E-Flash from Dan, 12/31/09, New Year's Edition

Dear E-Flash Friends;

Happy New Year!  I hope that 2010 will be a terrific year for you.  I pray that it will be a year in which you live in obedience to God, loving Him and loving others generously and authentically.

Here’s a thought about “love” I posted on Facebook recently and it seems like it’s worth repeating here:

It is impossible to “love too much”. Sometimes people misunderstand what it really means to love, such as being overly permissive, when true love would establish boundaries. But this is not loving too much, this is avoiding what is necessary in order to be liked. REAL love reflects the character of God and is the highest good, it can’t be overdone.  “…And the greatest of these is love.” 1Cor.13:13

And if you’re sick and tired of loving other people and you just don’t want to do it anymore….can you…at least…try to be NICE?

Some of us are going to be embarking on a Bible Reading program together for 2010.  Reading the Bible and having a “quiet time” or “daily devotional time” each day is one of the primary catalysts of spiritual growth, so we want to encourage that activity for all of us who want to grow in our relationship with Christ.  In the Bible Reading program we are offering, we will read 5 minutes per day, 5 days per week, and we will read through the entire New Testament in 2010.  Cool, huh?  You are welcome to join us.  There are copies of the Bible Reading program on the table in the hallway near the lobby in the church.

(By the way, the “sick and tired of loving other people” line is just a joke.  Come on, I’ve got to try to spice up these “e-flashes” with a little bit of humor.)

You say, “Dan, is this program some kind of legalistic attempt by the church to make us all look the same and act the same and think the same thoughts?  Because if it is, I’m not interested!”

No, not at all.  This is simply our sincere attempt to help.  For those who could use some help and encouragement in developing a regular discipline of reading God’s word, we offer this program as a way of developing the discipline together, with others.  If this reading program is not for you, no problem.  If you think it could help you, great!

If you are participating in the program, remember that we begin with the New Year.  On Friday, January 1^st, our reading starts with the New Testament book of Mark.  The reading for January 1^st is Mark chapter 1.

Again, I wish you all a Happy New Year!

Love and Blessings,

Dan

P.S.  If you have a Facebook account, I would love to connect with you there, if we have not already done so.

P.P.S.  If you would like to have the "E-Flash  From Dan" sent directly to your e-mail, send an e-mail message to the church at:  cog111st@aol.com

And write "Put me on the E-Flash list" in the subject field.

Other People Can "Catch" Our Emotional States

“Experiments have demonstrated that people can ‘catch’ emotional states they observe in others over time frames ranging from seconds to weeks.” [Christakis & Fowler]  Our emotions affect others. Think about that. Happy. Sad. Fearful. Confident. People pick up our emotions. This is very important for LEADERS to know. By the way, in some area of life, we are all leaders.

R.I.P. Cell Phone

I’m crying.  I’m crying because I love my phone.  It’s hard for me to say that, it’s embarrassing really, but it’s true.  You see, I never had a fancy phone before.  I didn’t want one.  I always got hand-me-down cell phones when Taylor or Nadia upgraded or when some guy on the street corner threw his away.  That was fine for me.  I didn’t need to have the latest technology.  Give me two cans and some string.

And, then, in September, we changed phone plans and somehow, in the process, I actually got a fancy new phone.  I suspect it was a mistake or oversight of some kind, but, it happened.  I wound up with a new phone.  At the time, I didn’t care.  Honest. Nadia presented me with my new phone and I thought, “Yeah, whatever, it doesn’t matter to me.”

But it’s such a great phone with all kinds of neat features, that I don’t really NEED…but I’ve come to love.  It did start to matter to me.  I started to really like having my fancy phone.  I’m using features that I never used before like texting and mobile updating to the web and making telephone calls. 

(Oh…wait…that’s right…I did make telephone calls before I got my fancy phone.)

You say, “So, what’s the problem?  Why are you crying?”

Today, I was walking in from the car with my arms and hands loaded with bags and cups and books and…my phone.  As I entered the doorway and reached for the counter to set a couple of the items down, the cell phone slipped out of my hand and fell right into a glass of iced tea.

Right into the iced tea!  It was a maneuver that I couldn’t have accomplished if I tried to do it on purpose.  I put the rest of the items down and quickly fished my phone out of the cup.  I slid it open and it did not light up and turn on.

“Oh no.”

We’ve tried to dry the phone out.  We’ve taken the components apart and used a hair dryer.  But to no avail.  Although my hair looks lovely.

I took it to the nearby phone store and the rep told me, “Put the phone in a jar full of rice.”

“Huh?” I said.

“If you put the phone in a jar full of fresh rice, believe it or not, the rice will draw the moisture out of the phone and then we can turn it on long enough to get your data out of the phone.”

“Will the phone work? Can we get it working properly again?” I asked.

“Probably not,” said the rep.

So, here I sit.  A tear in my eye.  My fancy phone is in a jar of rice on the counter. 

By the way, if you see a guy on the street corner throwing his phone away…get it for me, will you?  I could use it.  For now I’m working with two cans and some string.

Give Up Your Life...And Find It

In the Christian faith we “give up” ruling our own lives and submit to God’s rule. This is the best thing that could happen, but we have a certain reluctance to do this because in our pride we are extremely attached to the idea of ruling our selves. Have you noticed? Consider these words of Jesus: “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Matt.10:39

James Cameron and Technology

Last night, I saw the movie Avatar which is directed by James Cameron.  (It’s very entertaining.)  Cameron also directed the first two Terminator movies (and, perhaps, a few others in the Terminator series, but I’m not sure).

All three of these movies seem to be decidedly unfavorable towards technology and yet they all employed cutting-edge technological advances in film making.  I find that a bit ironical and I’d be interested in hearing Cameron comment on the apparent contradiction of using the latest in technology to complain about the evils of technology.

It’s sort of like taking a pencil and writing:  “Pencils are dangerous.  We should think about banning them!”

