Random Thoughts on Life and Ministry

Be sure if you're still following...

2011-06-07T00:35:00.001-05:00

To go to ministerlane.wordpress.com for my new blog.

Times, they are a changin...

2009-11-03T21:07:00.002-06:00

As I stated in my last blog entry, I am changing my blog address, and host as well. My new blog address is

ministerlane.wordpress.com

Please make the necessary changes in your links/community on blogs that link to mine. For everyone else, goodbye from the youth minister world, and welcome to my new life.

This Blog...

2009-10-27T19:15:00.003-05:00

For a while now, I've been posting on this blog. The web address - www.youthministerlane.blogspot.com, is not quite relevant anymore. I no longer serve as a youth minister. In the next few days, I plan on re-working a new blog, that will be available from this blog, but in the next few days, youthministerlane.blogspot.com will no longer be updated, in theory.

I have started a new site over at tumblr.com, which to me is more my style for now. Its sort of like "Twitter" on steroids. Everything I post there is immediately uploaded to my Facebook page, as well as my Twitter feed, and everything I post on my Twitter feed is immediately put on my Tumblr page.

However, I will be starting a new "blog" as well, just be patient (not like I have that many readers anyway). I will post the new blog on here soon, but for now, you can link to my Tumblr page on the right at "Lane's World", or you can go to lanesworld.tumblr.com and see what that is all about.

A Total Numbers Game: Membership in the Church of Christ

2009-10-27T10:59:00.004-05:00

I've been involved with churches that were big, and involved with churches that were small. The first church I worked for averaged about 180 members on Sunday morning for their worship service. Compare that to the church I attended when I graduated from high school, and where my father currently serves as a minister, which now has about 700 members.

One of my best friends and fellow minister, Jason, works for a congregation in Alabama that has well over 2000 members. The church I attended for the longest time from about 1st grade till around 10th grade only had around 35 in attendance.

Seemingly, according to Mac Lynn's 2006 book "Churches of Christ in the United States", it seems as if the majority of the congregations in the United States have anywhere from 50 to 199 members. If you were to take an average, the churches of Christ average about 97-100 members per congregation.

I have to be honest, I hate numbers. I've hated numbers for a long time. It started with Algebra 1 in 9th grade. I had a horrible teacher who cared more about flirting with the athletes in the class instead of teaching us math. Ever since then, I gave up on numbers.

When I was in youth ministry, there was always a double standard for numbers. I needed to grow the amount of people in the youth group, but it was okay for the church to stay the same size. If we weren't bringing in more teenagers to the youth group class, then I must be a lousy minister. That equation, sadly, is the equation that so many ministers must live up to.

Now I work for a church that is "struggling" with an average attendance of 160 or so. Of course, according to the studies of the church, this is an average, or better than average size for a congregation. Since I have moved here, I finally seem to have figured something out. No matter how large the church is in numbers, if you don't have love, it means nothing.

Sure, 2000 members singing in harmony together during a worship service sounds wonderful, but so do 75 members.

You may have the best and most educated ministers in the few 1000+ member congregations, but the churches of 200 members have ministers who put a whole lot of time into their work as well.

Most importantly, I feel as if when we pressure people to become members, they run. And if they run, more than likely they are just running away completely, and not to another congregation. When we throw a membership card in their face as they walk in the door, they're naturally going to think that we're just like every other venue in their lives.

Get to know them. Talk with them. If they want to give you their contact info, they will based upon desire to get to know your church better.

Have cards for them to take that have contact info for your church, service times, activities, etc. If they give you permission to call them or email them, great! If not, let them make the next move.

If you have done all you can as a church, they will want to come back. If the church was not friendly, clean, inviting, prepared, organized, welcome...no amount of cards, visiting or free cookies will get them back into the church.

We don't want the church to sound needy. When a church sounds needy by saying things such as "We really need you to be a member" or "Our church sure could use another servant", it comes across as needy. Instead, offer to do something for them, instead of trying to sign them up for the Benevolence Committee on their first visit. See what you can do for them, or if they have any questions.

The truth of the matter is, God did wonders throughout the world with Jesus and his 12 disciples. If I'm doing the math correct, 12 < the average number of members in the Church today.

I hate numbers. I always have, and I always will. The only number that matters is that there is ONE God, ONE Savior, and ONE Hope. Let's just do our best to show everyone who comes through that door, or everyone we come in contact with, or everyone we see on a daily basis, that Jesus Christ loves them and died for them.

A Moment to Brag

2009-10-16T08:31:00.002-05:00

A few days ago I posted some before and after pictures. Yesterday, I went back to Lifetime Fitness to have my fitness re-evaluation. Here are the results:

On May 4, my weight was at 254 pounds. Yesterday, on October 15, I weighed 265 pounds. I know, an 11 pound INCREASE. Stay tuned.

My Cardiovascular measurements went from Very Poor to Poor. Doesn't sound all that good, but it really is better.

My bicep strength went from middle of the average to middle of the good category. Good news.

My flexibility is still horrendous. On the sit and reach, my score was 6 on the first test and 6 on yesterday's test.

The good news: On May 4, my body fat percentage was at 32.2%. Yesterday, my body fat percentage was at 25.7%. That went from the Obese category down to just the overweight category.

My overall fitness went from 29.2% up to 41.7%, which is a positive increase. This puts me from the fair up to the average category.

Earlier, 82 pounds of my body was fat. Yesterday, only 68 pounds of my body was fat. My body age according to my physical data went from 41 down to 37. All in all, a positive day.

And that, is my moment to brag.

What Would He Do?

2009-10-14T14:41:00.001-05:00

The Parable of the Sea

2009-10-14T11:40:00.001-05:00

So true.

So sad.

And yet, most of us do nothing to change this.

Yet we all proclaim to serve the same mighty God.

Getting Fit: 2 Months Later

2009-10-08T20:54:00.003-05:00

On July 13, I took my "Before" pictures for the "Before and After Pictures". This is actually a journey I started way back on May 4.

I am somewhat disappointed in my weight. I started out at 254 pounds. Now, I am at 256 pounds. However, I have added a lot of muscle. This week Kristen and I have drastically changed our eating habits. I'm sure that will help a whole lot.

Here are my before and after shots as of October 8, 2009.

I feel my posture has improved greatly. Kristen says that is the best improvement so far.

My gut looks a lot better in this picture.

Latest Update on Claire Lane Prayer Request

2009-10-08T10:03:00.002-05:00

Here are the latest two entries from the Lane family:

Posted Oct 5, 2009 3:03pm

Great work, Claire!!! The techs have taken her off of the EEG (monitoring her brain wave activity) because she is showing signs of alertness when her sedation starts wearing off. She has responded to the command: "open your eyes" and "move your finger"... although her response is slow, we have never been so thrilled to see Claire follow directions! We are still very aware that she has likely sustained some degree of brain damage, but we will not know the extent for quite some time. For now, we are just thrilled that she can hear us and respond at all. Her vitals remain stable (with heavy medication regulating them) and she has all but bored the nurses to death, today... which is just the way we want it.

Claire remains in very critical condition and although we are thrilled with every tiny bit of good news we receive, we have to stay "cautiously optimistic" about her condition. Her lungs remain covered with infection (although today's x-ray did show a tiny smudge of darkness at the top!) and she remains on the blood-thinner/life-support/bypass which are keeping her tiny little body alive. She is still fighting for her life...but what a fight she is putting up.

We are looking forward to another day of holding her warm, pudgy hand and reading to her. The fact that we are still here with her, one full week after her heart attack and crisis makes us the luckiest parents alive.

Here's one that had some humor in it:

Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:13am

All stable over night. Vitals remain in good shape. She got a bath and looks nice and smooth. (The hair is another issue, and will require its own rehab therapist). She was suctioned again overnight and they were able to remove more gunk (I think that's the technical term); so we are hoping (cautiously, as always) for a good X-Ray report.

Followed by a very encouraging note:

Posted 23 hours ago

Way to go, Monkey!! Another stable night for Claire, so we got a sweet, warm, soft hand to hold this morning. She is starting to give the doctors and staff a run for their money... she keeps coming off the sedative and tries to move her hands and legs, opens her eyes and attempts to breathe on her own (all good signs to Mom and Dad, but considered misbehaving to the docs since they want her completely still and inactive). They have added medications to keep her mellow (she has become a drug-addict's dream!). Today she opened her eyes on command, and when I asked she moved her little fingers while I was holding her hand, which of course had me in tears...but I'll take tears of joy any moment of the day!
Claire just finished having her lungs cleaned by the respiratory team. They used a video scope to find trouble spots of "gunk" (Scott's technical term), loosen them and then suck them out (I hope you are not eating while you read this!). She handled the treatment very well and will have a follow up x-ray at 1pm. Hopefully, I'll be back on with a good x-ray update this afternoon. We've heard "talk" by her medical team about weaning her off of the life-support machine and onto the ventilator over the course of the week and weekend. Nothing definite, but it seems they are encouraged about her stability and progress this week. The "weaning" process poses a whole new array of obstacles for Claire, but that little fighter has made it this far, so we are confident she is going to forge through this "Claire-style" and make those docs earn their paychecks this week.

We are so proud of our little girl and how strong she has been this week. She continues to amaze us each day.

Thank you to everyone who has helped us through this. All of your thoughts, prayers, and well-wishes are helping us make it through each day and they are helping Claire as she continues to fight for her life.

And finally the most encouraging note so far:

Posted 18 hours ago

DRUM ROLL, PLEASE...Look out, swine flu, here comes Claire Lane! Scott and I got to meet with the docs following Claire's x-ray and we are starting to see visible progress in her right lung. There are now two small sized pockets of air in her right lung, indicating a lack of GUNK in those two areas. This means that her lung has some "vacancy" for volume. Her left lung is still quite full, but there is one small area that is starting to darken - indicating a lack of gunk. She is definitely headed in the right direction, even though she is certainly not out of the woods. We continue to stay "cautiously optimistic" (that's our mantra for right now), but that little monkey is giving us so much hope. She has become our little Super Hero. When she gets out of here, I'm going to add a little red cape to her school uniform! We are so proud of you, Little Claire!!!

Latest Update on Claire Lane**Prayer Request

2009-10-06T10:35:00.002-05:00

Many of you have been asking about Claire Lane, the little girl who suffered a heart attack, along with Pneumonia, and has been in the hospital for a while now. I just got word this morning that at some point during all of this pain and suffering, that she has also had a stroke.

The doctors have put her on an ECMO machine, which basically breathes for her by bypassing her lungs. Lali, Claire's mother, is in the best spirits as possible, understanding now that even if she does get to take her child home, that she won't be the same little girl due to the stroke.

The family is asking for prayers of comfort at this time. Pray that Claire will have the comfort and peace that only God can provide.

The BEST Concert I've Ever Been to....

2009-10-05T20:44:00.003-05:00

About 4 years ago, when I was living in Memphis, Kristen and I went to see a Third Day concert. My good friend Jason Bybee and his wife Sunny happened to be visiting that weekend, so we all went together.

My wife and I were stoked about seeing Third Day, and as usual, we were prepared to sit through an opening act to get to the main show. The opening act was an up and coming worship band known as the David Crowder Band. I have to admit, I wasn't really looking forward to it, but Jason had heard them, and burned me a cd of some of their tunes to listen to ahead of time.

When David Crowder and his band walked out on the stage and began to play, I was blown away. Not only were they very obviously talented in their musical abilities, but their lyrics were so powerful.

When they were done, I wanted more. All through the Third Day concert, I kept on thinking about how awesome David Crowder had been. About two years ago, while living in Alabama, Jason and I drove down to Samford University in Birmingham to hear them perform again, in a small venue, and just them. They weren't opening up for anyone, they just did their own little show.

On Saturday night, Kristen and I went to hear David Crowder on the third stop of their "Church Music" tour. After sitting through two decent opening acts (Seabird and Danyew), out came the David Crowder Band. The first thing I noticed was the attire in which they appeared. Since it was the "Church Music" tour, they were decked out in Sunday best. David Crowder was wearing a full suit, including a vest. All the band members were wearing a suit, except the drummer, who was minus the suit coat.

They've come a long way, from opening act, to small venue, to a 12,000 seat auditorium on their own tour. Its been fun watching them grow. This concert featured the best of their new album, and great classics that they are known for. Their drummer even built a robotic drum set. It was actual drum set, with sticks connected to various electronic components, to add extra depth to the rhythm. This newest album of theirs features a whole lot more "hard" rock, mixed in with a slight bit of disco/techno as well.

Here are some pictures, not very good, but the best I could get since it was rather dark:

UPDATE Urgent prayer request UPDATE

2009-10-02T19:06:00.004-05:00

Many of you have asked about an update on Claire Lane, the little girl who is in the hospital from Pneumonia. The outpouring of support for a total stranger amongst Christian friends has been wonderful! Here is the latest, and how you can help (non-monetary help):

October 2, 2009

Dear Friends:

We give thanks to God that Claire continues to be stable in her condition. However, she is still a very sick little girl, and we ask for your continued prayers.

