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Showing posts from March, 2007

Pharisee or Grateful Sinner

Reading Luke 7:36-50 this morning. 36 Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. 37 When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38 and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. 39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner." 40 Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you." "Tell me, teacher," he said. 41 "Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of b

Overwhelmed

Ever feel overwhelmed? You know, like everything's coming down around you and you're really getting tired of treading water just to keep your head above the waves. That's kind of how I've been feeling lately. I think that's why I've been so tired. To use an old illustration, I feel like I have all these balls I'm trying to keep in the air and I'm so afraid that, not just one, but all them will come crashing down around me. Then what do I do? Here's a sample of what I'm talking about: I'm selling a bunch of my stuff - like an estate sale - so I need to get everything ready, cleaned out, boxed up, and priced. I'm selling my house in July and moving to a smaller place in west Mobile (or at least that's the plan). I spend a lot of time there already and I don't need such a big place that takes so much of my time to keep up. It was much easier when Karen was alive because the two of of could knock out the yard and the house clea

Trip to Paradise

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I have always liked Colorado. I don't really care where I go in Colorado I just love being there. I don't know if its all the stuff there is to do - camping, rafting, skiing, hiking, cycling, mountain biking, trout fishing, etc. - the beauty of the mountains and valleys, or if it's watching the sunrise or set over the mountains. For me it's probably all the above. Then again, it could be because you have some really good friends there that make all that stuff even better. You may remember that I was taking a trip to Denver - Parker, CO to be more exact to see Grant & Amy English. Grant and I went to seminary together while we served at Legacy Church as interns. We also fished, camped, and did small groups together. So we had some good stories to relives and a great time catching up and laughing. It didn't hurt that March Madness was just getting started, either. I had a great trip. Got to Denver International Airport and couldn't find Grant. Wal

Blogging Fast?

After the blog fast - OK, so maybe it wasn't a fast as in I intentionally didn't blog. It was due more to the fact that I've been so busy at the church and so worn out when I get home at night that I really didn't want to blog. Actually, I didn't even boot up the ol' Dell . As a matter of fact, I don't even remember pulling it out of my backpack. But this morning is different. I feel rested and I have some things I want to share with the rest of you. So, I'm back and looking forward to getting some new stuff up and out. Mike

Ohhhh Baby!

Well. . . (I think - subconsciously of course - this has become my favorite way to start a blog) tonight and tomorrow are huge for me. Those of you keeping up with my schedule - and if you are would you let me know what else I'm supposed to be doing, I get lost and need a little help from time to time - know that tonight is the How Great is Our God tour with Chris Tomlin, Louie Giglio, and Matt Redman. Doors open at 6:00 concert begins at 7:00 - I'll be there! I guess that's why I'm looking so much to going tonight and tomorrow. Tomlin was probably Karen's favorite worship singer/writer. One of all-time faves was How Great is Our God . I can still picture it - me looking over my right shoulder at her with her cool little skull-cap on, eyes closed, just singing her little heart out to her God. This is probably one of my most special memories of her. I remember buying Tomlin's Arriving CD. Karen was always getting on to me for buying more CDs and books.

Pictures - Finally

Well. . .I finally bit the bullet and upgraded my Flickr account to Flickr Pro. Now I can create more sets of pictures and stuff (haven't yet figured out what the "stuff" is, but I will). I uploaded some pictures - some as old as Christmas - I hate when I do that. Remember when you would develop a roll of film and find pictures from Easter - 2 YEARS AGO?! Heres the line - Mike's Pictures . Check 'em out!