I don’t mean this in an “Aha, I’ve got you, Cameron!” sort of way.  He’s a smart man, I’m quite certain that he’s thought about the issue I’m raising here.  I’m just saying I would be curious to hear his thinking about this matter.  He probably has a fairly interesting and thoughtful explanation of what he is doing.

Doesn't Care About The Issue of "Life After Death"?

Author Dinesh D’Souza tells of encountering a person who did not care whether “life after death” was a reality or not. That is genuinely puzzling to me. Everyone is going to die, so, can someone tell me how that issue is not a matter of great consequence? Are there really people who DO NOT CARE? Or is this probably a person who is actually going to care increasingly more as the time grows nearer?

When Am I Going To Learn?

We went to the all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant tonight before going to see the movie Avatar and I did something very foolish. 

…That’s happened a few other times.  (Not seeing Avatar, me doing something foolish has happened a few other times.)

The waitress came and spoke with me and I did not understand what she was saying.  After she repeated herself, I still did not understand what she was saying—she had a heavy accent—and I was embarrassed that I was so dense.  So…this is not good…so…I know this is terrible…so…I write this with much regret…so, I nodded my head in an affirmative fashion in response to her and said, “Mmm Hmm.”

I did this even though I didn’t understand what she was saying.

I know.  I know.  Please don’t leave comments telling me I’m a horrible person, I realize that was not the right thing to do.  But I was getting the feeling that she was embarrassed that I could not understand her and I didn’t want her to be embarrassed.  My motive was, somewhat, noble, wasn't it?

You say, “That doesn’t make it right, Dan!”

I know.

You say, “When are you ever going to learn?”

I’m not sure, but I hope it will be soon.

Several minutes later, I discovered what she was trying to communicate with me.  She was attempting to determine: who gets the bill?  My affirmative response apparently indicated to her that I was the one paying the bill.

That turned out to be a fairly costly “nod”.  Oh well, it serves me right.

P.S.  By the way, everyone was very impressed with the special effects.  No, not the special effects at the sushi restaurant, the last thing you want are special effects at a sushi restaurant...and I won’t elaborate on that any further.  Everyone was impressed with the special effects of the movie Avatar.  And before the movie began, at the theater, I was getting some snacks but I couldn’t understanding what the clerk at the snack counter was saying.  So, I nodded my head…..

You say, “When are you ever going to learn?”

I’m not sure, but I hope it will be soon.

Living In Trust And Dependence On Him

I have this desire for God to supply all my needs in advance because, frankly, then I feel a bit more in control of things. Rather than “give us this day our daily bread”, I’m more inclined to pray “give me several months worth of money for bread in advance—and then I’ll handle it from here”. But, you know, the lessons & growth seem to come when I’m required to live in TRUST & DEPENDENCE on Him.

Evil Does Not Prevail, God Does!

A while ago, someone said to me, “It seems like sin or evil is almost always a distortion of something good.”

I told the person, “That’s a very good observation.”

Philosopher William Dembski writes, “evil is always parasitic, never creative.  Indeed, all our words for evil presuppose a good that has been subverted.”

Then he gives some examples…

“Impurity presupposes purity.”  In other words purity must exist in order for there to be such a thing as impurity.  Does that make sense?  If there were no “purity” we would have no conception of “impurity”.  This is an example of “a good that has been subverted.”

Here’s another example Dembski provides: “deviation presupposes a way…from which we’ve departed.”  There has to be a proper way—a “right” way—in order for a deviation from the way to occur.  Again, we have something good that is subverted.  This is the nature of evil.  And it is part of how evil can be so deceptive.  Evil begins with something good—“it seems right” one might think—and distorts it.  My friend’s comment was insightful.

Fortunately, “good” is how God originally created the world.  And we know that goodness is God’s desire for you and me. His plan is to restore things—particularly people—to their good and proper condition and purpose; to make things right.

 In fact, righteousness is His desire for you and me.

“Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous.  He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.” Rom.3:24

The distortions of evil do not prevail, God does!

Don't Settle For "Too Little"

Do we believe that God really has a life for us that is more significant than anything we could think up? Sometimes I suspect we doubt that reality and end up chasing after the trivial. This quote says it well: “It is not that we desire too much, but that we settle for too little.” [Michael Horton]  To reject the life God has for us is to settle for “too little”.

Step Out, Be Vulnerable, and Grow

One of our key concerns in life is to protect ourselves—which is understandable and can be very reasonable. However, we have to be careful not to allow our desire to protect ourselves prevent us from stepping out and experiencing the fullness of life God has for us. “If you are not stepping out in some way that is VULNERABLE, you are not being stretched and are not growing in your faith.” [Cloud]

The Christmas Traveling Adventure Begins!

Well, we’re on the road.  Here’s the situation: Six adults—and all their luggage for 2 weeks—in a six passenger Chevy Suburban.  We left our driveway in Oak Lawn a little before 6am (yes, you read that right, 6 A. M.) and it’s about 11 am, as I write this note.  (Although it will be much later before it gets posted on the Internet.)

You say, “Dan, six people and their luggage in a six passenger vehicle?  That sounds like an uncomfortable situation in which you guys would be packed in TIGHTLY.”

Friends, as a highly respected minister I remind you: “This is how close loving bonds are created.”

(I know the “highly respected” part is really stretching the truth.  But I thought it gave the sentence a sense of gravitas and authority.)

Nadia just took over the driving duties.  Hey, I’ve been driving for 5 hours, I need a break!  And I’ve been told that it’s fairly dangerous to type on a laptop and drive simultaneously.

Teta [aunt] Mary is riding shotgun…and, in fact…she’s actually holding a shotgun.  She never goes on a trip without her trusty 12 gauge.  She can shoot a raccoon while hanging out the window from the passenger seat, while the car is moving 65 miles per hour.  Which, I might add, means that we’re going to have a wonderfully tasty supper tonight.