Some of you have been asking how to show your support to the Lane family. There are three ways:

1.) Visit www.carepages.com, create an account that you can sign onto, search to her webpage, and send a message to her and her family. At that site you will also be able to read updates from Scott and Lali about Claire's condition and progress. After you visit the site and set up your account, cut and paste this link into your browser: CLAIRE LANE

2.) Visit the Texas Children's hospital website at www.texaschildrens.org. Under the "Quicklinks" menu you'll find a link to "Send a patient greeting." Follow the direction and you'll produce a postcard that the TCH staff will deliver to Lali and Scott who will read it to Claire.

3.) Visitors to the PICU Waiting Room (Texas Children's Hospital, Floor Three) are now welcome. Of course, no one will be permitted to visit Claire, but Scott or Lali would be happy to see you. However, it is critical that all visitors to the PICU be completely symptom-free of any illness. If you are sneezing, coughing, have a headache, or even think you might be sick, please do not come. It would be very disappointing for someone to get Scott or Lali sick and, in so doing, prevent them from seeing their little girl.

Finally, please keep Claire, Olivia, Lali, and Scott in your prayers. We will be remembering them all at the altar this Sunday morning, and all are welcome to join us in prayer for them. But no matter where you are, whether in a church or elsewhere, please keep the Lane family in your prayers. The family appreciates this support, and it is doing more good for everyone concerned than we can imagine.

Urgent prayer request

2009-09-30T14:07:00.002-05:00

Oftentimes, we find ourselves asked to pray for someone we've never met. That happened to me today, and this one particularly touched my heart. The second grade teacher of one of the children of a family in our church has a pressing issue that is very serious.

I just don't know how I would respond if this was concerning my precious daughter. Please read, and then please pray.

I got the following email this morning:

Lane,

Could you add this to tonight prayer request? Adam's second grade teacher from last year is having a very difficult time with her daughter. I would love to get the word out! Terry and I are so sad for this family.
Thanks.
Vesna

Family and Friends,
I am sending out this email to everyone on my email list imploring you to pray for a little girl named Claire Lane. Claire, her big sister, Olivia, and their parents are in for the fight of their lives right now. Here is her story:

Claire was diagnosed with the flu this past Saturday (9/26/09). She was taken back to the doctor yesterday and was admitted to Texas Children's because xrays showed full blown pneumonia in one of her lungs. Her lung collapsed, and last night, sweet Claire suffered a heart attack. BOTH of her lungs are filled with fluid and she is on a vent to keep her breathing. As I write this, I have learned that the doctors are preparing to do another procedure to attempt to drain her lungs. Her parents have been told that if her body does not start fighting the infection, she has less than a 5% chance of survival.

Please pray for this God-loving, people loving, sweet family. The Lanes are a wonderful family and have touched many lives, including mine. As a mother, I cannot imagine how Lali must be feeling to see her baby girl suffer so.

Please stop what you are doing and lift Claire Lane up to the Lord. Please ask Him to restore Claire to health, to bring strength and clarity of thought to her parents and sister.

I believe in a merciful, loving God, and I believe in the power of prayer. Please pass this on so that He can hear our prayers for Claire.

Thank you and may you be blessed, -- Jill

Oh, Happiness

2009-09-24T14:51:00.003-05:00

I think this may be my new theme song. This is off of the new David Crowder Band album "Church Music". We don't talk about grace enough. This song reminds me that grace is there, its free, and its for everyone.

When I listen to this song, I feel like it should be the song playing as we all enter into Heaven, kind of like the song that plays with the end credits of a really good movie.

Read the lyrics below:

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

From the full streams
Of Your care
All who come
Begin again
Hard or friend
Rich or poor
All who need
Need fear no more
Such a thing to give away

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

All regrets
Let go, forget
There's something that
Mends all of that
Such a thing to give away

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

Sound the church bells
Let 'em ring
Let 'em ring
For everything can be redeemed
We can be redeemed
All of us

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

Oh, happiness
There is grace enough for us
And the whole human race

Life Groups and Lasagna

2009-09-21T11:10:00.005-05:00

Last night, Life groups began meeting again for the school year at the West University Church of Christ. Our Life Group consisted of 8 adults and 4 children under the age of 16 months. It was WONDERFUL. We enjoyed having everyone over to our home, and enjoyed the discussion based on our sermon that morning.

I have been tasked with being in charge of our Life Groups as one of the many areas of my ministry. This is my first endeavor into leading Life Groups as a whole. We have 5 groups in our church, and one of them is an experimental group that is basically outreach only in nature.

If you would like to get a copy of our Life Group study guides, I prepare them weekly and then stick them on our website at www.westuchurch.com, and they are located weekly on the home page under "News and Events" You can get to this week's by going HERE.

Last night, after our Life Group met and discussed and prayed, we had a meal of Lasagna prepared by my wonderful wife. While eating, I looked over at Josie (who was also enjoying a meal of Lasagna), and just had to take this picture:

Seriously, She's Gorgeous...

2009-09-14T21:20:00.001-05:00

Tears Still Fall...

2009-09-11T08:08:00.003-05:00

It has been 8 years.

I was about to step into my third period class during the first year out of college in my teaching career. The sixth grade students entering into the classroom had no clue what had just happened. How was I supposed to handle this? How was I going to tell these students that our nation, America, land of the free, was under attack.

No one had any clue whether or not there would be more attacks. The day continues to haunt me, and so many others.

40 dead in Pennsylvania in a flight that never made it to its final terrorizing destination.

184 dead at the Pentagon, a building that is massive beyond imagination, with a memorial that is moving to the heart.

2752 dead in New York City at "Ground Zero", where people fled a city reflective of a "B" grade monster movie. It was a nightmare coming alive.

This morning, as I sit and watch coverage of the memorials taking place at these three sites, tears still fall.

I did not know any of the ones who fell dead that day. I did not know anyone directly affected by the attacks. I just listen to the words of the family members today, and ache for them. My soul sits inside of me and shudders as each of the names of the fallen is read.

May we see, during this time of great divide in our nation, that we are strongest when we are brought together. May we put aside the partisan politics and quit arguing over so many petty things, and be joined together, not only today, but for all time.

This is the greatest country in the world. We have survived so much at our tender young age, and God has continued to bless us. May we turn back to Him, and once again be "One nation, under God".

God bless the families, friends, and co-workers of all those affected by this day 8 years ago.

Saving in September: Turning Over a New Leaf

2009-09-01T11:26:00.002-05:00

I'm so wasteful.

Then again, most American's tend to be rather wasteful. My problem with waste often seems to relate to buying food. My eyes have always been bigger than my stomach. However, I am wasteful in other area's as well.

I have for a long time been a Dave Ramsey fan. He simply teaches that you should live below your means, not accrue debt, and if you have it to pay it off as soon as you can.

Living that way, my wife and I are proud to say we haven't had a car payment in about 4 years. We paid off her student loans about 3 years ago. My student loans are a bit larger, however (gotta love going into debt to get a degree to work in a church) and we have not tackled them like we should.

In fact, when we first got married, we made a decent salary, and bought a whole lot of crap. We went out to eat a lot, we bought a lot of clothes, toys, etc that we didn't need. We probably could have paid off my student loans with all the playing we did with the money we made.

So we refer to that as our "stupid tax", and are trying to remedy that now. Our goal is to try to pay off my student loans by the time the new year rolls around, but realistically it will probably be around March of next year. That means we will be living below our means, living on less than we make, and throwing a big chunk of our income towards that debt.

So here's a few things we're going to stick with in September:
1. A budget. We've had a budget for 6 years now, but we've never really stuck with it, rather, we've used it as a guideline.

2. Cash. We don't have credit cards. We never have, and hopefully we never will. I don't have a problem with other people having credit cards, I just know that we would probably buy a lot more with them if we had them. We do use our Debit cards a lot, and I've realized we spend a lot more when we do. We don't even think about it, we just get stuff and pay for it with a piece of plastic. We are going to use the envelope system, and we're going to make it work.

3. Eating out is reserved for Sundays, and maybe Wednesdays. Sundays are hard for us to make it back to the house, plus, we enjoy hanging out with our new friends. I have had a bad habit of going out to eat for lunch A LOT. Its just so easy, but it also kills the wallet and the waist line.

4. Water. When we do go out, Kristen is real good about getting water. I, however, always tend to get a drink of some sort. A soft drink at most restaurants costs between $1.50 and 2.50, and I never look to see how much it costs, I just get one.

5. Brown bagging the lunch thing.

I know that this will be hard, because we've been somewhat wasteful when it comes to our money. After I sat down and crunched some numbers, I was floored as to how much money we spent eating out, and wasting money on things we don't need. The goal is to pay off the loan, redo our kitchen, and then start paying off the house.

Things will get in the way, and Murphy will move in for a while, but we're going to do our best to act our "wage".

Tweet Tweet and other stuff

2009-08-15T18:29:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I caved into peer pressure and joined Twitter. Okay, really no one pressured me into joining. I was curious. For now, I don't see how its much different from Facebook, without all the crap. You give a 160 character update on how things are going.

I am following several celebrities, however, and find that entertaining. Rainn Wilson is a gas.

If you would like to follow me on Twitter, you can go to www.twitter.com/lanewidick and choose to follow me.

I've also been tasked with redoing the website at our church. The guy who used to do it, Ryan McDonald, has a full time job with IT Work at Channel 2 news here in Houston. He did a stellar job setting up the old website and maintaining as often as one could with a full time IT job. If you would like to visit our website and let me know what you think, go to www.westuchurch.com and look around.

This One's Dedicated to my Big (little) Sister, Mary Anne!!

2009-08-08T18:48:00.004-05:00

Ever since I was born, I have had an older sister.

I know, it sounds silly doesn't it? Of course if my sister was already alive, then I've always had an older sister. The point is, I've never known life without her. So, imagine the response I had when my mom and dad called me a few months ago and told me that my sister had breast cancer. My first response in my mind was "How bad is it?", or "How long does she have?", and those questions are probably similar to what most people think when they hear those dreaded words.

My best friend growing up, Jason Bybee, sat at the feet of cancer and felt its tightening grip around the life of his mother and his father. Both passed away before he was ever married, had kids, or even graduated from high school. I was so confused at that time, wondering why his life had been touched by cancer, but my life hadn't been.

So, to hear that my sister had cancer, sent me into a world of emotions I had never felt before. My father had been diagnosed with some skin cancers on his back and shoulder, but those were simply cut out, and he continues to live a normal life. He didn't have to suffer through chemo, surgery, or anything of the sort. When my sister was diagnosed, this was a lot more "real".

Its never easy to hear bad news. I remember about 3 years ago when my mother called me and told me that brother was in the hospital after suffering a heart attack, at the age of 36. We rushed to the hospital to visit with him, and sit with during his open heart surgery.

And the same thing happened when my sister had her surgery. Money was not an object at all. We bought the plane tickets, and combined some time at home with Josie's birthday party. I wanted to be my her side, to let her know that I loved her and was going to do my little part to get her through this.

Since then, I've thought about all the times we've had together. I remember when I was very little, maybe three or four years old, she would play with me. We would do concerts while singing along to our "Disney Sing Along" records in my room. I remember as we got older, how she would play with her Barbie dolls and Strawberry Shortcake dolls, and I had my G.I. Joe men and my A-Team action figures, and we would an imaginary world for them to play in.

As we got even older, I traveled to every single one of her high school chorus performances from 9-12 grade. I watched her in the plays she was in. She was so good to try to include me in as much as she could. Her friends were my friends as well.

When she left to go to college, I remember getting in the old Dodge Caravan and driving down to Freed Hardeman with her. We didn't have a tape player in the van, (way before CD players), and I had brought my battery powered stereo with me. I played a Suzy Boggus song titled "Letting Go" about 4 times on the way down, getting a kick out of watching my mom and dad cry, and my sister sobbing. She always loved being at home, and she loved us.

I also remember after we dropped her off, and we pulled away from the parking lot, I sat there and watched her walk away, and the "tough guy" inside of me went soft, and I started to cry. At that point, I realized that my big sister wasn't going to be one of my best friends anymore, because she was getting older, and a new chapter in her life and in my life began at that moment.

It has broken my heart that I can't be with my sister and see her while she is going through all of what she is enduring. It breaks my heart that she can't see the concern I have for her. Sure, I could call her and email her everyday, but that's not the same. She means the world to me, and as I've seen her attitude throughout this whole situation, it makes me so proud of her.

She is taking it all in stride. She poked fun of me on Facebook this past week, saying that she is starting to look like her younger brother Lane due to the chemo. Most women would shy away from bringing attention to themselves during a process where their hair was falling out, but not my sister. If you'll go to her blog: "A Journey of Hope and Peace" you can read her tales, and how she is keeping God even closer to her than ever. She was even brave enough to post a picture of her with a cleanly shaven head, which in, sadly, she still has more hair than I do.

