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Lee Strobel: The Case for Easter

2010-04-04T09:15:00.002-04:00

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Louie's Top 10 Things to do to be light in dark places...

2008-07-14T13:04:00.003-04:00

1. Have a big idea. The goal: change the world!
2. Get grace. Graces leads to humility and gratitude. Preach the gospel to yourself everyday.
3. Have a heart for Knowing God.
4. Know who you are in Christ. Memorize: Colossians, Ephesians and Philippians.
5. Know and admit your weaknesses.
6. Embrace a cause.
7. Live in community.
8. Be led. Demand of your leaders: entertain me less!
9. Anticipate the struggle.
10. Look beyond yourself.

UF Grads Finishing Up Some Barricades

2008-02-19T12:54:00.002-05:00

Who's the Real Bad Guy?

2008-02-17T14:39:00.002-05:00

Declaration of Independence

2007-07-04T12:07:00.001-04:00

Declaration of Independence

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

That 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 abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation upon 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 hath shown, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are long accustomed. But [our grievances are neither light nor transient, and a list of them follows….]

We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good people of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do.

And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

Google is Chauvenist

2007-05-14T22:43:00.000-04:00

Google is chauvenist. If you don't believe me google 'she invented' or 'she discovered' and see what google suggests.

STRIVE 2007

2007-04-20T22:50:00.000-04:00

Persistence

2007-04-13T00:11:00.000-04:00

Greatest Yankee Ever?

2007-04-10T17:53:00.000-04:00

Who was the greatest Yankee ever? Only one Yankee has hit 4 home runs in the first five games to start a season. Was it???

Babe Ruth? - Nope

Lou Gehrig? - Nope

Roger Maris? - Nope

Micky Mantle? - Nope

Yogi Berra? - Nope

Derek Jeter? - Nope

and the answer is...

Alex Rodriguez

Of course the irony is for A-Rod, the most booed of all the Yankees, he may yet be the greatest ever. He is the lone hope of bringing the career home run record (the most important record in baseball) back to the Yanks. A record they haven't had since the Hank Aaron took it from the Babe. And of course when Barry Bonds breaks Aaron's record everyone will suddenly become an A-Rod fan.

Technorati Tags: Yankees, A-Rod , Babe Ruth

Da Yankees Win

2007-04-04T09:49:00.000-04:00

Drew had his first t-ball game last night. He plays for the Yankees. They won 14-11. I wasn't personally keeping score at a t-ball game but Drew's cousin, Jordan, played for the other team and his dad kept score.

Josh Takes First...

2007-03-16T13:49:00.000-04:00

Josh and his friends came in first place for the project on WMD's in the county history fair. The following comes from the Tallahassee Democrat.

Leon County Schools judge Pete Cowdrey questions Griffin Middle Schools students Josh Sapp, Adam Wilson and A.J. Torgeson about their project on the atomic bomb at the Leon County History Fair. About 200 student projects are on display at the Leon County Fairgrounds. Check Saturday's Tallahassee Democrat for a list of winners from Thursday's fair.

Revival Comes in Strange Ways

2007-02-28T13:08:00.000-05:00

Today the FedEX man brought it to my house.

It seems many would agree...

2007-02-26T22:01:00.000-05:00

"Movie theaters shouldn't ask patrons to clean up after themselves because, after overcharging for popcorn and food that he shouldn't even be eating, he should have the right to be able to dispense of his junk by just opening his hand."
-Jerry Seinfeld

Matte's First 'Noles Game

2007-02-24T21:24:00.000-05:00

Paper Straws are for the birds

2007-02-22T09:59:00.000-05:00

Dinner at Ted's...

The meal ...excellent...
The price ...ridiculous
The paper straw ....absolutely disgusting.

Long story short...Ted's in an attempt to be environmentally friendly is using paper straws (I guess killing tress is more environmentally friendly than burying plastic). There is no doubt the paper straws will decompose quicker than the plastic ones. As a matter of fact they will decompose right into your drink. At first you notice bits of paper going down your throat. If you mistake it for pieces of lemon and continue drinking the straw will eventually become so decomposed that it becomes completely useless. So, if you go to Ted's...bring your wallet...and your own straw.

Good Night in Gainseville

2007-02-21T10:17:00.000-05:00

'Noles 14 Gators 6

Coke and the Kingdom

2007-01-23T16:28:00.000-05:00

Coke oversells it power by quite a bit in this add. But every time I see this (it's the pre-movie coke add if you've been to the movies lately) I think about how the world would be different if we took Jesus seriously when he said, 'the kingdom of God is at hand' instead of bunkering down and complaining about how bad the world is.