Johnnie T. is sitting next to me watching Futurama on his lap top.  It appears that he is also dozing from time to time…unless that’s a coma.

“John?  Johnnie!!!  Are you awake?  Are you awake, Johnnie?!?”

Well, it’s hard to tell at this point.

Taylor is behind me to my right.  He’s on his lap top, also.  I’m not sure what he’s doing but since he’s a university student now and constantly engaged in stimulating intellectual pursuits, I’m guessing that he is probably working on a paper or doing some type of challenging academic research.  Sure.  That must be what he’s doing.

Rachel is directly behind me, eating barbeque potato chips (barbeque chips are her latest passion, they replaced the pizza flavored Pringles a while ago) and asking Taylor a continual stream of questions about the current status of his life, which she can, pretty much, plainly see since she’s sitting 8 inches away from him.  This, naturally, irritates Taylor and he responds by telling her that he can’t hear her.

Rachel:  “What are you doing on your computer, Taylor?”

Taylor: “Rachel, didn’t you hear me before?  I can’t hear you.”

Eight inches apart.

Did I mention that this is how close loving bonds are created?  I did?  Okay, just checking.

Due to space limitations inside the vehicle, Jasper has been gently and carefully strapped to the roof of the Suburban which he, surprisingly, seems to like.  You know that thing with dogs sticking their faces out the window into the wind and all?

(I’m kidding.  Jasper is staying home with a whole host of friends, including his buddy Jake.)

As we’ve driven south it’s gotten colder outside.  When we left Oak Lawn, at 6am, it was 40 degrees and rainy.  As I type these words, we’re in southern Illinois and it’s 28 degrees and snowing.  Seriously.  For those who are not real familiar with the geography of the U.S.,….that’s not supposed to happen!  It’s supposed to get WARMER as you travel farther south. 

Hey look!  [pointing out the window]  Darn it!  I wish I had my camera out, we just passed a polar bear on the side of the road…he was right next to a penguin.  Wow, it’s colder down here than I expected.

If I hear a weather report telling us that it’s 4 below zero in Miami, this morning, I will know this is all just a dream and I’m still at home, in Oak Lawn, in bed, and that I need to wake up pretty soon so that we can get going on our trip.

Here we are having Christmas dinner at the lovely

Cochran's Travel Plaza in northern, GA.  While I said

"grace" a couple of guys were debating the kind of beer

they wanted from the cooler you can see in the

background.  Rachel insulted the waitress so I left her

a pretty good tip.

Johnny is either sleeping soundly

or he's comatose.

You can't see Teta Mary's 12 gauge in the photo, but

she never leaves home without it.

Merry Christmas!

If you believe in miracles.  If you understand that it is better to give than to receive.  If you believe that humility can be a profound form of strength. If you believe that God really does love you and care about you and that your life is meaningful.  If you believe that we really do NEED a Savior.  If you believe that Jesus Christ is the Savior. Then, guess what?  YOU believe in Christmas! Merry Christmas fellow believer!

The Savior Has Been Born -- It's The Good News of Christmas

The Bible says “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” Jesus doesn’t come pointing a finger at us and saying, “Aha, I caught you! You ought to feel mighty guilty, buddy boy!” Instead, he comes as a Savior to people who need saving. “Today in the town of David a SAVIOR has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” That’s the Good News of Christmas.

E-Flash From Dan, Pre-Christmas Eve Edition, 12/23/09

Dear E-Flash Friends;

‘Twas the Eve before Christmas Eve,

And all through the church,

Not a creature was stirring…

….Because the rehearsal for the Christmas Eve service had already happened the previous evening.

I know, the last line of the poem is a little unwieldy, isn’t it?  That’s what happens when you mess with a classic.

For some reason, on the Eve before Christmas Eve, I often get sentimental and think back to the Christmases of my childhood.  I think about the year my parents got my brother Cam and I matching ventriloquist dummies.  Really.  They did.  In fact, there’s a picture somewhere—I’ve seen it—of Cam and I in front the Christmas tree, holding up our “dummies”.  It was, sort of, hard to tell the difference between the young amateur ventriloquists and the “dummies”.  In fact, my parents accidentally took the “dummies” on Christmas vacation and left Cam and I in the boxes at home.  (That was a long 2 weeks!)

Or, I think about the time we got the BB guns.

…It’s not everyday that a story of opening presents on Christmas morning concludes with police arrests.

Ahh, the memories.

We’re going to have a memorable time tomorrow night (I mean “memorable” in a good and positive and spiritually inspiring way).  I hope you can join us for our Christmas Eve service at 9pm.  I know some of you have other plans and that’s alright, we understand.  If I don’t see you tomorrow night, please accept my wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

If I do see you tomorrow night, we’ll make some memories together—again, they’ll be the good kind—and I’ll look forward to wishing you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, in person.

Wishing God’s rich blessings to you and yours!

Dan

P.S.  Some of us will be participating in a Bible Reading Plan for the Year 2010.  You are welcome to join us.  Five minutes of reading each day; five days a week, with two days set aside for reflection; and by the end of 2010 we will have read through the New Testament together.  There are copies of the Bible Reading Plan on the table in the hallway near the lobby of the church, feel free to take one.  For those who are participating, get ready, we will begin on January 1^st.

Charlie & Mortimer and "the fellas" wish you a Merry

Christmas and a Happy New Year!

The "Lair" Is In Full Swing

Three thirty a.m., I awake to go to…well, nevermind, you probably have a good idea of where I was going.

There were sounds coming from downstairs, the sound of voices. Talking, debating.

You say, “Oh no, Dan!  Was it burglars?  Street gangs?  Punks?  Menacing bad guys, bent on no good?  What is this society coming to!?!  Quick, call 911!  Sic Jasper on them!  That’ll teach ‘em, as he runs up to them, teeth bared, and then lays down on his back expecting them to scratch his belly.”

No.  No.  Nothing like that.  Relax.