Please continue to pray for my sister as she deals with this, and her husband Kevin, who has been a rock for her throughout this trail. Pray for Faith and John Derrick, who have to see their mother go through hurt and pain. I love you big sis, keep up the fight, and know that you are an inspiration to so many.

Lord, give my sister the strength she needs to continue going through this procedure. Please eradicate all the cancer from her body. Help her to fight this fight. Please give her a long and cancer free life from this moment on, as she gives all the glory to you in whatever goes on with her. Amen.

Give Me A Heart That Wants To Be Holy

2009-08-03T10:48:00.003-05:00

What comes to your mind when you think of the word holy? Seriously: Most of us probably think of things such as robes, chants, long prayers, Bible carrying scripture quoting type people. Or we think of a very sacred place.

Holiness simply means consecrated, sacred, hallowed, or most importantly, set apart.

How many of us really think about ourselves when we think about the word “Holy”.

Peter did. Peter, a fisherman by trade, a scummy and dirty job that didn’t require good looks or a good attitude, tells us that we’re supposed to be Holy. That’s like a fat man telling you to go on a diet. Its like a bald guy giving you hair styling advice. Of all the people to tell us that, why him? We all relate to him so well, because, well, he often seemed one of the most unholy of disciples. He was always sticking his foot in his mouth. He’s the one whose flaws seem so great. He’s the one who was swearing, denying that he even knew Jesus. He’s the one who cut off Malchus’ ear.

He’s the one who has the audacity to reprimand Jesus, only to have Jesus say “Get behind me Satan!”

If you want to go a step further, Peter is the one who when he first met Jesus said “Go away from me, I’m a sinful man!” By his own admission, he was saying he couldn’t be holy like Jesus was Holy.

And that’s how a lot of us feel. We feel like Jesus is just too Holy. There’s no way that He would want anything to do with a sinner like me. Peter felt the exact same way. Peter knew a thing or two about unholiness.

But there it is simply stated in I Peter 1:15-16 -- Be holy, as I am Holy.
For many of us, that might be the thing that basically tells us to close our Bibles, put them away on the shelf, and never look at them again. We might as well say goodbye to everyone this morning, and let them know we won’t be back again. We know God isn’t messing around when he gives us a clear cut demand from the Bible. This isn’t one of those GRAY issues that the church debates and argues about…oh no…this is a command, a straight up command: BE HOLY. See ya church! I can’t do that, and I suggest you come with me, because there ain’t many of us that can.

It just seems so hard to achieve, to reach, to even strive for. How can we ever be Holy?

God said to a little teenage girl: “You’re going to bear my one and only Son”. And Mary gave birth to Immanuel, to Jesus. And Jesus walked on the earth, and the people were with God, and they could touch him and talk with him. They could hug him and see him. And that was as close to God as they could be.

Then we took this Holy Child, and we arrested him, and we beat Him, and we put him on trial for being the king of the Jews. We convicted Him, and hung him on a cross, and crucified him. That’s where the cross comes in. 2 Corinthians 5 says God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God. The cross is the place where we see most clearly that Jesus is indeed Immanuel, “God with us”. He atones for our sins and we are purified by his blood, which makes Holiness possible.

But then this Savior rose from the dead. He came and appeared to hundreds to show the prophecy fulfilled. He went to the mountain and ascended back into Heaven, and in ACTS 2, after he had ascended, his Holy Spirit DESCENDED amongst the people. Now we are truly as close to God as we can be, with his Holy Spirit among us, living in us. When you became a Christian and the Spirit of God came upon you, you became HOLY!

If you are a Christian, you have received the gift of the Holy Spirit. But how much room is there for the Spirit’s Holiness to shine through? Even though we received this wonderful gift of God into our lives, so many of us treat it like a gift that we were given by a third cousin in law at Christmas. We accept it, and we forget that its there. Instead, it gets shoved aside, never used or remembered. This is what we do with the Holy Spirit. Let’s look at some verses that show what many of us fill our hearts with, instead of the holiness:

Colossians 3:1-10 NLT Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. So put to death the Sinful earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshipping the things of this world. Because of these sins the anger of God is coming. You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.
Look at these examples of unholy living: Anyone sweating yet? Anyone realizing that maybe your life isn’t so holy after all?

Sexual Immorality? Oh well don’t worry Lane, I love my spouse, I’m saving myself for marriage, I would never lust after someone…

Impurity? Oh, I live a pretty pure lifestyle…I don’t defile myself.

Lust? Even if a pretty lady or a handsome guy walks by, I can control myself after a peek.

Earthly things? I mean, I’ve got my possessions that I love, but I’d never put them before God…

Greed? I’m not greedy, I’ve got all I need, except for…

Anger and Rage? Not me, I’m perfectly calm all the time,

Malicious behavior? Why that sounds horrible. I always behave.

Dirty language? You won’t ever hear the words come out of my mouth.

REALLY? We have all these things under control, right?

The problem is, we may love our spouse and save ourselves for marriage, but what about the raunchy television shows and movies we watch that promote sexual immorality? But I’m not doing those things, I’m just watching it…YEAH, but you’re supporting it, you’re letting those things enter into your heart.

Impurity? So we don’t defile ourselves, except for the food and drink we fill ourselves with, the things we smoke or drink, or the images we put into our heads from the internet. There’s such filth we come across on the web. The things we see never leave our mind.

Lust? So you may catch a peek and not lust…but the Holy Spirit is there to keep you from the peek. If you’re in a loving committed relationship, what does that person have that your spouse doesn’t have?

Earthly things? So many of us have things we can’t give up, and those things continually make us unholy. They make us unholy because we can justify putting God aside for things we spend good money on, or things we need to make good money with. Season tickets, fancy TVs and cars. Our jobs are so much more important than our God. Remember the Rich Young Ruler? He was asked to give up everything to follow God. His inability to do this kept him from being holy. What can you give up that is keeping you from dedicating your life to God? Are you so busy that you can’t devote yourself to Heavenly things every once in a while?

Anger and rage? I’m never angry…especially while driving through Houston during rush hour. I know what its like, I also lived in Memphis and Nashville. Anger and rage rear their ugly heads all the time. Anger and Rage may be one of the biggest things keeping the Holy Spirit out of our hearts.

Malicious Behavior? What do you think gossip is? Me gossip? Its all constructive gossip, for their benefit…

Gossip is one of the most unholy things we involve ourselves in, yet its one of the things we involve ourselves in the most.

Dirty language? God will forgive the occasional slip, right? If those words are in your mind, is there room for you to also store up God’s Word as well?

Think about this. What is the only unmistakable evidence that an apple tree is an apple tree? ANSWER - It has apples on it. The fruit is all the evidence you need.

Jesus talked about the same thing in Matthew 7. He said “by their fruits you shall know them.” You can tell a lot about a person by the fruit of their lives.

The fruit of the Spirit filled life is outlined in Galatians 5.

Galatians 5:22-26 (NIV)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.

That’s the evidence of the Spirit filled life. The Fruit of the Spirit.

Authentic Christian Holiness is characterized by the Fruit of the Spirit.

The Spirit of God produces these character traits that are found in the nature of Christ. They are the by-products of Christ’s control in our lives. We can’t obtain them by trying to get them on our own. And we can’t live this way consistently apart from Him.

John 15:4-5 (NIV)
4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

If you want the fruit of the Spirit to grow in your life, you must join your life to the life of Christ. You must know Him, love Him, hear Him, and obey Him.

And once you are connected, you must stay connected. Because just like any branch will die if it is detached from the vine, you must stay connected to the life-giving Source which is Jesus Christ.

In talking about what holiness is, we learn that Anything less than being holy is not obedience, but disobedience

If we are not children of obedience, we are children of evil desires. We live out a life of disobedience. We do those things that God makes clear He is against.

EPHESIANS 5:1 says to Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.

My father is my hero, I’ve told him before, and I’ll tell him again. He means so much to me, and I want in so many ways to be just like him. Many of you imitated your parents when you were young. I remember him letting me use an old shaver with the razor taken out of it. He’d take his old shaving mug and fill it with the cream, and take his shaving brush and brush the shaving cream on his face. Then he’d give me what was left, and I’d smear it all over my face. I’d shave just like him, minus the razor, imitating what he did. I’d look up and he’d be smiling at me, and I’d smile back.

But I’d often get in trouble. I’d get in trouble for lying, even though I never heard my father lie. I’d get in trouble for talking back, but my father never talked back. And even though I’d be imitating my father the best I could, I always got off course. When I got off course, I continued to go off course time and time again, even though My father was always there to punish and correct me.

Why do so many choose to stay in their disobedience, to stay away from the Holiness, to remain Unholy?

1.) Pleasure -- We are creatures of pleasure. Our society promotes an attitude: If it feels good do it. Like fools we buy into it. We may not do things that are “sinful” in our own minds. Maybe you eat a little too much of that food you like so well. Maybe you flirt with the co-worker because you like the attention. Maybe you spend money for the thrill that the purchase gives you. Even if you’re not willing to admit it, you do things that make you happy or feel good.

2.) Comfort -- We are also creature of comfort and there are times when we would kill rather than leave our comfort zone. We strive to that which we are comfortable with. This is why we often settle for far less than God wants for us. Growing spiritually is seldom comfortable. God stretches us and expands our limits. We like what we are comfortable with. Things that are comfortable give us a sense of security.

3.) Change -- The simple fact is that it is incredibly hard for people to change. People only change when they have enough information to make a decision or when they are hurting bad enough that they have to change. Change is hard but often difficult.
So we need to stop, and re-evaluate our lives. Ephesians 5 continues to say many of the same things Colossians warned us of: Sexual immorality, impurity and greed, obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes. It goes on to say that NO IMMORAL, IMPURE, OR GREEDY PERSON WILL INHERIT THE KINDGOM OF CHRIST AND GOD.

But the kicker is this, in verse 6. “Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him. Don’t participate in the things these people do. For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light.”.

I Thessalonians 4:7 says God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives. Therefore anyone who refuses to live by these rules is not disobeying human teaching but is rejecting God who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Luke tells us right before the story of the Wise Man and the foolish man in Luke chapter 6, in verse 46: So why do you keep calling me Lord, Lord, when you don’t do what I say!”

What does he say? I Peter 1:16 – Be Holy, for I am holy.

But I just want to do other things.

Be holy, for I am holy.

But my job keeps me from being involved in the church.

Be holy, for I am holy.

I’m struggling with pornography.

Be holy, for I am holy.

I only gossip at work, and its not about anyone here.

Be holy, for I am holy.

The world is calling my name, I need to go be with them:

Be holy, for I am holy.

God, I’m struggling, its so hard. I can’t go on. How can I be holy, I can’t be
like you. You’re God, you’re perfect. I’m so far from perfect.

Be holy, for I am holy.

Stop saying that God! I can’t be holy. I’ll I try and I try, but I’m never going to be holy.

Paul writes in Ephesians 2:10 that we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. He knows its impossible for us to perfect, but he planned for us to do good things.

There was a group of women in a Bible study on the book of Malachi. As they were studying chapter three, they came across verse three which says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver." (Malachi 3:3) This verse puzzled the women and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out about the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible study. That week this woman called up a silver smith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest in silver beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silver smith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot--then she thought again about the verse, that he sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.

She asked the silver smith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left even a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silver smith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"

He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy--when I see my image in it."

There’s a song called “Refiner’s Fire” whose words simply state the following:

Refiner’s Fire
my heart’s one desire
Is to be holy
Set apart for you Lord
I choose to be Holy
Set apart for you my master
Ready to do your will

What Are You Living For?

2009-07-28T09:31:00.000-05:00

Have you ever awakened in the morning and gone through your morning routine and suddenly asked yourself, “Where is my life headed?” Does it ever seem to you that you have had an empty and pointless life up to this point? There may have been some successful business deals and you may have had some fun, but in terms of satisfying friendships or lasting accomplishments, your life has been a zero. Maybe you have climbed the ladder of success, only to discover that all the while it had been leaning against the wrong wall.

When one takes a look at the life of Paul, how would you put a measuring stick to his life? Was he a success or a failure? I guess it all depends on whose yardstick you use to measure success. When measured by the world’s yardstick of success, his life seemed almost insignificant. He put too much aside in order to minister to the needs of others. As Paul looks back over matters, he saw that it had been rewarding but not easy.

Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy while languishing in a cold, damp dungeon awaiting execution. In a matter of weeks, the apostle would stand before Nero, the half-insane emperor of Rome, and learn that his life was coming to an end. But Paul knew that after his death he would receive the crown of life from the King of kings. History will reveal to us that the influence of his life had in reality changed the course of history itself. As Paul penned the words of that last epistle, he stated “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (II Timothy 4:7). Wouldn’t it be grand to one day have the same confidence that the apostle had and to look over our life and say with confidence what he had penned centuries earlier.

