Soakin' Up Life . . . at a 100 MPH!

This morning when I woke up I heard Harley (our 7-month old kitten) purring really, really loud !  You know the sound. . .a cross between a Singer sewing machine and a Harley motorcycle (hence the name).  When I rolled over I noticed she was snuggled up  next to Cindy - yep, she's a  snuggler.  I knew her purring could only  mean one thing. . .she was very content being up close to her Momma. And she didn't have plans on moving anytime soon.  She was warm.  She felt safe.  She was comfortable.   She was right where she knew she needed to be. It got me to thinking, what should be a sign that we are " snuggled " up to the Father and are content?  I mean, shouldn't there be something that others can see, hear, or sense about us that let's them know we are living right up next to our Heavenly Father and content without plans of moving anytime soon?  If so, then how would others know?  What should be our " purring "? I would love to hear your feedback

Here are some of my ramblings about Black Friday. Black Friday. . .the day when Americans all across this nation get up at ungodly hours to stand in line and hustle for a chance to purchase something for what appears to be a more than reasonable rate.  WHY?! I did this last year, against my wishes.  I went to Kohl's with Cindy at 3:00 am.  Again,  WHY?!   I have to admit, I don't think I was there much more than an hour.  Then I headed back home and went back to bed, and swore never to do it again. Cindy climbed in the car with a friend and off they went.  They main reason I hear from people that they participate in Black Friday is - " I save so much money! "Have you ever thought the retailers could have been selling it at this price all along?  Have we ever stop to think that our sanity and rest is more important that the material by-product of Black Friday? I understand that it " saves money ".  And families sure could use more money in their po

If you don't know it by now, let me tell ya - I'm A.D.D.  I haven't been officially diagnosed, but after a life-long struggle with distractions, I have come to believe I am.  Literally, I am the guy who heads to do one thing, see or hear something, go to investigate, work on it, in the meantime a trigger goes off in my head and I think of something else, then, on and on the cycle goes. . .and I never finished my original task.  Go figure.  Just in typing these few lines I've thought of a couple of things I  could write a post about. Even during my time with God in the mornings I get distracted.  I come to my office.  Turn on my desk lamp.  Get my Bible and journal out.  Turn on the monitor and. . . check the daily news, look over some blogs, read over an article or two, click on Pandora. . .all before opening my  Bible.  Then while I'm reading and thinking through the passage I'm reading I'll notice something about the artist that's playing, I'll

On Sunday mornings I meet a friend at 7:00 to unlock the building & gates, clean up stuff, straighten up rooms, check bathrooms, and overall, just make sure the buildings are ready for services & Bible studies. A couple of weeks ago we were going through the routine when he said, " I like the mornings, it's quiet. " I readily agreed and we moved one. I've been thinking about that statement for a couple of weeks now. . .reflecting on why it resonated with me so much. I think, for me, the quiet of the morning strengthens me.  I know,  I know, your thinking, " Mike's like a super-hero! "  Not hardly.  But it does prepare me for the day.  When I just get up and start running around - coffee, shower, dress, and head out the door,  I'm already sapped.  No energy for the rest of the day.  The quiet of the morning allows me to get ready for what lies beneath, ahead, or whatever. I'm also an introvert by nature.  Alright, alright, get up off

Ever had something you love to do taken away from you?  Or at least your ability greatly diminished?  That's what I felt like today. I love running.  I don't do it on an everyday basis - the weather in the NW doesn't help.  I tend to be more purposeful when I schedule a run or race.  I've always been able to run.  I just lace up the ol' tenni-runners and head out the door.  I may be a little out of shape, but it's just putting one foot in front of another.  It's also served as a release for me.  To run, sweat, and accomplish a goal is a high for me. About six weeks ago I had knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus.  Up until today I have only ridden a  stationary bike for about 10-15 minutes trying to strengthen it and get it ready to run again.  Today, I tried running on it.  I didn't make it two houses before I realized running today was not an option.  Maybe it was the cold.  Maybe I needed to warm up and stretch a little more.  Maybe there

Earlier this year I shared one of the messages from our Courageous series.  To the "less is more" point I only had two points.  I know this goes against the conventional three points and poem structure of sermonology. But, oh well.  About a week or so after that message I found a note card that had the two points written on it.  It was Cindy's handwriting.  Ok, so it was Cindy's card.  That card has since found it's way into my journal.  It's paper-clipped to the top of the next right-hand page, so whenever I open my journal the reminder is there.  That means that every morning when I sit down with my Bible and journal. . .it's there.  When I stop during the day to make a note of something. . .it's there.  When I close up my journal at the end of the day and getting ready to go home. . .it's there. Here are the two points: Courageous men. . . Give control to Jesus Lead their families I know.  It's seems pretty simple, doesn't it? 

Well, it's Saturday and it's November. . .means that college football is still on (YEA!!) and some big games are going to be played.  Ok, here's the default game - Texas Tech at Texas .  I don't care how good Texas seems to be, Tech always scares me.  Their style football seems to catch teams off guard.  Even if they have a decent defense.  The Red Raiders have already dismantled a very good Oklahoma team.  At least they are playing in Austin.  I'll take that over Lubbock any day. Now, for the game of the week and probably the game of the year - Alabama vs. LSU .  I read this week that this game is drawing more attention than last year's BCS Championship game.  Don't know if I agree with that, but it is a VERY big game.  Whoever wins this game will probably go on to the BCS Championship game.  I have to admit that I think these are  THE  two best teams in the country right now.  I don't think Oklahoma State, Stanford, or Boise State could hang with e

This morning in our Men's Fraternity group - Winning@ Work and Home - we learned about the Anatomy of a Conflict , especially as it pertains to men in a relationship with women.  Robert Lewis  described for us the process we, guys, go through when we enter into a conflict with our wives or girl friends.  Found it useful so I thought I would share it with you. It goes like this. . .. Step 1 - Enter into Conflict Step 2 - Hurt Feelings - Something is said or done that hurts us Step 3 - Anger - When we can't fix it, we get angry about it Step 4 - Two Choices – 1s Fork Choice 1 - Flee – Withdraw (physically or silently), close up, let problems fester.  This escalates isolation in the marriage rather than foster closeness. Choice 2 - Face the Conflict – Better of The two, Leads to the next set of choices.  This leads to Step 5 Step 5 - Two Choices – 2 nd Fork Choice 1 - Fight – Use your words to accuse, Demand, and demean, The point here is win at all costs

Cindy loves Halloween.  She loves dressing up in her Goofy costume, buying candy, carving pumpkins, etc.  For me, it's not that big of a deal.  Actually, I'm having to get used to trick-or-treaters again.  For most of my ministry experience, I've been part of a church that hosted some kind of event on Halloween.  So, I haven't been at home.  Greater Gresham hosts the Fall Family Festival, but we did ours on Friday evening this year. Thinking back on this year's Halloween I have a couple of thoughts: Why do we spend so much money dressing up as someone else and asking/ for and giving away candy?  According to mint.com - " This year, more consumers plan on dressing in costume spending a whopping $2.5 billion on costumes , alone. Consumers are even indulging pets in the fun with an estimated $310 million being spent on pint-sized pet costumes . "  This doesn't even count the amount of money spend on candy, rehab for children coming off of sugar