my internet situation has not been ideal over the past several days. it was extremely slow here at the house, due to a big storm that came through late last week. and at my office, the internet was completely down…thanks to the same storm. so this post - my first in four days or so - will be a bit of a combo platter of ideas and information.
muffin top challenge
original weight: 213
last week’s weight: 209
sunday morning’s weigh-in: 208
i weighed 207 on saturday morning, but then i spent the whole day working and driving and sitting and eating, so i don’t get to claim that weight for my weekly weigh-in…which happens on sunday morning.
also, i ran nine miles tonight. i really felt pretty good until the ninth mile. like, if i had cut across the loop and finished with eight, i would probably feel great right now. but i didn’t. i did the whole loop. i ran the whole nine miles. so now my stomach is upset and my legs ache and my toes feel like i have gout… but i did run nine miles today…
sunday night after church
1. great day on sunday. in the morning, our church put on a big patriotic production for the community on the lawn of the harding memorial. it was pretty fun and well received. then sunday evening i filled in for pastor brent and taught the teens. three kids said that they committed their lives to christ for the first time that night, and about ten others made commitments to follow him again or better. what an incredible experience.
2. the only thing i would have done differently about the “celebration of freedom” was my transition into the singing part of the worship service…directly after the playing of “taps” and the twenty-one gun salute and the presenting of the colors…i stepped up to the mic and drew a blank. so i said, “well, let’s sing.” simple and to the point. … … well, it definitely could’ve been a little more dramatic, but it worked out fine.
3. somebody got up and left after i told people to “put their hands together.” i don’t know that that’s why they left. it could’ve been because it was hot out there. i don’t really know…but i think it’s because they don’t like clapping. for more on clapping, please see prodigal jon’s hilarious post at the stuff christians like blog.
4. set list this week was comprised of the following:
1. the star-spangled banner
2. america the beautiful
3. hear our praises
4. let me sing
5. over the past few weeks, we’ve had about a thousand dollars in damages from lightning strikes and power surges resulting therefrom. but the manner in which the network is hooked up points NOT to the lightning storms, but to messed up AC power…not to mention that about half of the staff offices AND the sanctuary computer and lighting system have all shown signs of shaky electricity and unsteady, unreliable current. yet, somehow, when we call the electric company, and they check out the problem, we are told that there is no problem. and guys i know who work for said power company have told me that they get similar complaints from other businesses in close vicinity to our church ALL THE TIME. weird.
6. i need to do a better job budgeting my time to allow more quality time with gretchen and ella. if that means that i have to prioritize elements of my job and sacrifice the lesser pieces, so be it. my family is important, and it’s crucial to a healthy ministry. i’m not going to neglect them for the sake of somebody else.
7. a couple of weeks ago, pastor riley preached about staying under the protective umbrella of god’s authority. he said that when we’re not under the umbrella of the authority god’s put in out lives, we’re vulnerable to attacks, rain, birds, etc. so, a dude i know got up and walked out of the service and stepped outside, and a bird pooped on his head. that’s funny.
8. i’m dead tired, so i’m going to bed. i’ll try to pick back up the blog-o-rhythm again, now that my log-on-click-on is up and clicking again.
last week at summertime thursday, we talked about growing up and realizing that some of the stuff that fit you all your life doesn’t fit anymore. for a long time, you were either adopting or rebelling against what your parents, coaches, teachers, or other role-models believed. eventually though, we’ve all got to take a look at exactly what we believe and why we believe it.
by the way, i know that “summertime thursday” might not be the best name for a weekly bible study and discussion for college-aged adults who want to connect with each other and grow emotionally and spiritually together… but it’s summertime, and it happens on thursdays. so, that’s what it’s called.
i just guided a troubled young dude through a u-turn prayer. the fight didn’t end today…it’s just getting started in his life, but today he asked god to forgive him for ignoring him all these years and turned around and is trying to follow christ instead of everybody else.
what an amazing experience. reflecting on this encounter, i know that god was talking, because i said some things that surprised me when i heard myself saying them. if you are a person who prays, pray for jake (not his real name, but god’ll know who you’re talking about.) right now. then pray for him again this weekend, cause it’s gonna be a really hard weekend for him.
“It’s important for us to explain to our nation that life is important. It’s
not only life of babies, but it’s life of children living in, you know, the
dark dungeons of the Internet.”