Nero made a mark on history also. Ancient historians as well as modern historians have written volumes about the splendor of Nero and the vast Roman Empire. These same historians rarely if ever mention the apostle Paul. He was simply another radical who was put to death by the emperor. It is interesting to note that in our society we name our dogs Nero and our sons Paul. It seems to me that what we live for is pretty important after all. I think it would benefit each of us to simply review what it is that we are living for. Remember there are no losers with Jesus and no winners with the devil.

May each of you be blessed with a life that is fulfilled in service to the master.

"Lost" bringing back characters from 1st season

2009-07-27T10:43:00.000-05:00

Reuters
By James Hibberd James Hibberd – Sun Jul 26, 9:25 pm ET

SAN DIEGO (Hollywood Reporter) – The characters Juliet Burke (Elizabeth Mitchell) and Daniel Faraday (Jeremy Davies) will be back on ABC's "Lost" next year, along with several other characters who haven't been seen since the first season, producers said over the weekend during a panel presentation at the Comic-Con convention.

The revelation confirms reports that suggested a "Lost" reunion of sorts for the final season. In May's finale, the castaways detonated a bomb on the mysterious island in hopes of resetting the last several years of their lives.

The news was among a scant few tidbits dropped during a well-produced hour in San Diego that featured several new mock ads and parody shorts, but no new video from the final season.

"There's a good chance you'll be seeing many characters you haven't seen since the first season again," said executive producer Damon Lindelof.

The final season, producers said, will in some ways resemble the first.

"(In the first season, the characters) were running around the jungle, things felt intense and surprising and (there was) the emotional discovery about the characters," said executive producer Carlton Cuse. "We have a way that we're going to be able to do that in the final season too."

Yet fans shouldn't think that any sort of narrative reboot will invalidate everything that's already happened, "because that would be a real big cheat," said Jorge Garcia, who plays Hugo on the show.

"Just trust us," reassured Cuse.

The show will also employ a new narrative device that's unique to the final season.

"The time-travel season is over, the flash-forward season is over," Lindelof said. "We're going to do something different."

As for lingering mysteries about the show's story, "everything that matters we're gonna answer," assured Lindelof.

Fans camped overnight to see the "Lost" panel at Comic-Con, which occupied the pop-culture convention's largest ballroom, usually reserved for presentations on major summer movies.

Other news from the panel:

* The matter of the mysterious Dharma food drops will be solved ... but there won't be much about the Dharma Initiative in the final season.

* Asked if the mysterious Jacob has ever appeared as any other character in the series, Lindelof said "no."

(Editing by Sheri Linden at Reuters)

Open your Eyes

2009-07-23T13:00:00.002-05:00

I have always loved reading all the old Peanuts cartoon strips in the paper. There is a simple humor about the characters that Charles Shultz developed. The first Peanuts strip ran in 1950. In February of 2000 after 17,897 comic strips, the series came to an end. Recently there was one in the paper that caught my attention. Snoopy is looking up into the sky and is communicating with his friend Woodstock. Snoopy says “You have? You’ve actually flown above the clouds?” In the next frame, Snoopy continues and says; “Wow! What was it like?” In the final frame Woodstock mumbles something to snoopy (I guess in animal talk). Snoopy responds, “Well you shouldn’t have closed your eyes.”

I believe there are a number of things that we are blind to in our life. We hurry from place to place and never take the time to open our eyes to see the beauty that is around us. Maybe it is a scarlet red maple tree that we drive by every day. It might be a beautiful sunset as the clouds disappear just at the right time to allow the sun to set in all of its beautiful glory. There are times when you could slow down and watch the birds gather around your bird feeder and enjoy the meal that you have left for them. There are countless items that we seem to be blind to, or seemingly have our eyes closed just like Woodstock.

As important as it is to keep our eyes open to the beauty and might of God’s wonderful creation, it is even more import to keep our eyes open to the word of God. To know and understand what God’s will is for each of us. Wouldn’t it be a shame to go through life with our eyes closed to the wonderful teaching of God’s word. It is in God’s word, the Bible that we can gain strength to face another day. II Thessalonians 3:3 tells us “But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” When I know that I can face the day with renewed optimism, it gives me an entirely different outlook on life. If I closed my eyes to that simple truth, imagine what I would be missing. What would my life be if I closed it to the truths of Romans 15:4; “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” Isn’t it wonderful to be able to read the beloved stories of the Bible and receive encouragement so that I can have hope. As we go through life, let each of us resolve to keep our eyes open not only to the beauties around us, but also to the comfort that we can find in God’s word.

Don Meyer: A True Hero

2009-07-20T09:41:00.002-05:00

When I was a kid, my Grandfather and Grandmother Smith were some of the biggest Lipscomb University Basketball fans ever. They, along with the McKelvey's, had season tickets together, sitting proudly in McQuiddy Gymnasium watching the Bison play their games.

In 6th grade, I went to Lipscomb's basketball camp. I was fortunate enough to learn and study under this gentleman. It did me some good, because I ended up coaching on a State Championship team at Westbury Christian.

Don Meyer has touched the lives of so many. Now, he's had impact on even more. This could be the best 5 minutes or so of television I've ever seen: (this link may end up being kicked off of YouTube, if it does I'm sorry)

Getting Fit Week 10

2009-07-16T23:05:00.004-05:00

A bit scary yes, but this after 10 weeks in the gym. Still not perfect, but I'm trying my best. I've always had pretty scrawny arms, so I'm trying to pump those up. While I haven't been working the biceps out that much, I've really been working my triceps hard.

My posture has always been pretty poor. I've probably worked my back and shoulders out more than I ever have. I personally think my back, shoulders, and neck area are looking better than ever.

This is the side profile shot that shows how skinny people are. As you can tell, I'm still not skinny. In fact, I haven't lost any real weight, but my body fat percentage has dropped about 5%. I'm still working on chest definition, which has a looooong way to go, but I'm working the best I can on that. Its always been an issue for me.

From 2001 to 2003, I worked in the gym like a beast. Partially, because I was a coach and had free access to a gym, and partially because I wanted to finally be fit. During that time, I worked as hard as I could.

I have a long way to go. I know I do. But the silver lining in this is that I've stuck with this for 10 weeks now. I'm proud of myself. Its still a struggle to find time to work out. Some days, I have to go in the mornings because of afternoon and evening activities. Sometimes, the afternoon around 4 or 5 is the time to go. But all too often, the time falls in the evenings, around 8:30 or so. This is after Josie has gone to sleep. Kristen and I realize that if I want to stick around and be healthy, I have to go do this, no matter what.

I got myself into this mess, and I have to work hard now to clean it up.

Deep Water Faith in the Shallow End

2009-07-13T12:01:00.000-05:00

Do you ever notice that when you’re in the auditorium, listening to a sermon, a lesson, or participating in a moving worship service, that everything just seems to be real clear? You know what you have to do, what you should do. It seems to be easier to distinguish what is right and what is wrong. You know who you need to talk to about Jesus and the saving power that he offers, because the whole discussion is playing over in your head.

The problem is that the walk from our seats to our car is a long walk to make. Its easy to get pumped about sharing our faith with others while we’re amongst brothers and sisters who already know the Lord. That problem occurs when you’re out on your own.

Something happens between the altar and the door. You’re altar may be the church building, or the people who make up the church. It may be the close friend you sit next to on Sundays, or the families you look forward to seeing because they lift you up. Something happens, because now you’re on your own, relying on your own faith, your own walk with the Lord, to lead you and guide you.

You may start to question whether or not you can share with other people the good news of our Lord. Its so easy to have a deep faith when we’re surrounded by others who share that with us. However, please don’t forget, when you walk through those doors, Jesus is with you.

Jesus is going to walk through those doors with you. He's with you! He's ready to help you, no matter what the situation. You need to realize the commitment He has to you! Jesus walks with you every step of the way.

Sure its easier to have that deep faith on Sundays when everyone else is experiencing the same thing, but true deep faith occurs the rest of the week, when you’re out there away from the comfort of the elders and the ministers, the teachers and your friends.

There are so many areas of my life where I know I'm holding back because of fear, but I do see some freedom growing in those areas. What I find comforting is that Jesus hasn't started the journey across the bridge without me. Our shallow faith and religion tells us that Jesus keeps moving and if we don't move we'll be left behind. How can that be true when he said he would never leave us or forsake us? No. Instead, he's standing right there ahead of me encouraging me to go forward with him and, when I do, he'll be right there helping me to navigate the difficult journey.

Reclaiming America's Values

2009-07-06T11:09:00.000-05:00

Late night talk show host and HBO® special host Bill Maher recently represented those opposed to Biblical values on Larry King Live. In response to a question about restoring the separation of church and state he said:

“I hate to sound like a broken record. It has to take place at the top. When you have a president (this took place during the Bush presidency) who is this openly religious and this openly contemptible, in contempt, rather, of the separation of church and state, I don’t think anything is going to change until that changes. This is a man who proudly says that Jesus picked him to be president. You said something about, ‘You have to respect people’s beliefs.’ I know that’s what we always hear—we have to respect. I’m sorry, I don’t. I don’t respect religion. I don’t respect superstitious thinking, which is what religion is.”

“We talked about this before, this whole gay issue wouldn’t even be an issue except it says it in the Bible. The Bible, that book that has people who lived to be 900 years old and says the world is 6000 years old, and that there are people who lived in a whale. That infallible work of genius and slavery is okay. You should stone a guy to death if he works on Sunday. That’s the book that says, ‘Sorry, no homosexuals.’ So I’m sorry, I don’t respect people who believe in religion. I was religious when I was a kid. We all had dumb stuff drilled into our head. It doesn’t mean when you get to be an adult you can’t drill it out.”

Many social and political leaders of our era are attempting to discredit the teaching of the Bible and eliminate any accountability to God. The enemies of God are willing to ridicule Christians, rewrite history, sandblast Scripture off walls, redesign city seals to erase the cross, change the Pledge to remove any mention of God so we can live as we please.

But if there is no Creator, no validity to the Bible, then there is no foundation for right and wrong and the result is national confusion and chaos. “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people” (Proverbs 14:34).

If you neglect your car, it takes a while for the engine to become so polluted that it breaks down. And if a nation neglects its moral values, it takes a while for the complete collapse to occur, but it’s inevitable. Arnold Toynbee, respected historian, wrote that, of the 22 major civilizations in history, 19 collapsed from within. That was written before the fall of the Soviet Union. We are not exempt. Let’s reclaim America’s values!

The Day I Learned About Worship

2009-07-03T23:57:00.001-05:00

I can remember when it finally hit me. I was sitting in a hot, stuffy room that held about 25 people, but had 100 crammed into it. I was 17 years old, and had been a Christian for about 3 years, but never had fully grasped this whole “worship” thing. I knew all the songs that were being sung, but was just giving them lip service and nothing more.
I was in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. There was a Honduran man standing next to me. He was probably in his forties, but looked about 75 years of age. Years of poverty, working in the hot sun, and sub-standard living conditions had not been kind to him. There was a group of about 20 teenagers singing some devotional songs in English to a group of about 80 Spanish-speaking only adults and teenagers in a small community outside of the capital city. These songs, which were routine songs we had sung over and over again, had little to no meaning to me. I continued to sing, because we were supposed to, but my mind was on a trip to the soccer field later on in the day.
All of a sudden, while I was singing the song “Worthy Is the Lamb”, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I thought maybe one of the adult leaders of our trip needed me for something, so I looked behind me, but there was no one there. I looked next to me, and the older gentleman standing next to me had placed one hand on my shoulder, had his eyes closed, and had his other hand straight up in the air.
I already knew the man spoke no English, so he didn’t understand what our words meant. All he knew was that we were singing songs of praise to our God, and he wanted to participate in the worship as well. Even though we weren’t praising with the same language, we were both praising the same God. At that moment, I realized this “worship” thing was more than just singing a song, but it was an experience. It was something that I needed to understand more. At that moment, I felt a tear roll down my cheek, and I finally grasped that my worship to God was not just for my benefit, but was to first of all praise God, and second of all, to teach and admonish others.
Paul tells us in I Corinthians 14:19 that he would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language. That day, this man knew we were speaking of God, His Love, and His Grace. Those words were enough for him to enter into his own time of worship. Today, we’re going to learn how to grow in our worship to God. May God bless our worship service today, and accept our praise to Him.

Update on my sister

2009-06-04T12:06:00.002-05:00

Here's an update on my sister. She had a small set back, but she seems to be taking it in stride. Please continue to pray for her. Its not the best news, but its definitely not the worst.