The voices were coming from the now legendary, “lair”.  Jimbo was there, and Johnnie T. and Luke and Pat and Andrew and Dave and I suspect there were others, too, I don’t know.  People come and go from “the lair” at hours that are beyond my capacity for wakefulness.  And I simply don’t have the time to go back and review the video from the *security cameras to identify the various folks.

I stood at the top of the stairs and listened for a moment.  Taylor is home from college and “the lair” is in full swing.  You know what that means, right?  Fun.  Games.  Televised sports.  All-night discussions.  All the leftovers in our fridge get taken care of.

As I crawled back in bed, a smile crossed my lips.  It’s almost like the “old days” again.  But not quite.  But almost.

But you know what?  I’m blessed.  It’s fun to hear them down there.  I fall back to sleep, grinning, and life is good.

  

* NOTE: There aren’t really any security cameras, but I thought it sounded sort of cool and official.

We Should Be Very Generous With The Forgiveness

Jesus said [paraphrasing] that the measure of forgiveness we extend to others will determine the measure of forgiveness that is extended to us. (Matt.6:14&15) I don’t completely understand that statement—it raises other theological questions. But it means this, for sure: If we need A LOT of forgiveness—and we do—then we should be willing to graciously, humbly, freely offer A LOT of forgiveness to others.

Our Identity In Christ Is What Is Most Real About Us

For followers of Christ, the truest part of who we are WANTS to do what’s right and live life God’s way. Obviously, there can be an internal struggle in these matters—and temptations still exist—but the REALITY of God’s Holy Spirit ALIVE in us means that our identity in Christ is what is most REAL and most TRUTHFUL about us.

The Giver of All Good Gifts

We are DEPENDENT on the goodness of God every single moment of our lives. Is this something you regularly keep in mind? We need Him, for the very next thought that our minds think, for the very next breath that we take. Our very lives and existence are gifts from Him. In other words, they are bestowed to us; freely & graciously given to us. God is a good gift giver, are you thankful for that?

The Joy, The Ambience, And The Wonderful Flavors Of Romano's Deli

One day, my friend Paul Romano saw, Jim, one of the guys in our youth group eating a piddly little weak sandwich from a local sandwich shop and asked, “What is that pathetic thing?  Do you call that meager scrap a sandwich?”

Jim said, “What do you mean?  This is good.”

“Good?!?” said Paul and he almost fell out of his chair, coughing and gagging in disbelief.  “That’s not even a real sandwich, that’s just some sorry little pretend deal!  I’ll have my wife Susan make a real sandwich for you sometime and then you’ll know what a sandwich is!”

Well, that little encounter was a stroke of good fortune for a whole bunch of us today because after the 11 o’clock service at church, Paul & Susan set up “Romano’s Deli” for the youth group and their parents.

I was very excited to get in on this.  Paul had told me on several occasions that Susan made the best sandwiches ever.  “They’re the best, Dan!” said Paul, and then he would smile and make me do 20 push ups, always promising, “This is for your own good.”

Well, today I finally had a chance to sample several of Susan’s specialties and they were…let’s see, what’s the one specific word I could use?...Oh, here it is:  “INCREDIBLE!!!”  And “FANTASTIC!!!”

I know, that’s two words, but that’s how good it was.  In fact, I think I’ll coin a new word to describe it:  INCREDI-TASTIC!!!  (*NOTE:  Don’t try to use this new word without my permission, I’m going to copyright it.)

The blend of meats and cheeses, the sauces and spreads, each kind of bread soft and fresh and perfectly selected to form the base of the sandwich it helped to create.  I took a bite of “The Italian” and—this has never happened to me before—as the full effect of the flavor overwhelmed my palette, I actually levitated about 2 inches off of my chair, just for about a minute, or so.  Paul is right, Susan does make an amazing sandwich!

It was INCREDI-TASTIC!!!

(I know, it’s already dumb and annoying, isn’t it?  Drats!  I thought I was on to something, but I guess not.)

“Romano’s Deli” was a fantastic success.  We all had a great time breaking bread and talking and just being together.  And we all discovered an important lesson: a sandwich actually can be a delightfully profound metaphysical experience.

(Actually I don’t know exactly what that last sentence means but it sounds like it’s suggesting something very enlightening and meaningful, so I’m going to leave it in.)

After things were cleaned up and put away in the kitchen and we were getting ready to leave, I told Paul, “That sandwich was so good that I actually levitated for a minute or two as the taste sensations took me to new levels of flavorful experience!”

Paul looked at me and then he looked at my stomach.  Then he looked at me and then back at my stomach again.  Me…then stomach.  

And he made me do 20 more push ups.

“It’s for your own good,” he said.

Real Love Is A Potent Testimony

I suspect 10,000 logically sound arguments for the reality of Christianity would never be as persuasive as seeing Christians humbly, sacrificially, genuinely LOVE each other. Have you noticed that it’s pretty hard to deny the powerful reality of authentic love? It was Jesus who said to His followers, “they’ll know you are my disciples by your love for each other.” Today, I hope our love clearly marks us as followers of Him.

Giving God A Good Laugh

Sometimes a person will say, “I don’t believe in that God stuff, I only believe what can be proven empirically.” The problem with that statement is that it can’t be “proven empirically”.  So, the very comment that the person makes to establish that he only believes in empirical proof, can’t be empirically proven. Can you understand, now, why God must spend a good bit of time laughing at our antics?

I Broke Down And Bought A "Kindle"

Well, I finally got a Kindle.  Yep, I just broke down and bought one.  I figured, “Go ahead.  You might as well.  You know you’re going to do it eventually, anyhow.”

You say, “What is a ‘Kindle’?”

A Kindle is a digital tablet, about the size of a very thin soft cover book, that allows the user to download books—for a lower price than the usual cost of a book.  The downloaded books which reside on the device—it can store over a thousand—can then be read off of the screen of the Kindle.  You might say it’s digital internet technology applied to books.