Waffle Ball

2007-01-19T15:14:00.000-05:00

Never argue with a kid...

Drew said he wanted to practice some waffle ball today. I said, 'you mean wiffle ball. He said, 'No waffle ball dad'. Once he grabbed the ball I knew he was right.

So Even If I Would Have Made It I would have drown...

2007-01-17T13:33:00.000-05:00

Dig to China?

Addicted to LOST

2007-01-16T19:27:00.001-05:00

1000 Titles

2007-01-16T11:25:00.000-05:00

I thought of 1000 different places to go with this picture...but I'll just let it speak for itself.

What We're Good at...

2007-01-10T14:48:00.000-05:00

...we have multitudes of professing Christians who well may be ready to die but obviously are not ready to live, and can hardly get along with themselves, much less with others.

Dallas Willard in The Great Omission

Robbed!

2007-01-09T18:11:00.000-05:00

13-0 Boise State was robbed today. All they did was win every game on their schedule and a bowl game against Oklahoma. What else could they have done? They deserve at least a share of the national title. I mean they could have played a sluggish Ohio State team and won in impressive fashion but who couldn't beat a slow team from the Big-10?

If it sound like sour grapes...wear it.

Familiar Face: Name That Elf!

2006-12-22T13:57:00.000-05:00

Can you name the Elf with the green hat? Hint: there's a major clue toward the end.

Christmas Lights

2006-12-21T23:24:00.000-05:00

A week ago we were close to foregoing the lights this year. We changed our mind.

Surprise Visitor

2006-12-21T11:52:00.001-05:00

Death

2006-12-06T11:49:00.000-05:00

Saw this today...

Basketball School

2006-12-04T08:50:00.000-05:00

Seminoles 70
Gators 66

The 'Noles knocked off #4 and defending National Champion Florida last night. And in football you'd have to admit that Florida earned their spot in the title game. Michigan had their chance...let someone else give 'em a shot. Not to mention it will be fun watching Ohio State pound the Gates!

I always preferred the round ball ;)

How Rich Are You?

2006-11-30T15:15:00.000-05:00

Take the Test

Simmer....

2006-11-28T22:48:00.000-05:00

Josh, J.D. & Ethan

When I mentioned to Josh tonight that J.D. Drew may sign with the Red Sox he immediately began to go through all our baseball stuff to throw out anything signed by or bearing the image of J.D. Simmer down Josh. Where does this come from?

J.D. opted out of the last 3 years of his 5 year, $55,000,000 contract with the Dodgers. Who can blame him? Who could live on that kind of money?

Quoting Jim Coletti, Dodgers GM, "In light of what J.D. said at the end of the year, about making a commitment and how much he loved playing here, I was surprised. J.D.'s a man of his word. I guess he changed his word. I think you expect things to be handled in a certain way. Based on what was written at the end of the season, you have to ask yourself, 'How did this happen?'"

Why would he be obligated to stay? His contract says he is free to move on after two years and he is moving on. If the contract stated the Dodgers could release him after two years would they keep him if he was injured or performing poorly? Of course not. GM's dump players at the first sign of decline. But when the shoe is on the other foot some how the players are just greedy, ungrateful pigs.

The Dodgers signed the contract...now live with it without all the crying.

Spidey Sense Beats Ninja Stealth Everytime

2006-11-22T10:47:00.000-05:00

Me: Drew, some Ninjas visited our house last night.

Drew: Calyn.

Me: Yeah.

Lance - The Definition of Encourager

2006-11-17T00:13:00.000-05:00

If you know Lance then you wouldn't be surprised to hear his voice on TV encouraging coach Bowden.

tags: Bobby Bowden

NEXT! Northwoods Fall Retreat 2006

2006-11-13T11:53:00.000-05:00

I feel the same way...

2006-11-06T20:12:00.000-05:00

10-0

2006-11-03T12:33:00.000-05:00

October 31, 2006

2006-10-31T23:18:00.000-05:00

So the night began with a fun time celebrating a stellar fall Harvest.

and than it was a coming home party for Calyn. People were dressed a little odd. Maybe they were excited about the fall harvest.

Distorted Beauty

2006-10-31T17:13:00.000-05:00

Who's Older?

2006-10-26T17:05:00.000-04:00

Tags:

Still Perfect

2006-10-14T11:07:00.000-04:00

Godby moved to 7-0 with a victory over previously unbeaten Wakulla on Friday night. Final Score: Godby 33 Wakulla 7

Hugeous!