This is from her blog, which you can link to on your right:

The right side where there was no cancer was perfectly fine. No cancer in the breast and no cancer in the lymph nodes. The cancer on the left side was a smaller then they thought. It was 1 1/2 cm and all the margins were clean and it did not appear attached to anything. The sentinel lymph node that they took out first was a little larger then normal. At first glance in the operating room, there appeared no cancer cells. As they did a little more investigating, there were 2 specks of cancer in the lymph node. The largest was 1 1/2 mm (not cm, but millimeters).

Dr. Lawson wants to go back in and take a few more lymph nodes out and test them. She wants to do this to plan my treatment better. She told me that I might benefit with having radiation done on my chest wall. This will probably guarantee that I will have to have chemotherapy. By doing this, I can lower my chance of the cancer coming back in the remaining tissue.

I will have to have surgery again but this time, I will do it as an outpatient surgery so I can get home quicker. I don't know what the date will be but I will let post it when I find out. I have found that this is annoying. It definitely is not what I wanted it to be but cancer is not simple and I knew that from the beginning.

Right now, I want to back to some type of normal. I miss spending time with my kids and doing for them. I miss sleeping comfortably on my bed and I miss Kevin sleeping beside me. I miss fixing dinner at night (but don't get me wrong, I LOVE having meals ready to fix.) I really miss taking a long hot shower. Right now I am just whining and after a good night's rest, I will feel better.

This is just another step that I have to take to get back to being myself. I am will do this and get it done and fight my way back to healthy. Thank you for all your prayers and keep praying.

Her first birthday cake...followed by her first sugar rush

2009-06-01T13:33:00.002-05:00

This is the sugar rush that came after her first bite of birthday cake. She had not enjoyed the taste that is sugar, and she rather enjoyed it.

She enjoyed it so much, that when I asked her how the cake was, she answered this way:

Guess who turns 1 today?

2009-05-27T15:37:00.004-05:00

Josie on the day she was born!

A year ago today, we were all just anxiously awaiting her arrival. As we sat in the delivery room at Crestwood Hospital in Huntsville, AL, we knew our lives were about to change. Finally at 7:19 pm, Josie Layne Widick was born into this world. Never has there been a greater girl born.

A lot has happened in a year, especially the big move from Guntersville to Houston. And now, as we celebrate her first birthday, we have arrived at my parent's house in Lebanon, TN to support my sister as she is about to have her surgery.

I thought I'd place a few pics so you could see how she looks now that she's a whole year old.

Josie's new toy for her first birthday!
Josie takin a dip in the backyard.
Josie in her rocking chair holding the Raggedy Ann doll my mom made for her.
Josie and I about to go see the Alligators at Brazos Bend outside of Houston.

Praying for my sister

2009-05-26T10:55:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow, Wednesday May 27, we will be flying home to Nashville to be with my family for my sister's surgery. We will be there till late Saturday afternoon, and then we'll fly back to Houston.

At this time, I ask you to all take a moment over the next few days and say a special prayer for Mary Anne. The surgery is scheduled for Thursday morning. They will check her lymph nodes first to make sure nothing has spread, and then begin the procedure.
My sister got a new haircut with the pink highlights, in support of Breast Cancer Awareness.
Faith got a pink hair extension put in her hair.
Even my mom got in on the action. Never thought I'd see this, but its pretty cool, to say the least.

While I'm not going to be putting a pink strip in my hair, or my beard (thanks to all that suggested it), I did buy a pink polo shirt and will be wearing it to support Mary Anne.

Getting fit is a God thing for me now

2009-05-19T21:37:00.002-05:00

I joined the gym on May 4th. Since then I have been consistently, doing weight/resistance training 3 times a week, doing cardio on those days for 20 minutes, and then doing cardio two other days a week for 40-60 minutes.

I never realized how spiritual working out could be. I get the best thoughts and ideas while working out. Most of them are centered on God, and what I can do in my life to honor him. I have been to the gym now a total of 12 times since I joined, and there have been days when I didn't want to go at all, but I powered through and made it.

Everyday, as I pull into the gym parking lot, I'm amused by people who are waiting on a car to pull out of a spot that is closer to the door. That just cracks me up. I also have a pre-gym ritual I do each time I pull into the parking lot:

1. Pray
2. Listen to the song "He's A Pirate" on the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack

I go into the gym, get changed, put my ipod shuffle on, and head upstairs to do my 20 minute cardio warm up. Then, on the weight days, I move on to my area to do my resistance training. On days when I'm just doing cardio, I will either stay on the same machine for another 20 minutes, or move to another one.

I've realized that there are some songs that really get me going while I'm working out or running. Here are a few, and if you have any other suggestions, let me know:

1. Baba O'Reily by The Who
2. The Distance by Cake
3. Here Is Our King by David Crowder Band
4. Stronger by Kanye West
5. Vertigo by U2
6. Nuisance by John Reuben
7. Separate Ways by Journey
8. Pierced by Audio Adrenaline

Anything I'm missing?

By the way, please remember to pray for my sister, Mary Anne Walton, who is having surgery on May 28. Lord willing, Kristen, Josie and I will be making the trip to be up there with her.

For a Lifetime

2009-05-08T20:34:00.002-05:00

I can't even begin to count the amount of times I've posted about struggles with my weight. This would probably be the 6th or 7th time in past three years I've brought this up. However, I would like to hope that this time is a bit different.

Kristen and I are very budget conscious, and we have a very limited budget to work with. Now that we have a child and we are a one income household, some things have been restricted in our home. After we moved to Houston, we found that there were about 6 different gyms within a two mile radius of our home. As I looked around, I found that all of them were anywhere from $35 to $55 a month to join. I thought that was preposterous. However, in wanting to commit to getting in shape, I went and looked at one.

The one I looked at happened to be called Lifetime Fitness. When I walked in, it was unlike any gym I had ever seen. It was so clean, full of smiling happy employees going out of there way to make sure I knew where I was going. I spoke with a customer service guy who showed me all over the place, and I was sold. We had a decision to make -- do we both join for $100 a month, or do I join for $50?

Kristen is very happy jogging outside, and she does it quite often. She also enjoys doing her pilates dvd in the living room. She is real committed, however, I am not. We decided that I would join for now, and if we come into some money later on, she could join (they offer free child care as part of your membership, and child care area is stellar to say the least).

The first time I went to the gym, I was set up with a personal trainer who was tasked with the job of measuring how fat and out of shape I really am. With a sister who was just diagnosed with cancer at 35, and a brother who had a heart attack at 36, it concerns me greatly that I have not taken care of myself. With the test, the following was determined:

1. For a 6'2" guy, I weighed 254 pounds. This puts my body mass index (BMI) just slightly into the obese category. However, the BMI is rarely correct.

2. My cardiovascular endurance is in the very poor category.

3. My bicep strength is in the good to excellent category.

4. My sit and reach was in the poor category. This is that exercise when you put your feet against a box that has a guide on it that measures how far you can reach with your legs completely straight. I have no flexibility whatsoever.

5. Based on the computerized model taking into consideration my heart rate after a brief stress test, I am in the overweight category, almost into the obese category.

6. My overall fitness is in the "fair" category.

What all of this means is that I'm completely out of shape. Out of 254 pounds, 82 pounds of my body is complete fat. My body size should only have approximately 19 pounds of fat. I am told by their computers that if follow their plan for 42 weeks, at 3 times a week of working out and 5 times a week of cardio, I can reach those goals, and get down to 191 pounds.

The most sobering part of this was the actual age versus body age category. I am 31 years old, but my body age is actual at 41 years old. This is based upon my body composition, my cardiovascular strength, flexibility and my strength rankings.

So this week, I have been to the gym 4 times. Here's to many more weeks, and a greater health and total lifestyle change.

Introducing Henry Ian Cusick as...

2009-05-03T16:23:00.002-05:00

So we're at church on Sunday morning. Calvin uses a video clip to demonstrate anger, from the film "The Gospel of John". I had no clue who i would see in the clip of Jesus overturning the money tables in the temple. Watch the clip below, at around the 7:00 minute mark is where we started our clip Sunday morning:

Striking resemblance to this man?

I never knew Desmond was also Jesus...at least portrayed Jesus in the Gospel of John.

Update on my sister

2009-05-01T11:24:00.002-05:00

Mary Anne will be having surgery on May 28. She asks all of us to pray for her. One way you can keep up with what's going on is on her new blog: "A Journey of Hope and Peace" Please follow her journey, and post some encouraging comments on the way.

You can also join the facebook group: "Support for Mary Anne" started by her husband, Kevin Walton. I sent many of you an invite through Facebook, but if I forgot, please go and join!

In Need of Prayers

2009-04-28T15:36:00.003-05:00

In the process of making the move, several things have kind of fallen by the wayside temporarily, and one of those things is this blog. I just wanted you all to know that we're alive and well, and things are going smoothly. We're still settling on a few things, but overwhelmingly most of our move is complete.

I know I have several readers, not many that post comments, however, but for this post, comments are not necessary, only prayers are needed.

Last night, I discovered that my sister, Mary Anne Walton, has developed cancer in one of her breasts. They went to do a biopsy several days ago, and it came back cancerous. She is faced with several big decisions as to what her next step will be in this process.

I ask that all of you stop what you're doing and offer up a prayer on her behalf. Mary Anne will be 35 years old in May. This just isn't supposed to happen, but it has. Pray for her that the cancer can be removed completely. Pray for her husband, Kevin, who works so hard and diligently to support his family. Pray for their two children, Faith and John Derrick, who are just wonderful kids and are a testimony to how Mary Anne and Kevin live their lives.

Both of my grandmother's had breast cancer, so this does run in the family I suppose. But its still just so alarming that it happened to her at such a young age. I know so many of you will help us out by praying. If any of you want to send her an email, send it to me, and I will forward it on to her at lanewidick@gmail.com

God bless you all.

Getting Settled

2009-04-20T14:22:00.003-05:00

The past week has been a very challenging one. Josie got sick last Sunday with a Croup type cough, and made her first visit to her new Pediatrician. I was busy getting acquanited with things at the office. Kristen was unpacking boxes and setting up the house.

Then, I caught whatever it was that Josie had, and I'm just now starting to get over it. Fortunately, Kristen has remained healthy through this whole ordeal. If she gets sick, then the whole house will fall apart.

We've been here working with the church at West University for a week now, and we're getting to know the people more and more. Its a church that has a lot of hope and excitement, and wants to grow and prosper the best it can. Its a tough dynamic working in the downtown area of a larger city, especially since most people live in the suburbs. By the time they fight traffic to get home on Wednesday nights, they don't typically have a chance to make it back to evening services. Its just different than what we're used to doing.

Pray for our work here. I'm acting as an Associate Minister, which covers a whole lot of things. Some of the main areas I am working with is Worship Leading, Media Management, Young Families, and helping put together some sort of youth program. We currently do not have many teens, but there a whole lot of children. The problem is retaining them when they reach those teen years, because there's not a developed youth program. If anyone has any resources for me, I would gladly accept the advice.

Once we get interent set up at our house, I promise things will return to more of a regular pattern with my posting. It should be within the next two weeks or so.

God bless you all.

Moving Right Along

2009-04-09T22:35:00.003-05:00

I just realized it has been several weeks since I posted anything, so I thought I would catch everyone up:

Tonight, I'm sitting in a hotel room in Hattiesburg, MS, on our way to Sugarland, TX. Today, the moving truck came and loaded up all our stuff, and it will meet us there on Saturday. (By the way, This Side Up Moving based in Madison, AL, is an excellent company, if you ever need to move). We drove about 5 hours tonight, and we'll drive the other 7 or so tomorrow. We're going to "camp out" in our new home tomorrow night in sleeping bags. How fun!

This past Sunday, we said goodbye to our family and friends at the Guntersville Church of Christ. It was a great day. I was able to preach on Sunday morning, with a sermon entitled "Deep Water Faith In The Shallow End". That night, they had a wonderful going away ceremony for us.

I think the thing that made the transition easier for us was that everyone understood and supported our decision to get out of youth ministry and into a different role. Thank you to all those at Guntersville for making the last three years great.

As for an update on my car that had the tree fall on it, it is finally fixed. The first day that they "fixed" it and I drove it home, I realized the driver's side mirror was rather shaky. I took it back up there the next day, and they said they would order another mirror. When they got the new one in, it was still shaky. Since that one didn't work, and both of those were aftermarket mirrors, they ordered a factory mirror. That didn't work either. They started to look at the door, thinking that when the tree hit the mirror, that it bent the door frame, so they ordered me a new door.

The new door came in on the Wednesday before we were supposed to move. They ran it through quick, and I received a call late Wednesday afternoon. They told me they had the new door on. I said "GREAT!! Did that fix the problem?", and they said "No, it did not."

So after three new mirrors and a new door, the problem still was not fixed. As a last resort, they asked me when I was leaving, and I told them today at 2:00. They asked if they could keep one more day, because they had found a used mirror on in a town about an hour away. They pulled off a junk Accord.