George W. Bush
October 24, 2000
From speech delivered in Arlington Heights, Illinois
if you’re living in the dark dungeons of the internet (and if you are reading this blog, chances are that you are), your life is important. if you’ve escaped from the internet, like my friend blinn (he still comes back from time to time, but is no longer a captive), it’s your responsibility to help those still entrapped. don’t forget that.
it’s monday morning, not sunday night after church. the internet at my place of residence was down last night. that being said, please treat this post as if it had been written on sunday. don’t discriminate against weekday posts. that’s day-ist. and it’s wrong.
1. this morning in staff meeting, i heard that attendance is up from last year at this time about a hundred and fifty people. that’s pretty cool.
2. we had to call an audible on the drums again yesterday. brent fox did a great job subbing in, but that will be the last time that i’ll let that situation arise. there’s too much at stake every single week to let somebody’s alarm clock malfunction ruin it.
3. unrehearsed rhythms aside (brent got literally 2 minutes to learn the songs), i think the music went well. it was awesome to have my brother playing sax with the band. the set list was:
1. you never let go - matt redman
2. i stand amazed - big stuf band
3. better is one day - charlie hall
4. i lead a bible study every thursday evening at 7:30, at the panera bread in marion. last week we had a pretty small group, which was cool, very intimate. but a bigger group would be fine, too. if you are in college or college-aged, and you would like to dig deeper this summer into the bible and into what you really believe, you won’t want to miss the thurs night summer group. if i’m in a good mood, i’ll even buy the coffee.
5. going to run six miles today. i started my marathon training late (you’re supposed to train for like four or five months or something), so i’m not sticking with the training schedule yet. i’m working my way into some of the longer runs. six miles will be a good indicator of how hard of a road i have ahead of me.
6. i briefly mentioned my brother’s playing sax yesterday. he and his wife and son stopped through for a night on their way up to her parents’ place. it was good to see them and get to watch the young cousins interact and play. i’ll upload a good video of them in the next day or two. we had good food and good conversations. good times…
7. i have never understood how people who have invested so much time, money, prayer, emotions, love, effort, sweat, tears, etc. into a church could up and leave over a small disagreement or a shift in musical style…or whatever! it just doesn’t make sense. i just finished a great book about the whole thought process called “who stole my church.” go buy it, and read it. it has helped me to see and understand both sides of the coin a little more clearly. it’s affected the way that i pick music, the way i interact with people, the way i think about how god sees and loves the church. but people just up and leaving? i still don’t get it.
8. gearing up for celebration of freedom, the annual event my church puts on in marion. we do it on sunday morning instead of our normal worship service, at the harding memorial instead of at the church building. it’s been a pretty big deal every year, and a lot of people from outside the church show up. my band is going to lead a few songs, and the choir has a good program to sing. there’ll be a jumbo-tron. no pyro-technics…city won’t allow it… sorry. if you’re in marion and you haven’t heard about it, be there sunday morning, june 29, at 9:00. bring your own lawn chair if you don’t want to sit on a wooden one.
9. got to hang out friday night with my dude scott velazco and the important girls in his life (see “scott and brooklyn” in the blog roll to your right –>). that cat always challenges me (either inadvertently or …advertently…) in music, life, etc. always a pleasure. too bad he lives in nashville. well, too bad for me, anyway.
10. i’ve spent enough time online for one morning. i think i’ll stay off the computer for the rest of the day…not.
i ran harder this week, and i tried to control my portions and eat more leafy veggies (thanks kelli). drank more water, too.
original weight: 213
weight goal: 180
last week’s weight: 213 (yeah, sweet.)
this morning: 209
starting to see some results. i dropped about four pounds this week, and i’m feeling a little better on my runs. just gotta keep upping the running distances so that i can be ready for my marathon. gotta finish in under six hours to get a free pair of shoes. (i know that’s a little bit lame, but money’s tight and my shoes are old.) finishing under five would be amazing.
well, i found these on a christian ministry website, and i have to admit that i laughed a little. not that i really disagree with the messages themselves, but they just sound like josh mcdowell and kirk cameron teamed up with michael scott to figure out how to really connect with today’s jive-talkin’ urban young folks. i had to set them up as external links because each one plays a custom soundtrack…and it keeps playing it over and over…and when they’re all playing at once, it’s annoying. so here you go.
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