2006-10-13T09:42:00.000-04:00

The Godby Cougars take on the Wakulla tonight in what will go a long way toward deciding the district champion. Godby comes in 6-0 and ranked No.1 in the state (#20 in the nation). Wakulla is also 6-0 and ranked No. 10 in the state. The game is in Wakulla at 7:30. If you don't have plans why not drive down and cheer on the cougars (or Eagles if you are so inclined)?

Matte Unabridged

2006-10-13T09:01:00.000-04:00

Need a Book?

2006-10-11T14:34:00.000-04:00

My library is now on line...just choose a topic.

tags: library

Cooler Heads Prevail

2006-10-10T10:49:00.000-04:00

After meeting with team executives in Tampa yesterday the boss decided not to fire Torre saying, 'we've come to the conclusion that Joe Torre was not the problem'.

Rocket science it's not. Let me help you out George...you need pitching that is not a member of the AARP!

tags: Yankees Joe Torre

The Price of Leadership

2006-10-09T14:56:00.000-04:00

Last week the consensus was..."This year has been Joe Torre's finest as a manager"

Today the consensus seems to be..."Joe Torre must be fired".

tags: Joe Torre Yankees

AFLAC!

2006-10-04T18:13:00.000-04:00

Creative Advertising

2006-09-28T11:27:00.000-04:00

Matte: Birth to Home

2006-09-26T12:32:00.000-04:00

MattE Comes Home

2006-09-24T21:38:00.000-04:00

For more pics of MattE's final day in the hospital and first day at home click here

MattE's Second Day

2006-09-23T22:35:00.000-04:00

Day two for MattE was a good day. Why Cleveland? It's a family name.

The G.H. Cleveland on this sign is Laurie's great grandfather, Grover Cleveland. Maybe you've seen his old peach packing plant on I-75. It's marked with this giant peach.

It's actually an outlet mall now.

Why Matthew? Umm...the disciple of course. It has nothing to do with this guy

Matt E. Diaz

Just because a guy breaks the National League record with 10 consecutirve at bats with a hit with the Atlanta Braves not to mention as a 'Nole had the fans chanting J.D. Who? after hitting 3 homeruns in one playoff game against Oklahoma causing fans to forget J.D. Drew who had one the Golden Spikes Award one year earlier. That would certainly not be enough to name a child Matte. Oh, did I mention he loves Jesus and was always very kind to Josh when he would go to get baseballs signed. No, trust me...he's named after the former tax collector.

For more picutures of Matthew Cleveland you can go here and here

Happy Birthday Matthew Cleveland!

2006-09-22T22:33:00.000-04:00

Matthew Cleveland was born this afternoon at 4:21pm. He weighed a whopping 9lbs 2oz. You can see more photos here

A Day to Celebrate!

2006-09-21T23:36:00.000-04:00

Okay, so MattE wasn't born on 9/21/06...but it is still brought news worth celebrating...

MattE C. will have to wait

2006-09-20T11:47:00.000-04:00

Five years ago on September 11th, 2001 we were scheduled to go in to deliver Drew. The hospital was full so we waited one extra day. Conisidering all that occurred on that day we now look back on that as a blessing.

Today September 20th we were scheduled to go into the hospital and deliver MattE C. Once again the hospital is full and so once again we'll wait the extra day. I'm sure it will be a blessing as well but hopefully not for as dramatic of reasons.

MattE C. Hang in there. One more day.

Happy Birthday Drew & Tamara (yesterday)

2006-09-13T11:06:00.000-04:00

Fall Ball

2006-08-25T23:18:00.000-04:00

Fall Ball Began tonight...not so well for Josh...actually we didn't even know he was playing fall ball. His coach called this morning while he was at school and said he had practice tonight. He went. And after taking a ball to the eye he went and got seven stitches.

Who's Gettin' In?

2006-08-24T22:42:00.000-04:00

Don't ask me who 'cause I'm not fessing up but I heard someone say one time, "I can tell by looking at them they're not Christians". Well this person may be surprised when they get to heaven...as demonstrated by this video

Wikipedia Vs. Encyclopedia Brittcanica

2006-08-24T09:40:00.000-04:00

Say what you want about whether or not Wikipedia is a reliable encyclopedia or not...I doubt if you could get this kind of information on World Book or Encyclopedia Brittcanica.

Theo Epstein

2006-08-21T21:38:00.000-04:00

Red Sox GM Theo Epstein leaves the park after the Red Sox 5th straight loss to the Yankees.