Pet Peeve. . .again

I realized another pet peeve of mine this morning as I was running around the office trying to get things started. Fridays is usually my "print all the stuff for Sunday" day since I am usually one of the only pastors here on Fridays. It's cool, because we usually get a lot accomplished and without the interruptions we normally have Mon-Wed. I can also concentrate on evaluation and planning. It's just the way I work, I guess. Annnyyyywwwaaayyy. . .sorry, A.D.D. kicked in. Need to chase that rabbit down, kill it, skin it, eat it and move on. Back to my pet peeve. So I'm running around the office trying to get stuff going. I, in my usual manner, start a pot of coffee. I hear the little beep that tells me a steaming pot of Starbucks coffee awaits me! Yea!!! I pick up the pot and what do I see floating in my precious concoction?! C-O-F-F-E-E G-R-O-U-N-D-S!!! AHHHGGGGG!!!!!! I am anal when it comes to making sure the sides of the filter are up and there&

Giving It All

Mark 12:41-44 reminds us about giving to GOD. Picture with me, if you will, the people around the temple. . .watching. . .listening to those who would bring their offering and drop it into the offering box. They're nodding their heads in approval, smiling at each other in agreement when the wealthy people dropped their many heavy coins down the copper, trumpet-shaped receptacles. I can also see these same people lowering their head as they shake them from side to side, tsking each other as to say, " that poor woman ," when the widow dropped her measly mite into the same offering box. Yet. . .Jesus took notice of both the amount that was given and the amount of sacrifice that was made. He recognized, like everyone else, the difference in the amount of the gifts. No doubt He, too, heard the great coins being offered by the rich. He also heard the tinkle of the mite as it trickled down towards it's final destination. But Jesus saw more than just the amount. In t

Denver on My Mind. . .et al

This time next week I'll be kickin' back with Grant English gettin' me some G love in person! Take that Clay. OK, maybe that didn't come out like it was supposed to. That's right folks I'm gonna be hangin' with Grant in Denver. Grant and I went to seminary together and served as interns at Legacy Church back in the day. Can't wait. . .Colorado in March. . .see Amy (last time I saw Ames, Coop had just been born and Big T was still at Legacy ). . .sippin' some caffeine. . .and enjoying the company. . .all in one anticipated weekend. As though that would be enough for one week I'm also going to be with Chris Tomlin , Louie Giglio , and Matt Redman for the How Great is Our God tour on Wednesday night. I'm super pumped. Chris Tomlin is a Texas boy - grew up with a friend of mine. Tomlin was one of Karen's favorite worship leaders and writers. Never heard Louie Gigglio or Matt Redman in person, but I'm looking forward to the o

WHEW!

It's sometime after 3:00 pm and I FINALLY finished cleaning the house. Now. . .that did include a 2-hour phone call from Debbie K one of my dearest and special friends. She and her husband, Vince, have been very close to me. Debbie K was probably Karen's closest friend and Vince was my accountability partner for many years. We spent the time catching up - sharing stories, lives, and memories. I did change the sheets on my bed and dust the house while we were on the phone, but the call was so refreshing. Thanks Debbie for the call. I needed it. So when I finally did get off of the phone all I had left was the bathrooms, vacuuming, sweeping, mopping and cleaning the kitchen. THAT took more than 2 hours!! So now I'm breakin' it and writing about it. I need a smaller house. Don't you think? Mike

A.D.D. and Note Taking

It's tough being the A.D.D. guy on staff and the note taker. It's not that it's not good. It is. I take notes of almost every meeting I'm in. I have to or else I'll check out. Notes keep me connected to the speaker or the conversation. Notes allow me to keep track and to add ideas that pop into my brain. But I can go too far. If I don't check out every now and then, I exhaust myself. I definitely over did it at the staff retreat. Not a bad thing, just the result of productive interaction and flying ideas. To keep up with everything I had to stay connected and couldn't check out for a moment. It was good, just tiring for me. Well. . .got to get to bed to rest me weary head. Heading into the office in the morning and have a lot to do. Need what little of my brain I have left. May God bless and challenge you like He's blessing and challenging me. Later 'Gator, Mike

