things...".

Day Off Blog - Friday/ Saturday

Day off was Friday night so I did the following Fri/ Sat:

• programmed graphics for worship (thanks Cam for running them)
• ran around Elkhart/ Mishawaka looking for "white belt loop baseball pants" at a reasonable price.
• cooked supper for the kids/ I (do frozen pizzas count as cooking??)
• ran back to Mishawaka for red socks
• hung out with kids so wife could get away for a few hours/ fell asleep early
• entire day (0930-1700) at LL Opening Day
• hung at home with wife. kids --
• compared who got the most/ worst sun -- Micki won, er lost
• took nap
• back to work Saturday night

Brady Quinn Highlight

Had to post this after the last blog post.
GO IRISH!

The most important things... NFL Draft Edition

I know a guy that is so worried about what will happen to Brady Quinn in the draft on Saturday that he h as spent extra time this week setting up his cell phone so that he can get to the Internet but also so that the draft results are texted to him live as the picks are made. All because he has to be at work and cannot watch it live on TV. He does not know Brady personally, is not related, and obviously has no stake in the fortune he is about to acquire. The question comes to me; why is this so important to him? There are numerous rabbit trails to take on this but let me also add that this is a guy who is by his own admission struggling in his marriage and with his kids. He is also struggling to see any relation to how God fits into the equation of his life's circumstances.

I love sports and ND football as much as I think many but I am thinking that should I get to this point; I deserve whatever household item my wife deems fit banged off my noggin. I do not bring this up to cast stones in this guy's direction but rather to point out that the dangers of taking our focus off the important things that come in life and focusing on things that have no lasting meaning.

Robert Frost
"The reason why worry kills more people than work is that more people worry than work."

I am afraid that the above is too often true of us. Whether we are talking about our relationships (God, spouse, kids, co-workers, etc...) Or in dealing with ourselves we would rather stand back and analyze the situation than take action. I could say that "I need to lose 20 pounds" but unless I take the actions necessary to make a difference it is nothing more than a good thought. It's time to stop letting all those good thoughts be just that. Things that God is reminding me I need to make a priority:

• letting my wife know how important she is by words AND actions (ie. knock some things off the honey do list)
• tell some people around me how important they are to God
• creating more memories/ experiences for my kids

What is it that you need to focus on?

By the way, I hope Brady is drafted by the Bears in a last minute trade. It's only 4 months until the first ND game!

Practice game

We had a practice game on Tuesday night. I was pleasantly surprised with how we played. The guys were a little more aggressive at the plate than they haev been and we didn't make any major snafus on defense. We do have a ways to go but I need to be reminded that they are doing some pretty good things. It's is real easy as a coach to only look at the things that need imporovemnt and not gove praise where it is due. Baseball is fun, kids are fun, haveing an opportunity to create relationships with people is important. Focus the key. Opening Day is Saturday; hope my perspective remains in tact when they count for real...

FPU Week 11

Only two more lessons left. It has been a fun and rewarding group so far. This week's lesson was about Careers and Extra Jobs. Too many of us assume that we will never have to look for another job. We are comfortable where we are, we don't like change. Time for a reality check! The real world stats indicate that many of us will have 18 jobs in our lifetime. The hard fact is that as long as you are some one's employee you could show up in the morning and find out that your job no longer exists. This lesson gives great advice on how to approach the world of getting a job. Dave also talks about the possibility that for a period of time in our lives we may need to explore the possibility of an extra job. Not as a way of life, but as a temporary way to boost your income to pay off debt or save for something special. Great resources in this lesson!!
Almost everyone made it to class. I suppose we should extend an excused absence to they guy who had an emergency appendectomy.

It's OK to ask God what He's up to!

If you are like me you often have that question amidst life's daily grind. We struggle to see how He could possibly be working things out for the good of those who love Him. Why does He continue to allow those who are in the wrong to prevail? Why are lives cut short? Why does that dream I have of great service to the Kingdom never seem to get off the ground? What is that next element of discipleship that He wants me to take ownership of? This post is not an answer to these questions. It is just to say that it is alright to ask. We may not get an answer we like or never an answer; but it's OK to question things. Salvation Army Capt. Andrew Clark from England posted about this on his blog. This is what he said:

We need to ask the question, Holy Spirit, what are you saying, what are you doing. All the time, this is intimacy. We want to be asking between 3 and 5 times a day. Quieten ourselves on this inside...we'll hear. This will take discipline. We're self-absorbed...we must slow that storm down to hear the still small voice. To slow ourselves down to hear the Lord is a pain, we don't want to do it. That's why he has to tell us to desire spiritual gifts in the context of 1 Cor 14...its about taking the time to love the Lord. To cultivate that relationship of intimacy. When is the last time you asked the Holy Spirit 5 times in day what he is saying or doing? We need to have a lifestyle that asks that question.

God is doing some really cool things in my world right now. There are also some things that have me scratching my noggin. I am thankful that I can freely ask for understanding. And with that, boldly act as I walk in step with Him.

Books #8 and #9 -- Official Little League Rulebooks

Combining two into one post here. I am fininshing my annual reading of the LL rulebook. I am also re4ading the softball book this year because I will likely (hopefully) get the opportunity to be more involved with my daughter's games.

Although short I am surpriaed by the number of people who think that they know the rules but have never even picked up the book, let alone actually read it. Kind of a pet peeve of mine I guess. Every coach, manager, umpire, parent, and just about everyone else should read this book. We could save a TON of time if people did this.

How to Not Mess Up the Great Commission too Much.

I couldn't say it any better

Thoughts?... anyone? Seminary President reposnds to VT

What follows is an excerpt from this blog posting. Take the time to read the comments as well. Defiantly thought provoking. What think ye?

“Now if you’re a male student, will you just lift your hand for a moment so I can see you? Thank you for that commitment. God forbid that anything happen like this here, but each of you that just raised your hand said, ‘Never be more than two or three shots before I’m on him. Doesn’t matter how many of us he takes out. ‘ See, all you had to do was have six or eight rush him right at that time, and thirty-two people wouldn’t have died. Now folks, let’s make up our minds. I know we live in America where nobody gets involved in anybody else’s situation. That shall not be the rule here. Does everybody understand? You say, well I may be shot. Well, yeah, you may. Are you saved? You’re going to heaven. You know, it’s better than earth . . . Now one more time, how many male students are there? I’m counting on you.”