Boston Massacre II

2006-08-21T16:45:00.000-04:00

tags: Yankees

Which is More Likley?

2006-08-12T23:27:00.000-04:00

Which is more likely?

Or

Or

Expendability

2006-08-11T12:11:00.000-04:00

Expired Cokes and Time on Our Hands

2006-08-06T00:14:00.000-04:00

So what do you get when you have a couple hundred expired cokes, two bored sons and time on your hands...

Find out HERE

Actually the videos don't do it justice. We had done most of the damage when we decided to catch some on video.

Whatever!

2006-08-01T22:55:00.000-04:00

I've never been a fan of the blogs that begin, "I don't really have anything to post but I feel obligated so here goes". So I won't begin this one that way...actually there is so much going on right now it I always feel if I write about it I won't do it justice because of a lack of literary skills. So, if I did have skills here's what I would write about...

- Camp '07 - the spiritual buzz seems to be sticking. Maybe it's more than a buzz.
- Larry Rappa - what a great example of someone laying everything down for the kingdom.
- Radooga - there is no way we could say enough about 3 of our own spending a summer (summer + for 2) giving their summers away for the kingdom.
- Camp Charis - see above.
- Louie Giglio: what a gifted person.
- Leadership retreat - hard to believe it's been a year since the last one.
- The Yankees took over 1st place tonight...pretty amazing considering Matsui and Sheffield have been out with injuries most of the year and A-Rod and Randy Johnson are having sub-par year. Should Torre make room for a manager of the year trophy?

Sign This Petition!

2006-07-29T10:00:00.000-04:00

I know a lot of petitions have been going around lately for various political and moral causes. Here's one more...though it's not particularly moral or political...if you have time please sign it.

Back to the Future Tribute

2006-07-26T14:52:00.000-04:00

tags: Back to the Future Michael J. Fox

'Youth Minister Challenge...and the winner is..."

2006-07-25T22:13:00.000-04:00

The Crowd Anticipating Youth Minister's Challenge 2007

It's been awhile since I've done a 'dream' post so I'll throw this one out there. Last night I had a dream that I was on the verge of my first ever Youth Minister's Challenge Championship. Just to fill you in...at Student Life Camp every year there is a challenge between all of the youth pastors. They are given these crazy games to play such as eating a napkin or putting on a t-shirt that has been frozen like a brick. Well, in my 9 attempts I've fallen short every time. Although I have made it to the finals once (and had to miss the final event due to an emergency) and was most recently robbed of a victory by a very poor call by the referee.

So the dream...for the first time ever student life decided to do the youth minister's challenge according to two criteria...the first criteria was actual youth ministry skills. We all had to write and present a Bible Study. I won hands down. The second was a physical challenge. We had to carry a canoe over a sandy beach...again...it was all me in a land slide. So we were told there would be three contests and each would be worth 25 points. The youth minister with the most points would be the champion. So of course after winning the first two events I was like Floyd Landis on the last day of the Tour de France. It was in the bag and I was enjoying the moment. I was talking some serious smack. Just before I began to feel bad about my prideful attitude and self congratulation over winning my first Youth Minister's Challenge in 9 tries my alarm clock went off and I woke up. Once again I was robbed of experiencing actual victory. But the build up sure was a lot of fun. Maybe '07 is my year.

Artist of the Month

2006-07-24T14:26:00.000-04:00

You may be surprised, as I was, at who the MSN Artist of the month is...

Envelope please...

And the winner is...

The David Crowder Band!

What a great example of a band being salt and light in the world without a watered down message.

tags: music David Crowder Band

QVC - Probably Didn't Sell A Lot of These

2006-07-17T19:42:00.000-04:00


A stagehand on QVC has an unfortunate on-air accident while climbing a ladder.

Trajectory

2006-07-13T09:25:00.000-04:00

Days at camp are so full it is hard to put summarize in the few minutes I have to update each morning but some conversation starters for when students return would go something like this...

Are you a sponger or a servant?
Since everyone's a worshiper...what or who or you worshipping?
Where is your trajectory taking you?
Is your myspace a light?

tags: youth

Camp 2006 - Day 1&2

2006-07-12T08:42:00.000-04:00

We arrived at camp in Daytona Beach on Monday afternoon. so far it's been great. Loui Gigglio is our camp pastor. Chris Tomlin is leading worship. You can see all kinds of pictures HERE but the one our students are going to love to tell you about it this one...