Catchin' Up

Today our staff took off to Camp Baldwin to catch up. We are checking where we are and where we are going - and to make any needed tweaks - for 2007. It's good. I'm glad we're are getting away - even if it's just a couple of days. Today was good - Good evaluation of what's been happening and the effort put in towards some of our goals for 2007 Good exchange of ideas on improving some ares Really good fellowship Some excellente food - Lambert's . . .Home of the Throwed Rolls Good movie tonight - Nacho Libre Good coffee - Starbucks And now. . .a good time to relax. I needed this time away. I'm physically and mentally exhausted. It's 9:15 pm and I'm about ready to hit the sack. Probably time for me to exit and call it a day. Then again. . .someone just mentioned watching Invincible ! Hmmm. . .I can rest in heaven, yes? Till I get home, Mike

That Lovin' Feelin'!

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No, I'm not talking 'bout the Righteous Brothers' You've Lost that Loving Feeling . I talking about the feeling you get when you straddle your Harley and head out down the highway. It's more of a Steppenwolf's Born to Be Wild kinda feelin. I got that feeling last night when I rushed home to clean up the bike then headed to Mobile for dinner, movie, and coffee with some friends. Got home late last night, but it didn't matter. Just being out on the road again on my motorcycle is incredible. Today I'm taking a young guy out to ride. He's fairly new at this and needs some help. So he called me! Pray for him. Not because he's new, but because he called me ! What was he thinking? Doesn't matter. Got a chili cook-off and a car show to go to today. Gotta go and get dressed. Later 'Gator, Mike

Greatest Sounds

Undoubtedly, life is full of great sounds: A newborn's first cry A spouse's "I love you." The waves as they lap of the sand at sunrise - or sunset, your preference The wind as it blows through snow laden trees in the Rockies The announcement, "Honey, I'm home!" The breeze in your ear as you fly down the road, pedaling the miles away Then there's the sound the motor of a Harley-Davidson makes. It's unique - as a matter of fact H-D has attempted to trademark the sound of their engines. Like I said, it's unique. It's part of who they are and what makes a Harley a Harley. This morning I enjoyed that sound. Why? I finished getting the front brake line on last night, thanks to my friend Tom. This morning I put the key in and after some warming up and a few failed attempts to start the motor came to life. It spit and sputtered for a few moments - it has been a while since I fired her up - but then began running smooth as buttah! It's

Shots

Well. . .I did it. I got Hep A&B, Yellow Fever, and Tetanus shots today. My arms are sore and I'm pretty much dreading heading back the the Mobile Health Department to get additional rounds of Hep A&B. I called them yesterday and asked the lady who answered how to get there? The conversation went something like this Lady: Which way are you coming? MS: I'm coming from Saraland down I-65. Lady: Exit Government. Go towards downtown until you see a Popeye's Chicken. Just past the Popeye's watch for a sign. MS: Oh yeah, I know where that Popeye's is. Thanks. Hey lady, there's 2 Popeye's Chicken restaurants on Government. You're not on Government towards downtown. You are downtown. What took almost 30 minutes to find would have taken about 10-15 minutes if she would have said, " Take The Connector (I-165 connects I-65 north of Mobile to downtown - 5 miles and you're there) , go to Government and follow the signs. " She co

Mike and Organization

Mike and organization is, from my perspective, and oxymoron. There are a lot of people who think I'm so organized. I've even had people ask, "Mike, how do you stay so organized?" (sound like a commercial doesn't it?) I have them so fooled. I'm not really organized. To tell you the truth I become very overwhelmed with a lot of details. That's one of the reasons why I keep a day planner with me just about everywhere I go. If I don't write it down it probably won't happen. When I first got my driver's license and would run to the store to pick up stuff for dinner I would have to write everything down or I would forget something, even if it was just two things like milk and bread. I think it has to do with my A.D.D. - I would get distracted, start talking to someone I know, and forget what it I went to pick up for dinner. Now, I'm not one of those OCD people who think they have to write everything down just so they can check it off of