Not Goodbye

This past weekend I lost a friend and co-laborer.  John Raffety was an encouragement to me in many ways.  He always had a smile and a good word.  He loved to go on mission trips and share his talents with others.  He loved to sing the praises of the One who gave His life for him.  Thursday morning we will lay his body to rest, but it will not be goodbye, for he has gone to the place that has been prepared for him.  And I will see him again, some day.

Sickness Round Two

Man, this bug that’s going around is a nasty one!  I got sick again this past wednesday and Rachel picked it up yesterday afternoon.  Thankfully the kids have yet to succumb to it’s attack.  I have learned a few things while laying around trying to keep my insides on the inside, here are my observations:

1.  TV really does stink these days.  Not only is the content less than desirable, but they just repeat everything over, and over, and over, and over, and over…get the idea? 

 

2.  Never accidentally mix Gatorade and Diet Coke.

 

3.  Having your son run across the room and jump up on you for a hug is really great when you feel well, and really scary when you’re trying to keep your lunch down.

 

4.  It’s easy to lose weight when nothing stays in your system for more than 15 minutes.  I’m thinking of coughing on a bunch of sugar pills and then reselling them as “the new diet miracle drug”.

 

5.  It’s amazing how fast you can run up a flight of stairs when the only open bathroom is located on the second floor.

 

6.  Laundry doesn’t go on vacation just because you’re sick. 

 

7.  Friends DO go on vacation just because you’re sick.  (Or they at least wear gas masks within 50 feet of you).

 

8.  The lack of anything good on TV does make it easier to get sermons written.

 

9.  Hugs from your kids DO make you feel better.

 

10.  Are you still reading this?  I figured you’d be bored with it by now.  What do you know…now if I could only get my kids to pay this much attention. 

Monday Miracle

This happened to one of my church members yesterday and I just had to share it with everyone. A woman from our church really felt led by God to participate in our mission trip this summer.  The problem was that she did not have vacation available until August and our trip is in July.  She went in to her boss and explained the situation, hoping that she could simply have the week off unpaid.  (quite a sacrifice in itself for a mother of four)  But instead her boss replied that she was simply too valuable to the office for them to get by without her that week…so HE CLOSED THE OFFICE THAT WEEK!  He decided that he would just go ahead and take his vacation that week so that the office would not have to be open.  God is SO good!   I love how He works things out so much better than we could have ever hoped for.

Arnie, what a guy.

I spent time this afternoon watching the Champions Tour Skins Game.  Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Tom Watson, Fuzzy Zoeller, Jay Haas, Peter Jacobson, and Loren Roberts were providing great entertainment not only with their golf skills, but also through their commentary on the golf course.  The last player to round out the group was Arnold Palmer.  What a guy.  His golf game has deteriorated far more than the other players.  Several of the men could still compete on the PGA tour, all the others can still compete at a high level on the Champions Tour, Arnie couldn’t compete on the local high school tour.  But he was still the most pivotal charachter of the afternoon.  His ability to continue to be an ambassador for the game is amazing.  It reminded me that it’s not always about the performance, it’s about the person behind the performance.  It’s my hope that God would use me in such a way that it would not be about the performance, but about the God who is behind every good thing that comes from my life.  I may not ever light up the leaderboard, but I hope that His light will shine through me.

Early or Late?

Hey guys, just a question for you.  I know many of you are at churches that have multiple sunday morning services.  Do you typically have one service with more “energy” than the other/s?  If so, which one?  Is there any significant reason that they are different?  (type of music, ages, location, etc.)  I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Can someone please save America from “Idol”

Once again I have seen an episode of the slow death of television.  American Idol puts through good looking people that can’t sing while rejecting “plain” people with real pipes.  As far as I’m concerned, it’s pathetic.

Somebody PLEASE call the Doctor!

There has been a terrible plague going around our part of the planet…and I’m it’s latest victim.  From Tuesday noon until last evening, I didn’t even want to get out of bed.  (It’s not unusual for me not to want to get out of my recliner, but my bed…that’s a different story).  This particular plague starts with flu symptoms for a few days and then progresses into pneumonia!  So guess what?  Tomorrow I have my chest x-ray to confirm the latter.  Anyone else have any sick day horror stories?

Shout Out!

Just wanted to give a shout out to the EBC Student Group.  You Guys Rock!

Highs & Lows

I write this post from the cafeteria of Barnes Hospital in St. Louis.  I am on a trip with the students from our church to the “Dare 2 Share” conference.  While at the conference I have watched with amazement as our students have begun to catch a vision for sharing their faith with those around them.  This afternoon they are collecting canned goods for a local St. Louis food pantry as well as sharing their faith door to door.  This was the moment I had been waiting for!  The opportunity to see our students in action was gonna be great!  But God had a different plan for me.  One of the deacons of our church, John Raffety, has been battling brain cancer.  I really felt the need to come by the hospital this afternoon and see his family, (I tried to catch them this morning, but they were running errands).  God used the time I was there to not only minister to the family, but also to me.  As I sat there next to John, I was reminded that the same God he loves and serves is the God our students were out sharing with the greater St. Louis community.  The God that gives Kay and Doug and Matthew the strength to stand in difficult times is the same God that has the power to transform relationships, hearts, and lives.  On a cool February Saturday God once again revealed Himself to me, reminding me of His incredible mercy, grace, and love.  I don’t understand why things happen the way they do…but I trust Him enough to know He will walk through them with me.

Thanks for noticing!

Hi guys, many of you out there have noticed that I haven’t blogged in a few months.  Things have been busy, but that’s really not an excuse.  With the new look of the site comes new blogs.  The new launch will start over the weekend, thanks for checking in!