Senior Night 2006

2006-07-11T09:17:00.000-04:00

We had senior night 2006 Sunday night at the Wirgau's. It was a great time of sharing and encouragment. YOu can see the cmoplete set of pictures Here

Sappulous! II

2006-07-06T09:15:00.000-04:00

Well Josh's team, the Panters, were winning 4-0 in the championship game when I had to leave to go to church. So you can imagine my surprise when I asked Laurie how the game came out that night. "They lost", she said. I asked, "What was the score". "four to zip". "What are you talking about? They were winning 4-0 when I left". "Yes, they had to forfeit. They batted out of order the other team protested so the Panthers lost by forfeit." Not the best way to end a long season but hey we all had fun in the process, I think Josh learned a lot and team and the coaches showed great class through it all so I have no complaints.

Sappulous!

2006-07-01T21:24:00.000-04:00

Josh's all-star baseball team has reached the championship game for their region. They did it with two great games. The first one took two days to play going 2 extra innings. I thought only Cricket took multiple days to play. The second game was tied going into the last. They scored 4 in the top half to get the win. The championship game will be played tomorrow afternoon around 4:15pm at Canopy Oaks.

The best part for me has been watching these guys pull for one another. In games as tight as they've had it would be easy to get frustrated with an error in the field or a strike out in a key situation. It hasn't happened with these guys. They really get that baseball is a team game. One of the parents came up with a cheer for Josh when he comes up to bat...he gets everyone to yell - Sappulous! I couldn't agree more. Go Panthers!

Been There Done That...a Few Times

2006-06-27T06:29:00.000-04:00

You have to feel for Carolina fans a little bit today. The Heels lost the College Baseball World Series by one run. That one run was given up on an error in the top of the eigth inning. Seminole fans can certainly relate to that 'ole so close', 'what might of been' and even the 'would things have been different if the coach had done this instead of that' feeling that goes along with coming so close but falling short in the championship game.

I know we're supposed to say, 'I was pulling for the ACC' but honestly had the Teels won it in their first trip something would have seemed terribly unjust in the world. Any Seminole fan, knowing we have the distinction of having been to the College World Series more than any team that has never won it, would have to agree. In the world of baseball your season always ends in one of two ways...a championship or a season ending loss. There is no in between. As it turns out the 'Noles, who went 2-2 against North Carolina this year, and the Heels both end their seasons on errors and will continue to think back on this season as 'what might have been' until finally one of them wins the final game of their season.
tags: Tar Heels Seminoles baseball

Even the White House is Refuting Dan Brown

2006-06-22T09:42:00.000-04:00

Dan Brown has claimed a lot of things...Constantine determined what goes in the Bible, Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene, Jesus had a child named Sarah, etc. The list could go on for a long time and no doubt if you go to a church anywhere in the United States you have heard things refuted over and over again.

Here's one you probably haven't heard. The church isn't interested in it but the White House has gone out of its way to refute this new Dan Brown claim.

Apparently Dan Brown makes the claim in a 1992 book that when the United States is at war the presidential seal is changed. The Eagle turns his head toward his talon carrying the arrows rather than the standard postion of facing the talon carrying the olive branches. Is Dan Brown right? And if he is does this have the potential to undermine everything we have always believed about the presidential seal?

Following is the response from White House curator Bill Atlman...

"There is just one Seal of the President at any given time, and it does not change according to whether or not the United States is at war. However, the Seal has undergone modifications over the years. President Truman modified the Seal in 1945, and the changes included turning the eagle's head to face its right as opposed to its left.

A press release issued after the new design was approved said, "In the new Coat of Arms, Seal and Flag, the Eagle not only faces to its right — the direction of honor — but also toward the olive branches of peace which it holds in its right talon. Formerly the eagle faced toward the arrows in its left talon — arrows, symbolic of war."

Although the eagle featured in the Presidential Seal has faced its right ever since, there are items in the White House collection that were made before 1945 that display the eagle facing its left (such as state services, furnishings, architectural elements, etc.)"

This explanation, however, seems to come up short. If in fact the relics of an 'arrow facing eagle' are in existance because that was the design prior to Truman than someone needs to explain the following which is the original sketch of the seal created in the 1786.

Congressional hearings will no doubt be called for once the democartics in congress catch wind of this new White House cover up.

One Year Later...