Today, at 1:45, they called and said it was done. It was fixed. So after 3 new mirrors and a new door, the problem was that Honda's new mirrors are no good. They told me that the used one weighed about two pounds more than the newer ones. No wonder the mirror shook like a leaf in the wind.

I probably won't have internet access till later next week, but I wanted to keep all those remaining readers up to date on the situation. Pray for us, and look for a new web address for my blog in the next few weeks, since I am no longer a youth minister, it just doesn't make sense!

Visions of the future

2009-03-17T14:36:00.002-05:00

While we were in Houston house hunting, we went to a local mall. We had left our stroller at the hotel room, so we rented an alligator stroller with a steering wheel. This is a look into the future, and one that I know will come all too soon.

New home pictures and other things that may interest a few of you

2009-03-17T09:49:00.002-05:00

If you would like to see pictures of our new home GO HERE!!!

Of course, we still have to finalize everything, but I think its all going to work out.

Its hard enough to close on a house locally, but its even more complicated to try to close on a house four states away!! Trying to find an insurance agent, finalize the mortgage lending requirements, and making sure all goes smoothly is a rather exhaustive task, but we'll make it, nonetheless.

Update on my car:

Still not fixed. Apparently, while we were gone last week to house hunt, they shipped the wrong hood to the body shop two different times. Also, two of the dashboard lights came on, and now we have to wait and see if they came on due to the tree falling on the car. They have to prove it was the tree's fault. My question is, how do you prove it wasn't the tree's fault? They didn't come on till after the tree hit the car!

We are having a MOVING SALE this weekend at our house. We're selling furniture such as two audio/video towers, a full size bed with frame, mattress, headboard, and a couple of chairs.

We're also selling a surround sound system, a slightly used Bowflex, books, clothes, a 27 inch tv in great condition, dishes and much more! We have to fit all our stuff into one 26 foot truck!! If you're interested in any of this stuff, let me know.

Hopefully it will be a good sale. We're having it in the parking lot of the Guntersville Church of Christ. Come on by and visit.

House Hunting update

2009-03-12T09:49:00.002-05:00

Well, here's the update on the house hunt:

Monday, we went and looked at about 40 homes all around the western side of Houston. It was all rather overwhelming. Some of the homes were wonderful, some were not so much. Josie was a little trooper, getting in and out of her car seat over and over again. She had a wonderful time! She loved looking at all the homes (except the really gross ones!)

There was one home in particular, about midway through the day, that we really loved. It was a smaller home, and at the higher end of our budget, but it was the home we kept comparing the rest of them against. But, being at the higher end of our budget we were unsure whether or not it would be a fit for me.

After looking at all the rest of the homes for the day, we decided to sleep on it, and go back to the one we liked the next day. After we looked at it a second time, we knew that it was the home for us. We had a few things we had to consider and factor in, however.

First, I had to call my CPA and ask him to rush my numbers for what I would need to set aside for taxes the upcoming year. When he told me what my take home pay would be after taxes, it had us falling short about $150.

Second, we called our mortgage guy, and asked him to run the numbers based upon what we were offering for the house. After he ran the numbers, believe it or not, it ended up being $150 less per month than what he had initially told me. Bingo, that's what we needed to hear. We made the offer, and they accepted!!

However, yesterday, at the home inspection, we learned that the house's roof was at the end of its life. We were nervous that they might not take care of that, since we had asked them to pay our closing costs. However, they realized that if they didn't replace it for us, they would probably have to replace it for someone else.

This morning, I'm meeting with our mortgage guy, and then I'll go back over to the Realtor's office to finalize everything, Lord willing.

Say a little prayer for us this morning, that all will go well. Thanks for all the prayers so far!!

House Hunters

2009-03-10T09:11:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone. Kristen and I are spending the week in Houston, house hunting. Some markets are great, affordable and safe, but those markets are an hour commute from the church.

Other markets are at the tip top of our price range, and would make our budget tight, but is in a very safe area, 20 minutes from church, and has a high resale value.

We have been praying hard, and we're asking all of you to do the same, so we can get in the best home for us. Its a huge decision, especially when you only have a week to make it!

We'll keep you updated, if you promise to pray.

If a tree falls on your car, and no one is around, does it crush a car?

2009-03-02T08:40:00.004-06:00

Yesterday was not a good day. At around 3 in the afternoon, our doorbell rang. I was holding Josie, trying to calm her down, and Kristen had gotten up to put some laundry away. Kristen came in to open up the front door. Living next to the church building, we get a lot of "can we borrow your keys" moments. That is what I was expecting on a Sunday afternoon.

What I heard was a "Is this your white Honda Accord out here?", and then a "OH MY GOODNESS!!!" from Kristen. I got up, and discovered this:

So, anyone know a good body shop guy in Guntersville?

I was going to say that this is the worst time for this to happen, but the more I think about, is there ever a good time for a tree to fall on your car?

Now I'm on the phone with AT&T, trying to get someone to come out to fix the phone line that came down with the tree. We're also waiting for the Insurance people to call. I don't mind things happening like this, its just all the seeming bureaucracy that one must go through to get things fixed.

This too shall pass.

And to top it all off, the letter "p" key on my keyboard just popped off.

Sigh.

Time for a change

2009-02-26T09:00:00.004-06:00

No, I'm not quoting Barack Obama. This is not a political post, but very much so a personal post.

I'm getting out of youth ministry.

Let me say that again: I'm getting out of youth ministry. I know some of you are in complete shock. Others of you are shaking your head in agreement. Those of you who know me understand this is the best thing for me.

Kristen and I have been very prayerful over this. Since I left a complicated situation in Memphis, TN, I have been working in a career that I was not fully comfortable doing. Youth Ministry is a wonderful calling, and it takes a very special person to do it. I, however, have been feeling a pull to go towards a different area of ministry for a while now.

We had talked to a few different churches, looking at a few different roles, when one jumped to the head of the pack. It was an Associate Minister position, in a little town called Houston, TX.

We went to visit, and fell in love with the church family, but most importantly, it seemed like the position was the perfect fit for us. We got back on a Monday, and by the time I had woken up on Tuesday, they had offered us a job. We prayed over it for a week or so, and saw other doors closing, and this one opening wider.

I will be serving as their full time Associate Minister, working with pulpit minister to fill in for him when he is gone. I will also be working with Evangelism, helping do Bible studies. I'll be teaching adult classes, particularly to young families. In addition, I'll be helping grow their small groups, be responsible for all the media and presentation for Sunday morning worship, and help out with a budding teen group.

I have enjoyed my time here in Guntersville, and there are many individuals and families here who have helped me and Kristen grow. I'll always remember it here, because this was Josie's first home. Speaking of Josie, she'll be 9 months old tomorrow. Here are a few pictures:

Josie loves these "stacking rings", but doesn't use them to stack. She loves to take them with her everywhere she goes. Usually she has the orange and yellow ones, but sometimes she goes for blue.

This one just looks like a mug shot.

But she has a gorgeous smile. It'll just melt your heart!

And of course...Josie is now mobile. Look out world!!

God's Family Part 2

2009-02-23T14:26:00.002-06:00

Deuteronomy 6:4-5
4 "Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.
5 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.

Notice that Moses doesn’t say we’re to fear God or study Him or even serve Him. In this passage, the command is simply to love. As parents, that should be a very natural thing. It also should be the most important thing.

However, training up children begins with moms and dads learning how to love God with their whole person – heart, mind, will, strength. If parents can't do that, it makes it impossible for us to teach our children about the love of God.

Even though Paul was not married, he possessed that kind of strong character, and he passed it on to his followers as a father would do to his children.

PHILIPPIANS 4:9
9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.

The basic truth demonstrated by Paul, for all parents to remember, is that nothing can happen through us until it has happened to us. We cannot give what we do not have. We cannot train up our children to love God with all their heart, soul, and might if we don’t love God with all of ours. Its not enough to just send them to Sunday School, and hope that they "get it" while they are in "church". In fact, that’s not even close. Real parenting, the kind God wants accomplished in the home, relies completely on the reality of the parents’ own love for the Lord. If its not there, whatever instruction we give our children will likely come off as a noisy gong or clanging cymbal (I COR. 13:1) And the longer and louder we bang out our sermons, the more our children will probably just cover their ears.

Come on, our children are smart, and they see right through us when we aren't living how we expect them to live. Let's give the children of this generation a bit more credit. As we learned at Winterfest this past weekend, Love God, Love others. Our children have to see us love God and love others for them to believe it.

Cardboard Testimony

2009-02-12T09:18:00.002-06:00

There are many churches that are doing "Cardboard Testimonies" now. If you haven't heard about them, it is where a person rights where their lives were before Christ/before present relationship with Christ/etc., and then they flip it over to reveal where their lives are now.

One of the more moving ones I've seen was done by Richland Hills Church of Christ, and its worth going to watch. Please visit their site by clicking HERE and watch the video, and then come back and tell me what you think.

The problem for me is, I don't know if I'm quite ready to flip the cardboard over.

God's Family? Hardly.

2009-02-10T10:11:00.002-06:00

For the last few months, I've been fascinated with the idea of taking our youth ministry into a new direction. I feel like too often times, our ministries become too closely associated with who is in charge, who is involved, or what is going on, instead of focusing on God.

This is not a slam on any parents here in Guntersville. I have some of the best parents to work with that a minister could ask for. The problem is, just like with the rest of America, that time is a precious commodity that not too many families possess.

When I was a child, my father, my mother, my brother, and my sister and I always ate breakfast together during the school year, and on Sundays. We ate dinner together probably 99% of the time. It was important. Even if nothing was said, we were there together.

A recent Cornell University study revealed that fathers in America, on average, only spend 37 seconds a day with their children. I know part of that takes into consideration the deadbeat dads that want nothing to do with a family, but a lot of that is because of how much we work in our society.

A typical family of four now a days all wake up at a different time. They may or may not even eat breakfast. Dad goes to work, mom usually goes to work, kids may catch two different school buses or two different car pools to school, or they may drive separately. The family is separated for at least 7 hours during the school day.

After that, kids may come home, or have extra curricular activities at school to practice for, and may not make it home till 5 or so. Regardless, parents may not make it home till 5, so that's another 2 hours they are apart. Son goes to his room, daughter goes to her room to work on homework or play on the internet. Dinner may be together, but most often it is grab what you can before an evening activity, such as a ball game or practice for something. Parents are home just enough to sit down and get right back up.

They come home from an event, practice, etc, and separate at the door to go to their rooms to get ready for bed, or finish (or start) on their homework. Mom and dad are exhausted from work and other things during the day, and one may go to bed while the other goes to watch some tv and relax for a bit. They all may go to bed, before the whole process starts again. In this model, the families are together for about one, maybe 2 hours a day.

So enter Wednesday nights, what can we do to make our families more involved together on Wednesday nights? I fully believe if we offer a family based ministry instead of the typical youth group model, that it will fundamentally change our families and how they interact with each other. The sad thing is that most families don't have family devotionals, pray together, open up the Bible and read together, or other spiritual activities.

Maybe its time when we come to church as God's family, to have an opportunity for our families to get together every now and then. Maybe have a class where families can meet together, and gain strength and support from each other.

More thoughts on this to follow.

Super Favorites

2009-02-06T15:10:00.003-06:00

I've been gone for the last week, so I'm just now getting around to this. I thought I would post my favorite Super Bowl Commercials. This year, the commercials were not nearly as funny/good as in past years, but here are my 2 favorites:

Pedigree Pets

Cash 4 Gold

25 Random Things

2009-01-26T08:47:00.002-06:00

Okay, so I have been tagged on Facebook and numerous other blogs to do this "25 Random Things About Myself" post, so I thought I would go ahead and do it. Here's for all you who think you know me, or who don't me at all.