Some of you purists are yelling, “No, Dan!  No!  Please tell me you didn’t cave in!”

Sorry, I caved.

You say, “But I love the FEEL of a real physical book.”

I know.  I do, too.

You say, “I love the SMELL of a real physical book.”

I know.  I do, too.  I love rolling around in piles of books.  But the Kindle has some advantages that finally caused me to crack, like easy portability of hundreds of books; and cost—books on Kindle are much less expensive—and I read a lot of books; and speed of delivery of the book (seconds).

The Kindle has a wireless capability which allows books to be downloaded without wiring it directly to a computer.  So, even though my Kindle hasn’t actually arrived yet, it’s still being shipped, I have already downloaded two books that will be resident on my Kindle when I open it from the packaging!

Technologically speaking, I realize that’s not actually all that remarkable.  But I’m sort of like a guy who was transported from 50 years in the past, up to the present when it comes to technology, so that still amazes me.

This probably sounds like a commercial for Kindle.  It’s not.  (Frankly, I don’t think they’ll need any help from me.)  I love books.  If physical books ever stopped being produced I’d cry for days.  Sort of like I do when I finish eating an ice cream cone and then it’s not there anymore.  But I have to admit, the Kindle seems like it is going to be very handy.

P.S.  That sound you hear is the cry of thousands of books lovers lamenting this post.  Well, actually, there aren’t thousands of people who read these posts.  Let me put it this way: that sound you hear is the cry of both books lovers who read this blog, lamenting this post.

"Clear" On Who God Is = "Clear" On Who We Are

We’re often encouraged to “know” ourselves. This is pretty good advice, but what is sometimes left out of the advice is that really knowing ourselves requires that we understand the larger context of our lives and our existence. That’s why this is true: the clearer we get on “who God is”, the clearer we will get on “who we are”. We can’t know ourselves unless we understand that we have a Creator.

Taylor Surprises Us

Tonight the doorbell rang and it was Christine, Johnnie T’s mom.  We greeted each other and I invited her to come in, but she said, “Hold on, I have a surprise for you.”

“A surprise?  What’s going on?”  For some reason all I could think of was: "Did she get me a pony?"

Christine had a big smile on her face and she turned to look back over her shoulder.  As I was speaking those words I could see my son Taylor walking up the front walkway toward the house. 

“Huh?!?  Taylor!!!!”

We were expecting Taylor to come home from college sometime tomorrow.  But with the help of Christine and Johnnie, he pulled a pleasant surprise on us and showed up tonight.  Oh man, what a treat.  Nadia heard all the commotion and came running to the front door.  We laughed and hugged and talked and then laughed some more.

“What happened?  Did you guys pick Taylor up at Anderson?” we asked.

We were told, “No, he came in earlier with his ride from school.  We picked him up out south of here a little ways.”  Rather than tell us about the change of schedule, he decided to make it into a surprise.

We were definitely surprised and we are very happy, that’s for sure.  It is great to have him home.

Well, he was at the house for about 45 minutes and then he and John were walking out the front door.

“Hey, where you going?  You just got here!”

“I’ll be back a little later,” said Taylor.  “We’re going out for a few minutes.”

Yep.  Did I mention that it’s great to have him home?  It is.  I might even have a chance to see him occasionally….if I play my cards right.

……“Hey Nadia, have you seen my ‘Cat’s In The Cradle’ record?”

I was going to include a picture of Taylor with this

post but....he's not here.  So, here's a picture of some

of his stuff sitting on the floor of "The Lair".

My Mechanical Aptitude Is Soaring

I’m not mechanically inclined.  So, for people who know me, one of the great treats is to buy something that “needs some assembly” and then try to discreetly watch me put it together.  (Just watching me hit myself with the hammer can be endlessly entertaining.)

Yesterday, a bookcase in my office fell apart.  At one time the roof in my office had a leak and that leak soaked this bookcase.  It’s a long story and I won’t go into all of it here, but the basic gist of it is that the base of the bookcase was water damaged.  And yesterday, it finally fell apart.  (The saddest aspect of that leak was that some books were actually damaged, not just the bookcase, but books!  Books were DAMAGED!!!  I cried and cried for weeks about that.  I still get a little choked up just thinking about it.  In fact, hold on a second…..I have to wipe away some tears……)

……Okay, I’m back.

So, we bought a new bookcase to replace the old one and the new bookcase required “some assembly”.

At this point, you might be thinking that this will be a story about how I labored and fought and sweated and fumed and when it was all said and done I never did get the bookcase put together.

Well, guess what?  I must be learning, I must be improving, because I put the bookcase together and it wasn’t very difficult.  It didn’t take an inordinate amount of time.  I didn’t hit myself even one time with the hammer.  I didn’t utilize even one piece of duct tape (that’s close to being a “miracle” right there).  And there weren’t any major troubles along the way—I put one of the pieces on backwards but I caught that mistake fairly quickly and corrected it.

Hey, I’m getting pretty good at this.  Maybe I’m developing a whole new aptitude.  Don’t laugh, it can happen.

In fact, Nadia just told me that some high voltage electrical repairs are needed at the church.  Well, I’m feeling pretty confident now, since, after all, I’ve put together a bookcase.

I’m going to go take a look at it.  Yeah, electrical work should be no problem, right?  I’ll let you know how this one goes…..

God's Unfailing Love...It's Nice To Know

The Bible describes God’s love as “UNFAILING”, for ex. Ps.52:8. In other words, God’s love will never falter or grow weak or fail to be operative. Another place where this is made clear is Rom.8:31-39. It doesn’t use the phrase “unfailing love” in this psg. but the concept is there. Do you believe that someone really loves you that consistently & perfectly & totally? It’s nice to know, isn’t it?