2006-06-20T17:01:00.000-04:00

One Year Ago Our Seniors' Last Sunday was the Sixth Graders First Sunday @ ROC

Tony Dungy - Amazing Grace

2006-06-16T10:40:00.000-04:00

This is a great article on Tony Dungy's faith. What's really cool is that this is by ESPN and not FCA or some other Christian sports magazine. Kudos to ESPN.
Tony Dungy - Amazing Grace

tags: Tony Dungy

Irony

2006-06-15T22:11:00.000-04:00

Irony is a hard thing to define. Alanis Morissette tried but some people feel like rain on your wedding day isn't ironic it's just bad luck. A picture is worth a thousand words so maybe this breaking news will do the trick.

tags: irony Elvis

Goliath Loses Again...This Time With a Bag of Honey & Oysters

2006-06-12T17:46:00.000-04:00

Jenna left for Ukraine today...barley. Traffic outside of the airport was backed up. Apparently there had been some sort of a traffic accident. Hopefully no one I know ;)There was a bomb scare at the airport so everything inside was backed up as well. You know it's not going to be a good day at the airport when the first thing you see when you walk through the door is news crews. They generally don't do stories on, "another slow day at the Tallahassee airport". So because of the bomb scare the airport had been evacuated and now that they had re-openned the lines and flights were backed up. Jenna was behind a huge line of people to check in and her flight was supposed to leave in just a few minutes. We were sure it would be delayed but had no idea how long. Lisa (her mom) said, "I just have a peace about it." She mentioned studying David and goliath and how all the obstacles that day seemed like Goliath but that God was going to work it all out in ways we couldn't even imagine. There was some kind of confusion about Jenna's flight number so Lisa walked up front to see if she could find out the right flight number. The lady looked at the ticket and said, "where's your passport?". So Jenna handed her passport. "Do you have bags?" So we brought up the bags. They tagged the bags, put 'em through the machine and the next thing you know Jenna's through the gate and on her way to Ukraine. Lisa had no intentions of bullying Jenna to the front of the line. She simply asked a question. God did the rest.

On a side note Paul (Jenna's dad) should receive an Tony Award for his acting skills. He was concerned that the people who used to be in front of Jenna and than watched Jenna check her bags and head to the gate may be upset so he started doing one of the best, "no, we can go before all of these nice people" routines I've ever seen. He must have pulled it off because nobody seemed upset.

On another side note...following is the AP story on what caused the bomb threat...
AP Story

tags: Jenna Ukraine

Diet Coke and Mentos

2006-06-08T11:10:00.000-04:00

tags: Diet Coke Mentos

Welcome Home Tamara

2006-06-01T19:43:00.000-04:00

Tamara gets back from Ireland today. I wonder if she saw this soldier...

Teen Repellent

2006-05-31T17:24:00.000-04:00

In the UK some stores are using a high frequency sound that only teens can hear to keep them out of their retail stores. Apparently it is really annoying. I can't hear the sound. Can you? It's not the background sound it's the high pitched sound over the background noise.

Please listen to the sound here and comment on the following...

My age is ____
I can hear the sound ___yes ___no

tags: Mosquito Sound teens

X-Men III

2006-05-30T08:05:00.000-04:00

I saw X-Men the other night. The best part was when one of the genetically altered mutants tied Babe Ruth's homerun record.

The Babe is Still King

2006-05-29T12:24:00.000-04:00

Steroids aren't the only thing that helped Barry Bonds pass Babe Ruth on the all-time homerun list. When the Babe played a ball that went over the fence in fair territory but hooked and landed foul was called a foul ball. The rule was later changed so that the ball was fair or foul depending on where it was when it went over the fence. This is why the foul poles were added as well. Some estimate that had Ruth played under the current rules he would have had at least 80 additional homeruns to his credit. Of course had Barry played under the current steroid rules he would probably have a few less homers himself. So, Barry's got more in the books but the Babe is still the homerun king.

tags: Yankees Babe Ruth Barry Bonds

The Weekend

2006-05-28T21:20:00.000-04:00

Great weekend. Here's some hightlights.

Seeing Calyn off at the airport...bittersweet but great to see her following God wherever he leads.

OOSBA (hopefully videos coming soon)
1) "Amy do you take Ethan to have and to hold 'til death do you part?" Amy: "Heck yeah!"
2) Paul: "does #2 count or does it have to pea?"
3) Some lady at Lake Ella, "I've fallen and I can't get up. I've fallen and I can't get up"
4) Scott and James spaking each other.
5) The Morrow boys leaping ability.

The 'Noles...won three straight to advance to the ACC semi-finals before losing by one run to NCState. Way to fight back out of the losers bracket. Hopefully they'll carry that into the regionals.