1. I have been going bald since I was 17 years old.
2. In high school, I was the star of many plays. I played Conrad Birdie in Bye Bye Birdie, Captain Von Trapp in the Sound of Music, Tommy Albright in Brigadoon, George Bailey in Its A Wonderful Life, and Wilson in the play Harvey.
3. I dated my wife for about 5 months, broke up with her, didn't talk to her for about a year, and then we started dating again, while we were 900 miles apart!
4. I have an unnatural addiction to diet soft drinks. Preferably Diet Dr. Pepper, but if that's not available, Diet Coke will do.
5. I was the Assistant Coach on a Girl's State Championship Basketball Team in Houston, TX -- The Westbury Christian Lady Wildcats.
6. One of my all time favorite movies is the movie "Grease"
7. I have preached from the same pulpit that Alexander Campbell once spoke from.
8. I was one semester away from having an Elementary Education degree before I changed my Major to Bible.
9. I directed two Makin Music shows, one got second, the other got first.
10. I never finished behind Sigma Rho in a Makin Music show while I was at Freed Hardeman.
11. I proposed to my wife on Christmas Day. She said yes.
12. I have met Lute Olsen, Bill Self, Rick Pitino, and Mike Krzyzewski. The funny thing is, I'm not really that big a fan of college basketball.
13. I was once mistaken for Bill Goldberg. That was back in the day when I worked out everyday, shaved my head and had a goatee.
14. I preached my first sermon when I was 14 years old.
15. When I was a kid, my goal in life was to be a movie director/movie writer/or a novelist.
16. I absolutely love playing strategy games, especially Risk. However, I have recently taken to a game called The Settlers of Catan.
17. I worked as a camp counselor for 4 years while I was in college. I spent every night outside on a porch all through the summer, in west TN, in 98 degree heat and 99% humidity.
18. I have never taken a sip of coffee. I never will.
19. I have never had one drink of alcohol. I never will. (Not that I'm judging anyone who does drink, but I never will!)
20. I love God, I love His Church, but I can't stand the Politics of the church. Somehow, I just don't think God intended for it to be this way.
21. I love volleyball. I coached a high school team which produced two Division 1 college players, I coached a travel team here in Guntersville, and I married a wonderful woman who played at Freed Hardeman.
22. I have never seen Bambi, Cinderella, Snow White, or many other Disney movies.
23. I know absolutely nothing about fixing cars. I can change a tire, that's about it.
24. I can't fall asleep unless I am watching something on tv. 99% of the time, I have old Friends episodes on DVD playing.
25. My first job was working and cooking for a catering business in Lebanon, TN.

There you go! I won't tag anyone, because no one I ever tag ever does these things. However, if you're a reader, consider yourself tagged!

You've Just Got To Read This!!!

2009-01-21T09:35:00.002-06:00

Okay, well it may not be all that exciting to you, but it is to me and several million other people tonight.

The most amazing television show ever produced comes back on tonight. LOST returns on ABC. Be sure to watch it. I'm sure they'll be some dialogue on it tomorrow on Jason's blog over at Already and Not Yet.

Which brings me to another thought: What are your favorite television shows of all time? Some of my favorites include --

1. The Office
2. Friends
3. The A-Team
4. Survivor
5. The Cosby Show
6. Everybody Loves Raymond
7. American Idol
8. The Simpsons
9. Sportscenter (not sure if that counts or not)

History? Indeed it is.

2009-01-20T09:30:00.002-06:00

Today, in just a few minutes from now, the United States of America will watch the changing of power in the one of the greatest offices held by a single person in the world.

Many years ago, when the Federalist party representative John Adams was voted out of the office of the presidency after one term, he was so bitter and angry that he left Washington in the dark of the night. Thomas Jefferson, one of his beloved friends yet arch enemy, was the first president sworn in on location in Washington. He walked over to the partially finished Capital Building to deliver his inauguration speech.

Since then, while the transfer of power may not always have been so easy on the inside, publicly, the transition has been celebrated. Parades, speeches, hundreds of thousands of people witnessing the power shift live, and millions more on television, have made inauguration day a special day.

While some President-elects have been more popular to the media than others, none since John F. Kennedy have commanded such a celebration as the one that will be held today for Barack Obama, Senator from Illinois. Oh, and by the way, its not only because he's the first African American to be elected to that position.

Sure, its historic for that reason. Americans, for the most part, have gotten over the idea that it has to be run by one race of people. The guy won the popular vote and the Electoral college, so he won fair and square. Did he tell some lies on his way to the White House, sure. But you tell me one President who didn't tell lies on his way to office.

I think the history in the making far surpasses just the racial aspect. This is a shift in power from the Baby Boomer generation to Generation "X", or the Baby Bust Generation. While the Baby Boomer's still make up a strong part of our country, they no longer hold the power of the office of Presidency. With the beginning of Generation X'ers starting with those born in 1961 going through 1981, President-Elect Obama fits the bill, and also, so do I.

This means people my age have a new voice in the Presidency. While I may not agree with everything Obama has promised to do, there are a lot of people who find hope in what he offers. I would, indeed, love cheaper health insurance, lower taxes, and to be able to help the poor. But, can he make these things happen? Only time will tell.

I do know this -- Barack Obama will fail if we don't get behind him and support him. There were a lot of things George Bush did for which we the American people seemingly gave up on him. As Christians, we have an obligation to submit to the rulers of the land, and also to pray for them.

You can complain all you want, but he's here to stay for at least 4 years. Get used to it. Pray for him and our country that we take things in the right direction. When have you ever known complaining for four years to make anything better? No, Obama is not our Savior or Messiah as the media may proclaim, but he hasn't had one day in office, and so many are already ready to dismiss him as a horrible president.

And for the record, any of you who are reading this who hang out with me on a daily, semi daily, weekly, semi-weekly, monthly, semi-monthly, yearly or semi-yearly basis...can the racist jokes and talk. I don't want to hear it, there is no place for it on my ears or my in my heart. They are not funny. Besides, I don't see any of you in the White House.

May God bless Obama and the next 4 years. May we get behind him and support him and encourage him when he takes in the right direction, and pray for him when he takes our country in the wrong direction that God will lead him. May his wife and children be blessed through this time, that they will be examples to those who are so diligently looking toward them for hope.

Things I'm enjoying/looking forward to and other random things

2009-01-13T08:57:00.002-06:00

Its been a while since I've posted anything. With the holidays, a 7 month old, and a week long trip to a conference in Colorado Springs, time has been a premium for me. So now that the holidays and trips are over, I'm going to sit down and fill you in on a few things.

1. Utah was a much better football team than anyone thought. I'm a huge Alabama fan, always have been, but come on, let's give credit to Utah. They destroyed Alabama, and I do think they have a legitimate gripe about not being National Champs. Could they beat Florida? You may say no, but no one thought they would be Alabama either. Plus, the beat Alabama a lot worse than Florida did.

2. The Titans blew it. Forget the fact that Flacco stepped out of the endzone, and that the play clock was dead for two seconds before the Ravens snapped the ball. The Titans simply blew it. It also showed how important Chris Johnson was to the offense by having to sit out in the second half.

3. I debated on whether or not to watch 24 this year, and the curiosity won over. I watched the "Redemption" episode, which set up the season, and then over the past two nights I've watched the first four hours. So far, 200 times better than the previous season.

4. American Idol starts back tonight. Last year was the first time I watched it all the way through, and I loved it. Tuesday night will become "TV" night at our house, with the Biggest Loser and with American Idol.

5. Of course, next Wednesday will become TV DVR night with Lost returning. Check out Jason's blog a few days ago with his numerous questions on Lost.

6. Our little girl is growing like a weed. I went away for a week, and when I come home she's got another tooth and is saying "Ma Ma" like crazy. I can't believe she's over 7 months old now.

7. Winterfest is rapidly approaching. While the trip is Nightmarish for group leaders at time, its always a very rewarding trip. So many always talk about how Winterfest is radical and liberal, but if people would go instead of judge based upon what they hear, they'd realize its really not.

8. Jeff Fisher is up for NFL Coach of the year. He deserves it, but so do the coaches of Atlanta, Miami, Arizona and a few other teams.

9. A few weeks ago, I told everyone about how I crushed a tooth eating some nachos. Well, now Kristen has a crack in one of her teeth, and is going to need a crown. Say goodbye to another $800 bucks.

10. I'm reading an excellent book right now called "QBQ! The Question Behind the Question: What to Really Ask Yourself to Eliminate Blame, Complaining, and Procrastination". Its by John G Miller.

2008 End of the Year Review

2008-12-29T09:12:00.003-06:00

Here are a few thoughts and happenings from the year of 2008:

If you had told me this time last year that the Giants would win the Super Bowl, I would have said you were nuts. But, the other Manning brother carried them through, and beat the giant New England Patriot team.

We saw a resurgence of the Lakers/Celtics Rivalry in the NBA. The Memphis Tigers almost won the NCAA March Madness Title. They lost to Kansas in OT.

David Cook won American Idol. This was the first season I had ever watched it from beginning to end. I really enjoyed it, and the winner as well. His new album is pretty top notch as well.

I realized in May-July of the summer of 08 that Youth Ministry and having a new baby don't really mix in the best of ways. Its hard to totally devote yourself to two really big things in your life. It was a challenge, and I don't know if I'll ever truly master it. I do know that I have great admiration and respect for those youth ministers with multiple children who still do their jobs so well.

We had our first child in May. Josie Layne was born on May 27th weighing in at 7 pounds 11 ounces. She was 19 1/2 inches long. She is the best thing that has ever happened to me in my life. She is a joy and a blessing from God.

Kristen and I celebrated five years of marriage on September 13. There is not a better woman on the face of the earth. She is patient, loving, kind, and the best mother in the entire world. God knew that I needed someone who could constantly lift me up, and she is the one that does so.

In October, we took our first family vacation in about 4 years by ourselves. We've been on to a few places with the in laws, and those were wonderful, but we hadn't been anywhere by ourselves in such a long time. We spent a week in Gulf Shores, doing absolutely nothing, watching the Hurricane pass by, and enjoying doing whatever else came into our heads. We ate a whole lot of seafood.

My beloved Yankees didn't even make it to the playoffs, even though they had a payroll of about $900 Trillion. They finished behind the Red Sox and TAMPA BAY!!! However in the offseason, they finally signed some pitchers, and even added arguably the best 1st baseman in the game today.

The start of college football brought a new found Alabama Crimson Tide. They finished with one loss on the season, coming in the SEC Championship game to Florida. Congrats to Saban and the Tide.

The Tennessee Titans, amidst what is thought to be the toughest conference in the AFC, went undefeated until the Jets rolled into town about 10 weeks in to the season. They finished first in the AFC, with a first round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. What a difference a year makes! Go Titans!

Several things happened to friends this year. Jason McKnight and his wife Jenny had a little boy, Jonathan McKnight and his wife Rebecca had a little girl, Richard Willis got married, Kevin Westmoreland returned from China, and now he his roommate Kyle are planning on going back, after Kyle gets married to Rebecca Harp (coming June of 09).

We elected our first African American president in 08 by voting for Barack Obama. While I personally did not vote for Obama, I am confident that God will bless him. The sad part about it is that so many people I know, including many Christians and family members, have let their racism slip and let it be known that they will not support him. Sadly, I've heard the beginning to more racist jokes (I leave or step aside if I know they're coming) since Obama has been elected than I have in my entire life. Do me a favor, and please don't tell the racist jokes around me. Have a little class, and instead of telling a racist joke, why not pray that God will use Barack Obama to unite our nation and bring peace, reduce poverty and hunger in the world, and make things the best they can be??

Not all things are the most positive of happenings:

We lost several people at our church this year. Our beloved Jennie Finley and Mack Whitaker were two of many who passed on this year.

About a week ago, my wife and I made a hard decision to adopt out our beloved little pug Chloe. Since Josie has born, she had spent more time in her crate, in the hallway, or in the Kennel than she had with us. We love her dearly, and for that reason we decided to put her up for adoption through a local agency that is absolutely wonderful.

2008 saw declining health for several family members. My grandparents on my father's side or rapidly declining in health. He had a stroke a few years ago, and my grandmother is getting weaker and weaker. Kristen's Granny and Pa in Tallasee, AL are also experiencing some health problems.

2008 will be a wonderful year to remember for years to come, but now its time to bring on 2009. God bless 09 and thank God for the wonderful 08.

Prayers for 2009

2008-12-23T08:57:00.002-06:00

God,

I recognize You alone are the true Father of my life. You live in heaven above, which is where I want to be. Your Name is Holy God. Sometimes I don't use Your name in the best of ways. I often use it in vain, along with unholy thoughts and words. God, forgive me for this. Your Name is set apart from all words ever spoken.

God, sometimes I'm not so sure I'm ready for you to come back. I know you have already established your reign on earth when you sent your Son, and now You are preparing Your heavenly Kingdom for us. Help me to be prepared so that when your Kingdom does come, I will be ready.

I know Heaven is a perfect place. God I know that since this earth is covered with humans, we don't always do what You want us to do. I pray that your will be done here as it is heaven -- without thought or hesitation. I pray we do only what you want us to do. Help us to live your will.

Thank you for all you do for us daily. You provide for us every day. There is a hunger, deep inside of me, for the power of your Spirit, the passion and the flame. Fill me with your fire and satisfy my soul. My spirit longs for you. Help me to accept not only the daily bread you give us as a physical need, but give me a desire to accept your spirit and goodness you offer daily as well.

There is no way I can repay the debt you paid for me. I owe you everything for the fact that you gave me your son's death to pay for the sins I've committed. I know that I also need to forgive others as you have forgiven me. God help me to forgive all of those who have hurt me, because there is no way the hurt they have caused me is worse than the hurt i caused you when you gave up your Son.

Satan goes around like a roaring lion, seeking those he may devour. But he has been defeated, so I'm testifying by the blood of Jesus. You have defeated Satan. Help me to defeat Satan. Help me to solely belong to Jesus. The blood he paid to buy me shows that he owns me. Help me to remember who my master is, and that is Jesus, not Satan.