Yeah, It's Okay To Pray To God For Little Things

G. Campbell Morgan was asked, “Is it okay to pray to God for little things?” His reply: “Everything is little for God.” We have a different perspective on matters than God does, don’t we? Sure. We, quite naturally, think of things as big and small; easy or hard; close or far; possible or impossible. But it’s helpful to remember that although we’re FINITE…He is INFINITE. Go ahead and pray, God is able.

A New Era Of Overnighters In "The Lair"

When my son Taylor left for college I was saddened to think that there wouldn’t be any more overnighters down in “the lair”.  “The lair” is basically just our basement which Taylor converted into his pad—“the lair” is where all the fun and games happened; “the lair” is where all the high tech electronic gear was hooked up; “the lair” is where the cool, hip, fun people hang out.  

I’m not allowed in “the lair”.

Fortunately, some of the guys have still been having overnighters in “the lair”—even without Taylor around.  So, my sadness was premature…much like my gray hair.

But tonight we began a new era of overnighters.  Yep, that’s right a whole new era is underway.  Jasper’s friend Jake came over today and they are having an overnighter down in “the lair”

These two buddies are having a blast.  They’ve been chasing each other’s tails and drinking out of the toilet together and licking my face.  Not in that order.  At one point, they almost knocked over the Christmas tree.  (I have posted two other fairly recent stories about our Christmas tree falling down.  For a moment, I thought I was going to have a third one to post when Jasper and Jake crashed into it.  The tree teetered and rocked and several ornaments went flying, but, alas, the tree remains standing!  Whoo Hooo!  Take that…gravity!!!)

Nadia and I love having Taylor’s friends come over and spend the night.  There’s excitement and energy and a spirit of fun when they’re all around…especially when we have lots of the high caffeine energy drinks available.

I admit, the mood is not quite the same with Jasper and Jake having an overnighter…and the energy drinks disappear much faster…but it’s almost as good.

*NOTE:  What you just read was the first part of this post.  It was written at about 8:30 this evening.

PART 2….

It’s a little after midnight as I write the next portion of this post.  I awoke because of all the noise coming from “the lair”.  Normally, I don’t like to intrude.  I don’t like to be the bad guy.  I don’t like to be the grumpy old dad who kills all the fun.  But there’s a limit.  Right?  At this hour of the night, there needs to be a little bit of an effort to respect those who are sleeping and keep the noise to a minimum.  Alright, I admit, I was a little bit ticked off.

Well, I went downstairs getting angrier with each step and preparing my big speech.  But I sure was surprised and embarrassed.  When I walked into “the lair” my anger melted away and I found myself smiling and feeling great joy and appreciation.  Jasper and Jake were making a lot of noise, yes that’s true, but it’s because they were playing a rousing game of Bible Trivia and had gotten worked up and excited as the competition heated up over questions involving Old Testament minor prophets.

How could I stay mad when that was the source of all the noise?  I got them each a cup of milk along with a yummy, tasty ornament from the tree (I’m not sure why, but Jasper loves those Christmas tree ornaments).  And now I’m going back to bed, a little happier, and a little wiser.  “Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry…” Eph.4:26

Once again, there is great fun happening in “the lair”.

*P.S.  As I walked upstairs, I noticed that the Christmas tree is down.  Well, that makes three.

Being ATTENTIVE To God

I read that Blaise Pascal [an authentic Genius] felt that INATTENTION to God and to the activity of God is the greatest enemy of spiritual life. And then I thought about the fact that we live in a world that can be an extremely distracting place. How will we be sure that we’re attentive to God today? It’s worth pondering.  “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith . . .” Hebrews 12:2.

Remebering My Mom

My mom was a wonderful person, gracious, loving, kind, without exaggeration—in my opinion, at least—one of the nicest people you would ever want to meet.  (I know, I sound like a totally biased little boy talking about his mommy.  And I am biased, of course, but other people have said that about my mom, as well.  So, there!  By the way, my dad can beat up your dad…but that’s a topic for another day.)  I wish you all could have really known her, because she would have made you feel loved.  She impacted my life for Christ in a multitude of ways that I could never put into words. 

But part of the reason that her spiritual influence on my life was so profound is that it was, without question, GENUINE.  When you grow up with a person and you watch the person’s life carefully and learn from the person’s life—the way we do with a parent—you can tell if their faith is something real to them.  You can tell if their faith is something that they honestly hold to be TRUTH in the living of life, or if their faith is just idle words.  I know from countless first-hand experiences that my mom’s faith was authentic.  Her love of Christ Jesus and her trust in Him, was a conviction held at the very core of who she is as a person.

I suppose it would have been possible to grow up in my family’s home and reject Christianity, but it would not have been possible to grow up in my family’s home and say, “This Christian thing is all just an act, my mom doesn’t really believe it.”  She believed it and she lived it.

I’m not saying she was a perfect Christian—I heard her come close to swearing, once—but I am saying that she was an absolutely authentic Christian.

She passed away last year on this date and I share this post to remember her.  She really was a great person. The truth of Jesus Christ is real and alive in the lives of my family and my brother and sister and their families, in part, because of her.  All three of my mom’s children and all 9 of her grandchildren are followers of Christ.  This is, of course, due to the love and goodness and graciousness of God…all the glory goes to God.  But He unquestionably influenced all of us profoundly through the life of Alice Marler.

I love her and I miss her, but I rejoice that she is actually still alive.  And I rejoice that I WILL SEE HER AGAIN.

Praise God.

Some of you who read this blog gave tremendous comfort and love and friendship to my family and I, last year, in our grief.  Just want to say, once again, thank you.  Your love was and is very meaningful and deeply appreciated.

Can Your Faith Sustain You?

Can your faith sustain you when you get the really bad news? Many years in ministry have shown me that sometimes it is only when we DO, in fact, get bad news—it’s only when the “test” really happens—that we actually come to experience and understand the sufficiency of our faith in Christ to sustain us.

The EASY Spare

“That’s an easy spare,” one of my bowling teammates said to me. “You can pick that up, no problem.”