ROC...
Praying for Lori, Calyn, Daniel, Ethan & Shannon - all are going to be out for awhile why they go build the kingdom.

Eating ROCs...talking to Mr. Craig and hearing they made their baloon payment of $42,000. That's got to be a relief!

SCORE

2006-05-26T15:09:00.000-04:00

Most of my family was watching some karaoke show on FOX Wednesday night so I decided to slip into the other room and see what else was on. I found some baseball game on ESPN. Neither team was from around here but I watched anyway. I think it was New York vs. Boston or some such thing. Anyway, I decided I go ahead and watch. You would be amazed at what you can learn watching baseball. For example...Some man named A-ROD (yes, I know it's an unusual name) came up to bat. From what I could gather he's some superhuman player who excels...except when the game is on the line. So the announcers begin talking about this sports therapist that A-ROD has been seeing to help him excel in clutch situations. Orel Hershiser was one of the announcers. Apparently he used to be one of the guys that throws the ball from the big hill in the middle of the field. He apparently used to visit this same therapist to help him excel so he gave the outline of his program. So if you would like to excel when the pressure is on but don't make the millions of dollars these guys do to go see a guru here is the five point plan.

Self Discipline
Concentration
Optimism
Relaxation (I've heard Zen gardens can help with this one)
Enjoyment

A-Rod Warms Up with Big Papi - Looks Like they have 'enjoyment' down.

tags: Yankees tags: baseball tags: A-Rod tags: jim Fannin

"a HAPPY time of rejoicing..."

2006-05-25T17:20:00.000-04:00

Interesting day...

2006-05-24T18:20:00.000-04:00

Stanley, my long lost stapler was returned today. He was kidnapped two years ago with demands as ransom for his return. I do not negotiate with terrorists so he was held in captivity for the last two years. Apparently his kidnapper is leaving the country and could no longer care for him. He was returned in good health and with a full load of blue staples. He seems to be fine. I think his captors cared for him well.

On a side note...I received a unique gift today. A Zen garden complete with Buddha head. Now for any of you Opus Dei types out there...I do not condone the worship of Buddha. But I have to admit it's a pretty unique gift.

Buddha does have something in common with Jesus...Nobody really knows what either looked like. So the debate today was whether my Buddha head actually was Buddha or not. Apparently it is. It is the skinny version as opposed to the one most of us are accustomed to.

My BuddhaBig Buddah

Basics...

2006-05-23T13:11:00.000-04:00

"This is a true saying, and everyone should believe it: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners-and I was the worst of them all." 1 Timothy 1:15

Sometimes I beat myself up because I don't excel at being a developmental psychologist, motivator, planner, organizer, disciplinarian, promoter, Bible scholar, creative teacher, counselor, parent, life guard, church historian, travel agent, communicator, writer, website designer, video editor, entertainer and whatever other false expectations I put on myself that I'll never achieve. So for now I plan to rest in what I know and allow God to supply for the lack.

tags: God ministry

Rangers 13 Yankees.......

2006-05-17T10:26:00.000-04:00

I got a text message last night. The subject read Rangers 13 Yankees........ I thought great the Yanks got smoked last night. I openeed it up to see just how bad they got beat. The complete message read Rangers 13 Yankees 14. The Yankees overcame a 9 - 0 defecit to comeback and win the games. Wow...sometimes life brings pleasant surprises. Brad Wilkerson (former Gator) went deep on Scott Proctor (former 'Nole) to give the Rangers a late lead but it didn't last when Jorge Posada hit a walk off two run homer in bottom of the ninth with two outs.

On a different note the 'Noles lost again. This time in extra innings. Here's Drew couting the K's (strikeouts for you soccer fans) on the post. If he could have counted one more the 'Noles would have won. As it is they gave up 5 runs with two outs in the top of the 11th to lose the game.

tags: Yankees

Church Shopping

2006-05-12T10:07:00.000-04:00

tags: church

Passion

2006-05-10T13:57:00.000-04:00

I'm trying to read a book called, "Practicing Passion: Youth and Quest for a Passionate Church" . Actually the book is pretty heady so I should just give it someone like Brandon and let him read it and then explain it to me. But there were a few quotes in there that jumped out and seemed to make sense.

"Adolescents are searching for something, for somone, 'to die for'...a cause worthy of their suffering, a love worthy of a lifetime and not just a Sunday night. In short, they are searching for passion"

"The Passion of Christ is good news to adolescents, not because Jesus suffers, but because Jesus loves them with such wild, passionate hope that even death on a cross cannot stop his determination to win them."