Those were meant to be words of encouragement…I think.  The pin I was trying to knock down for my spare was the “one” pin.  In bowling the ten pins are numbered.  The “one” pin is in the very middle of the lane.  It is also referred to as the “head” pin.  This is the pin that needs to be hit in order to throw a strike.  So, it’s a pin that is aimed for every time a bowler takes his first throw.  Theoretically it is, in fact, the easiest spare to attempt.

But there was that phrase.  My bowling teammate’s phrase is a troubling one, “That’s EASY.”  Think about hearing the phrase:  “That’s an EASY spare.”

It adds a certain pressure to the effort.  After all, if it’s EASY…well, then gee, there’s really no way I should miss it, right? 

“Come on, it’s EASY!”

Pressure.

Pretty soon other interpretations of the phrase begin to flash quickly through my mind. 

“You’d have to be pathetic to miss this one.”

Pressure.

“NOBODY misses the ‘one’ pin, are you kidding?  NOBODY on earth stinks that much!”

Pressure.

“You’d have to be a sad example of a human being to miss this one!”

Pressure.

“A person who misses the ‘one’ pin really isn’t fit to continue with life.”

(Well, okay, that last phrase didn’t really flash through my mind…or, if I just now wrote it, maybe it did…oh, I don’t know…nevermind.)

I told myself, “Forget his comment.  Don’t psyche yourself out.  You’ve picked up hundreds of these.”

When the “pressure” is on, an otherwise capable person can perform terribly.

I told myself, “Don’t over-think this thing.  Just go up there confidently and make your normal throw and pick up the spare.  This is nothing!”

Suddenly, through the same type of mental discipline that all of the great sports heroes exhibit, I felt a surge of confidence and I made my approach KNOWING that it was already done.  Making my throw was only a formality.  The spare had already been achieved.  I could FEEL it.  Do you know what I mean?  I could SEE it, already accomplished!  Again, all of the great sports performers understand this important mental aspect of the game.

As I made my approach and released the ball, I felt smooth and confident.  My release felt terrifi….uh oh, my release.  Oh no…my release.

This story is an example of why I could never be a top ranked competitor in any sport. All of the great sports performers can rise to the occasion and perform under pressure.  In fact, certain great sports competitors actually play BETTER when the pressure is on. 

My ball missed the “one” pin by at least a foot.  The ball didn’t even come close to the “one” pin.  In fact, I was throwing on lane 13 and my ball actually ended up on lane 14, where, ironically, it came fairly close to the “one” pin of some other guy.

I noticed that my teammate didn’t offer an opinion on the level of difficulty for any of my other shots for the rest of the evening.  That was a pretty good idea.

Whose Story Is It?

I have this slight tendency toward thinking that the universe revolves around me. This, of course, doesn’t square so well with my Christian faith which stubbornly maintains that God is actually the center of it all. Christian author Michael Horton has a great question, [paraphrased] Do we see Jesus as a character in the story of our lives or do we see ourselves as characters in the story of Jesus?

Let's Respond God's Way

When people don’t treat me well, my natural inclination, unfortunately, is to give them right back more of the same. But note this, “Never pay back evil with more evil.” Rom.12:17. And, “Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by DOING GOOD.” Rom.12:21. This is hard, but with God’s help, we can respond to evil with GOOD. This is God’s way, it is the RIGHT way.

A Call From My Old Friend Mike

I got a phone call from an old friend a couple of days ago.  Mike was one of my roommates back in college.  He’s finally a free man, again, having gotten significant time off for “good behavior.” 

I’m just kidding!  That’s a joke.  I like to tease Mike….the truth is his behavior was probably NOT all that good.

It’s great fun to talk with a friend from the olden days and reminisce about our past adventures and get caught up on life’s current adventures.  He was calling to tell me, among other things, that Sandi Patty would be a guest on his radio show that night.  (You can listen to an archive of the show at the link provided below.) 

Many of you know Sandi Patty, but some others don’t.  She is a highly respected and successful Christian singer.  She has a voice like an angel sent from heaven…after many years of vocal coaching and grueling lessons in which I taught her everything I know.  Sandi and I were in a music group back in college and with a wistful tear in the eye she credits the experience as one of the great musical and spiritual breakthroughs of her life.  Which makes you wonder why she has spent so many years in therapy, trying to forget the entire matter.  Hmm…I don’t understand…oh well.

Mike said, “It would be great to have you on the show, Dan, as a surprise guest.  Sandi would probably be thrilled.”

“That’s true,” I responded. “Nothing would make her happier.  It’s hard to even imagine how excited she would be.”

Somehow, Sandi must have gotten wind of our plans because I’ve been served with a restraining order and told to remain 500 yards away from the radio station at all times.  That’s really odd since she was going to be “phoning” in to the station and so was I.  But, I guess, you can never be too safe.

P.S.  Okay, you’ve probably guessed, by now, much of this post has been fabricated.  Although, it has some elements of truth, here and there…if you look real hard…and if you don’t take the actual “words” too seriously.  I’ll let you try to figure out what’s true and what’s not.  But this part is true: you really can listen to Sandi on my friend Mike’s radio show at this link….

            http://seed-productions.com/2009/12/sandi-patty/

Really Believing The TRUTH Of Grace

When I first became a pastor I thought I would have to help people understand the many ways in which they were guilty of sin. I was wrong. (That’s, like, the 2^nd time, now.) I have found that many of the people I talk to are wracked with guilt. What I usually have to try to help them understand—and really believe—is the truth and comprehensiveness of God’s amazing grace.

A Potential Cold Weather Disaster Has Been Averted

At 5:50 this morning, I stepped out the back door of my house and began trudging in the cold and dark toward the office.  Having not seen or heard a weather report, I did not know what I was in for.  As I got toward the gate in my backyard, it began to occur to me that it was a little chillier than I had expected.  I considered going back inside and changing out of my flip flops into some regular shoes and socks.  But, I continued on.