"Passion asks something of young people; in fact, it asks everything of them"

"salvation is at stake, for they will not give up on true love until they find it, or until consumer culture numbs them into a kind of lobotomized compliance, whichever comes first. Whether they discover the true source of passion - whether they ever connect their desire for love with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ or with the church at all, for the matter - largely depends on whether the church bears witness to a love more true than those available in popular culture. And that, of course, depends on whether the church practices the passion we preach"

Reading this book has made me grateful for the great examples of passionate selfless love that many of our leaders demonstrated for our youth. Some like Lori for moving to Ukraine and giving her life away because of her love for Christ and the people of Ukraine and also for the ones who stay here and give up so much in order to spend time discipling students.

But I also am very challenged by this book to think about the way we do ministry. We do so much for students. I'm not sure that we do enough to encourage them to do for others. All of the students we put in the category of 'getting it' seem to be the one's that find opportunities to serve and minister. We assume they serve and minister because they 'get it'. But maybe it's the opposite. Maybe they 'get it' because they serve and minister.

In process...

tags: God Youth Ministry Jesus Passion

STRIVE 2006

2006-05-08T15:22:00.000-04:00

Barry Bonds in the News

2006-05-05T22:25:00.000-04:00

Barry Bonds made the news this week when he missed a game because he took a foul ball off his head during batting practice. Shouldn't it make news every time a ball manages to miss Barry Bond's head?

tags: Barry Bonds

Jed, Ted & Johnny

2006-05-01T16:53:00.000-04:00

Great job Calyn, Jenna, Christian, Brandon, Alicia, Kenley, Ian & Walker on the skit yesterday...

oh Johnny Damon returs to Fenway tonight. 7:00 on ESPN. You know you want to see it.

tags: Yankees humor

Josh's Tour of the Diamond

2006-04-29T22:19:00.000-04:00

Josh Began the Day at Shortstop

His Footwork was better than my camera work

Josh Batted

Josh Got on Base

Josh Pitched

Josh Played Third

Josh received the game ball after recording all three outs in the bottom of the last inning to end a threat by Fort Bradon. An unassisted ground out to third followed by a step on third throw to second base double play ended the game and secured the win for the Cardinals.

tags: baseball

I can see clearly now the rain is gone...

2006-04-25T21:42:00.000-04:00

Actually I can't see very clearly now but the rain seems to be gone...at least for now. Well, I'm sure everyone who cares - knows - that after getting embarrased by the Gators they came back strong in the first 4 innings of the Georgia Tech series. Before giving up 8 runs in the 5th which led to them loosing 15 to 8. Of course they followed that up by losing twice on Sunday to complete one of the worst runs I've seen since I've been watching Florida State baseball. Speaking of which...I was visiting in the hospital today when someone told me perhaps I was bad luck and shouldn't go to the games anymore and see if that helps them break out of the slump. I've got a better suggestion...how about the 'Noles quit striking out 10+ times per game, hit the ball and quit giving up grand slams! We play Savannah State this weekend so hopefully those are reachable goals. There, now I feel better.

Random things...

Preaching Sunday was surprisingly refreshing. Typically the major stress associated with preaching, at least for me, is deciding what to preach on. Sunday was one of those rare times when I knew exactly what I was preaching on before I was ever asked to preach.

Playing frisbee is funner with Ian on your team. All you need to do is close your eyes and chunk the frisbee in the air. He seems to find a way to track it down and catch it.

4th of July...is on!

Summer is coming too quickly!

You would think being a youth pastor would prepare you to be a youth parent but somethings you just have to experience first hand.

Rainy Days

2006-04-20T09:11:00.000-04:00

The only thing worse than the weather last night was the score. Gators 8 'Noles 3. The 'Noles are on a losing tear here lately. That happens when the competition stiffens up. This weekend against Georgia Tech will be a huge series. We need to have success against a highly ranked opponent and get our confidence back.

tags: Seminoles

The Day after...

2006-04-17T10:33:00.000-04:00

I pray that you will begin to understand the incredible greatness of his power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else in this world or in the world to come. And God has put all things under the authority of Christ, and he gave him this authority for the benefit of the church. Ephesians 1:19-22

Easter was good. Exciting. Being in the musical was a blast. It's always a fun being part of a team that cares deeply about a mission and works hard to acheive it. Martha did a great job of reminding us every day what that mission was - telling the story of God's great love for people!

But now what? If the resurrection really is real...than we ought to live in that power...after all that power lives in us!

tags: God Easter