The temperature is posted on the sign of a nearby bank that can be seen as I’m making the walk.  I looked up at the sign thinking, “Boy, it’s cold today.”  The temperature on the sign? Four degrees.  Initial thought: “Hmm, I guess one of the numbers is burned out on that sign, it must be 24 degrees or 14 degrees, surely it’s not really 4 degrees!”  But as I continued walking and a strong gust of wind blew, I realized that, in fact, it was 4 degrees.  (By the way, technically speaking, the season is still “Fall”.  A person has to have a sense of humor about the weather to live in Chicago.)

I arrived at the church and we began our men’s Bible study.  As our study time progressed a noticeable chill in the air could be detected, despite the fact that we were inside and the heating fans were on.  I periodically placed my hand near the heating fan noticing that it was not blowing hot air.  I excused myself from the study and checked the heating fans in several other locations throughout the building and none of them were blowing hot air.  So, it’s 4 degrees outside and the heating fans in the building are not blowing hot air.  We refer to this as a “troubling situation”.

But this where the “good” part of the story happens.  Operating on pure instinct and relatively little knowledge—okay, make that NO actual knowledge whatsoever—I stepped into the boiler room of the church.  There it was.  The Monster.  The gigantic boiler.  People who work in the heating business have told me that the boiler we have could heat a building 2 or 3 times larger than ours.  It’s The Monster.  The Monster has chewed up and spit out many a hapless soul.

“What was I doing in here?  This is crazy!  Did I really think I could do anything about The Monster?”  These thoughts raced through my mind.

Approaching the menacing creature, I heard a low growl.  We have had some work done on the Monster recently and there are new switches and controls on it.  I started to back out of the room, realizing the audacity of thinking that I could do something about The Monster.  But I seemed to sense a strange unexplainable force pushing me toward the giant inferno.  Actually, the “force” had an explanation, it was a couple of guys from the Bible study shoving me toward The Monster.  They were cold.

I noticed a very small button on one of the new controls.  What does this button do?  Is it the “reset” button?  I don’t know.

Is it the “self destruct” button.  Will pushing that button initiate a process that will result in a massive explosion taking out several city blocks?  I don’t know.

I reached out with a trembling hand, saying a soft prayer under my breath, and pushed the button.  I heard a click and a reset process began.  Within seconds the flame under the boiler ignited.  And several minutes later.  Warm air could be felt emanating from the heating fans.

Whew!  A disaster of epic proportions was diverted.  Moments later my cell phone was ringing.  It was Jack Bauer, from the CTU, the top secret government security organization…you know…Jack Bauer…THE Jack Bauer…he can be seen on the TV program “24”.  Yes, THAT Jack Bauer.

“Great work, Dan,” said Jack, “Because of you, countless lives have once again been saved.”

“Well, I just did the best I could…it was nothin….”

“No, no,” Jack interrupted, “The city of Oak Lawn owes you a great debt.  Keep up the good work!”

“Shucks, I’m just glad I could help, Jack.”  I was blushing now.  My face felt hot and flushed. 

…..So I went outside while Jack and I continued chatting.

Would Christianity Be Worth It?

What if Christianity had nothing to do with a better marriage; successful financial principles; better decision-making; help in raising terrific kids; and overcoming pain, sadness, or loneliness? What if it did not offer freedom from worry? Or physical or emotional healing? What if all it offered was forgiveness of sins, reconciliation with God, and eternal life? Would it still be worth it?

Will Power Is Not Enough

Human beings are capable of moral action and are morally responsible because we have a free will. “Where there is no will, no freedom of choice, a moral situation cannot possibly exist.” [Sahakian] As we know, however, our WILL POWER is not strong enough to ensure morality integrity in us and so we need another power. Jesus tells us this power is available through God’s Holy Spirit.

Can You Argue Someone Into The Kingdom?

Review of the book: "Tactics" by Gregory Koukl

Gregory Koukl’s objective in the book “Tactics” is different than most books that would be classified as “Christian Apologetics”.  The objective of “Tactics” is to equip the reader with conversational approaches and techniques in order to engage in fruitful, helpful discussions about the Christian faith—particularly with those who may be skeptical or even hostile to the faith.

So, rather than a lot of content related to specific arguments for the existence of God, or the resurrection of Jesus, or the reliability of the Bible—there are many other books where one can find this information—“Tactics” attempts to help with the issue of “how” do we effectively communicate “what we know” in defending the faith.  Think of it like this:  typically, a book on apologetics provides knowledge about the subject matter of apologetics.  This book, on the other hand, tries to help with the issue of “using” knowledge—using apologetic subject matter—graciously and effectively, or, we might even say “tactically”…ah, that’s how we get the name of the book.  See how easy that was?

Several times in the course of “Tactics”, Koukl it makes it clear that although he is trying to help Christians be sharp and effective in their encounters with others, he believes that we should always be respectful and loving and gracious in our dealings, as well.  For example, he writes, “Tactics are not manipulative tricks or slick ruses.  They are not clever ploys to embarrass other people and force them to submit to your point of view.  They are not meant to belittle or humiliate those who disagree so you can gain notches in your spiritual belt.”  I’m glad he said that.  In a book of this kind, that needs to be the true intent of the author and it is an important point to communicate to the readers.

I always enjoy books that challenge my thinking with unique ideas or counter-intuitive thoughts.  There are a few of these in “Tactics”.  For example, Koukl writes, “you CAN argue someone into the kingdom.  It happens all the time.”  I read that and thought, “What?”  This is an interesting statement because I suspect most Christians would rather emphatically state that we CANNOT argue someone into the kingdom!  Koukl makes a case for his statement that we CAN argue someone into the kingdom and I’ll let you read it and decide if you think he’s right, or not.  My point here is just that I like reading a defense of interesting ideas like that one.

You will probably think about your conversations—actually ALL your conversations—in new and different ways if you read “Tactics”.