Thank you for blessing my life the way you did this past year in 2008, and may the blessings continue upon my family and friends in 2009. Help me to live for you, and only you. Guide me where you want me to go. Live through me, so others can see you in me.

Amen.

Prayers for the family of Mack Whitaker/ Arrangements

2008-12-17T11:17:00.003-06:00

Two and a half years ago, I interviewed to become the youth minister here at the Guntersville Church of Christ. During the interview process, as all ministers do, I went through some time with the Elders here. You know how before you ever really know someone, you can tell there's something special about them? That's what I felt for a certain man named Mack Whitaker.

As we met, and as he prayed for my wife and I and the decision we had in front of us, I could tell this man was very spiritual. He had a connection with God that was enviable. Come to find out, this man has basically influenced just about everyone in this town of Guntersville, if not all of Marshall County.

Mack Whitaker, a man known for his generosity and kindness, and for his deep spirituality and leadership, sadly passed away yesterday afternoon, December 16, 2008. He leaves behind many many family members who loved him so dearly. His wife Diane, needs extra prayers, as she lost her mother this time last year, and her father just a few short weeks ago.

Mack's influence spreads far outside of Marshall County, as he had much influence at Lipscomb University and at Auburn University. Calls have been flooding our phone lines at the office with kind words and concerns for the families.

The visitation will be here at the Guntersville Church of Christ tomorrow, Thursday December 18, 2008 from 5pm to 8pm. The funeral will be here at the building as well on Friday at 2pm. The burial will be at the Crestview Cemetary.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation to one or all of these causes, all of which were near and dear to Mack:

The Guntersville Church of Christ Building Fund
The Auburn Christian Student Center
Madison Academy
Lipscomb University North Alabama Eastern Region Scholarship Fund

Please pray for the entire family, our church, our city, and our county in the loss of one its great leaders.

Christmas Goodies

2008-12-08T11:13:00.003-06:00

The Widick Family Tooth Story

2008-11-26T08:15:00.002-06:00

Once upon a time, there was a family called the Widicks. They were a good family, with a daddy Widick, a mama Widick, and a little baby Widick.

One day, daddy Widick was eating a chip at a football game. He chewed it in a bad spot, and crushed his tooth. He had to go the dentist, and gave the dentist lots of dollars to fix it. Finally, after two weeks of having a metal tooth in his mouth, daddy got his new permanent tooth. It sure is shiny.

While daddy Widick was sitting in the dentist's chair, mama Widick gave daddy Widick a phone call. Mama Widick was letting daddy Widick know that little baby Widick was growing her very own, very first tooth. Much joy ensued.

For four nights in a row, little baby Widick decided she would cry and be restless during the night instead of sleep, since her very own very first tooth was about to pierce through the skin. Daddy Widick slept in the recliner rocking her, getting her to sleep for a few minutes at a time. Daddy Widick got about 5 hours for those four nights.

Daddy Widick went to his office, sitting there like a zombie. His mind would tell his fingers what to type, but his fingers just wouldn't move. He sat there hoping that tonight, little baby Widick, with her very own very first tooth would sleep through the night...

...to be continued.

Being Transformed

2008-11-19T12:11:00.003-06:00

Romans 12:2 has an interesting perspective that I like to remind myself of from time to time. The NLT version reads like this:

"Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."

In essence, its impossible to transform your life until you transform your mind. There was a song that came out a few years ago called "Change Your Mind" by Sister Hazel. The words simply went

"If you want to be somebody else,
If you're tired of fighting battles with yourself
If you want to be somebody else
Change your mind..."

Do you ever look in the mirror and see someone you don't recognize. Maybe you look at yourself and realize the hope you used to have is gone. Maybe the happiness is no longer there. Maybe, just maybe, you want to be somebody else.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says "If you are in Christ you were made new." Obviously, after you give your life to Christ, you are a new creature. People see you emerge from your watery tomb and see a soaking wet, clean and pure creature.

You now have the name of Christian. You now have the hope you did not have before.

Your identity is new, yes. But what about your mind? When you think like you used to think before you gave your life over to Christ, chances are you will begin to act like that once again.

So be transformed, from the inside out. If the inside of your home is dirty, you don't fix that by raking the leaves and cleaning out the gutters outside. You clean the inside. My favorite Max Lucado illustration was always the one where he talked about how he went on vacation and the chest freezer in his garage blew a fuse, and all of the meat and food inside spoiled. He asked "How do I clean the freezer?", and obviously, if you just cleaned the outside of it, it would do no good.

Romans 12:2 does say: "let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think," and that's how we truly become new. But the part at the end of the verse is even more exciting:

"Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."

When we achieve that threshold of renewing our mind, wanting to live like Christ, THEN He's going to let us in on what He has planned for us. He realizes that until we can change our minds into the mind of a Christian, we won't be able to comprehend His plans for us. And His will is always good, pleasing, and perfect.

A Mansion, A Robe, and a Crown

2008-11-12T14:18:00.002-06:00

I figured out the other day, that in order to get a crown, you better have a Mansion, and probably a robe.

The mansion- well, to afford a crown without dental insurance, you need to live in a mansion.

The Robe- I had to lay on the "chair" for over an hour while the dentist drilled and cut and sliced around in my mouth.

The Crown- it will arrive in two weeks, matched to the shade of the teeth around it.

Friday night, at the last Guntersville High School Football game, I broke a tooth eating nachos. Sounds pathetic, to say the least, but do you ever bite into a chip that maybe is a bit harder than the others? Sometimes cooked a bit longer, folded over, or burned? That's what happened to me. I bit into it, and then I felt my tooth break, and pieces of it fall into my mouth.

Fortunately I had a filling that stayed intact, or otherwise it may have been extremely painful.

Also, they did not have to do a root canal, the tooth was still alive and well. They just filed it down, fit me for a crown, and told me to come back in two weeks.

All for a measly $700.

But I'd rather pay that than lose the tooth completely.

On another note, Josie continues to grow up on us. Her latest thing now is that not only can she roll over, but she can continue to roll over and over and over. Its amazing watching them develop these skills.

Now if we can only get her potty-trained so we won't have to buy these diapers...

Corn Nuts

2008-11-04T13:30:00.002-06:00

Have you ever eaten a corn nut? Its basically a corn chip condensed into a smaller piece, being ultra crunchy and leaves a horrible taste in your mouth.

Yeah, that's how a lot of people are going to feel after the election. This won't be like when Reagan won 49 states, all but Minnesota, in 1984. I have a feeling its not going to be pretty, and the nation will still continue to be divided.

So I thought I'd put some lighter news up today.

Fulmer is out as Head Coach of the UT Vols. Even though I'm a Bama fan, I hate to see Fulmer go. He was a great coach.

The Guntersville Wildcats host a playoff game this week. Will the streak continue? Every time Guntersville plays and wins, the Crimson Tide and the Titans win.

Speaking of which...had you told me my beloved Titans would be 8-0, I would have said "Well, it would be nice, but it won't happen." I suppose after this season, anything is possible. They still have to play the Bears, the Jets, and then the Colts again, so its not going to be a cake-walk. The most brutal team left would the rivaled Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 21.

The Crimson Tide is Number One. I can't believe that either. Whether or not they stay there is a different story. Texas Tech is all the rage, and if they win out, I feel like they'll be hoisted to number 1. Sorry Joe Pa, Penn State just isn't going to make it.

I may not like everything Barack Obama says, but I did like his interview last night with Chris Mortensen calling for a college football playoff. If he wins, I hope that's the first thing he signs into law.

Don't forget, regardless of what happens tonight, Fulmer is still leaving, with a hefty $6 million buy out. Not too shabby.

A Nation Divided, A Media Divided

2008-10-28T10:09:00.002-05:00

On my last post, I placed an emphasis on the fact that there needs to be more to our vote than just voting on the economy, on taxes, and whether or not Bill Ayers is indeed a friend or not of Barack Obama. I'm not just looking at Abortion and Homosexual rights based upon the last video I posted, but I just wanted to remind everyone there's more to this election.

I'm drawn to I Timothy 2:1-4. It says:

"I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for everyone -- for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."

Regardless of whether your man gets in or not, we must continue to pray that God will watch over this nation.

On a different note:

I just want everyone to know that I've never wanted something to end more than this year's election. The Media and lots of Americans, on both the conservative and liberal side, have shown their true colors. Fox News has done its share of belittling the Democrats, and CNN has done its fair share of shredding the Republicans.

However, I think the following video shows a complete and total bias. If this had been reversed, the outrage would overwhelming:

Regardless of you are for or against, there is no humor in this, and no place for this. Sarah Palin has a family, is a good person, and is the victim of radical leftwing liberals and their attack on good wholesome family values.

Who will decide?

2008-10-24T12:25:00.003-05:00

This video, put out by the Value Voters of the USA, touches on many of the issues at hand this election year.

We can't just let foreign policy and taxes be the only issue.

New Shoes, Free Gift Certificates

2008-10-20T14:52:00.002-05:00

If you've never bought shoes online you don't know what you're missing. Okay, cheesy line, but its true.

I've bought one pair of shoes online at Shoebuy.com, and they are great.

If you will go and buy some shoes there, you could help me win a $100 gift certificate to buy shoes there. Being young and having a new child has left us with little money, and could use the help.

Go to that link now, and you will save $10. Its free shipping, and free returns, and the prices are the same or better as going to a department store.

Please help me out. Thanks a bundle! After you buy your shoes, if you can get three people to buy shoes there, you will get a $100 gift certificate too!

SNL gains some momentum

2008-10-10T11:34:00.000-05:00

I haven't been a big fan of SNL in recent years, but Thursday night's special weekend update was spot on:

Josie's Does Something Amazing!!

2008-10-07T16:21:00.000-05:00

Take two minutes, and watch this

Maybe they should watch more cartoons

2008-10-02T08:57:00.001-05:00

Here is a lesson about spending from the classic cartoon, Ducktales.

The Common Sense Fix

2008-10-01T08:26:00.003-05:00

I'm a long time Dave Ramsey fan, and once again, he's trying to help America with their debt problems, but this time, with the bailout plan. Here is his proposal he is emailing around to all his listeners. If you agree you can send it to your SENATORS and your REPRESENTATIVES by clicking on the words and it will send you to their contact info. If one of the links doesn't work, its because of the overwhelming amount of traffic they are getting at this time on their servers.

The Common Sense Fix
Years of bad decisions and stupid mistakes have created an economic nightmare in this country,but $700 billion in new debt is not the answer. As a tax-paying American citizen, I will not support any congressperson who votes to implement such a policy. Instead, I submit the following threestep Common Sense Plan.

I. INSURANCE
a. Insure the subprime bonds/mortgages with an underlying FHA-type insurance.
Government-insured and backed loans would have an instant market all over the
world, creating immediate and needed liquidity.

b. In order for a company to accept the government-backed insurance, they must do two
things:

1. Rewrite any mortgage that is more than three months delinquent to a 6% fixed-rate mortgage.

a. Roll all back payments with no late fees or legal costs into the balance. This brings homeowners current and allows them a chance to keep their homes.

b. Cancel all prepayment penalties to encourage refinancing or the sale of the property to pay off the bad loan. In the event of foreclosure or short sale, the borrower will not be held liable for any deficit balance. FHA does this now, and that
encourages mortgage companies to go the extra mile while working with the borrower—again limiting foreclosures and ruined lives.

2. Cancel ALL golden parachutes of EXISTING and FUTURE CEOs and executive team members as long as the company holds these government-insured bonds/mortgages. This keeps underperforming executives from being paid when they don’t do their jobs.

c. This backstop will cost less than $50 billion—a small fraction of the current proposal.

II. MARK TO MARKET
a. Remove mark to market accounting rules for two years on only subprime Tier III
bonds/mortgages. This keeps companies from being forced to artificially mark down
bonds/mortgages below the value of the underlying mortgages and real estate.

b. This move creates patience in the market and has an immediate stabilizing effect on failing and ailing banks—and it costs the taxpayer nothing.

III. CAPITAL GAINS TAX
a. Remove the capital gains tax completely. Investors will flood the real estate and stock market in search of tax-free profits, creating tremendous—and immediate—liquidity in the markets. Again, this costs the taxpayer nothing.

b. This move will be seen as a lightning rod politically because many will say it is helping the rich. The truth is the rich will benefit, but it will be their money that stimulates the economy. This will enable all Americans to have more stable jobs and retirement investments that go up instead of down.

This is not a time for envy, and it’s not a time for politics. It’s time for all of us, as Americans, to stand up, speak out, and fix this mess.

Roughly $770,000,000,000

2008-09-30T08:23:00.002-05:00

I'm not an economist.

I'm not really all that affected right now by the Dow Jones plummet yesterday. I have no credit cards, no car loan, no mortgage, and no stocks.

I have a decent amount of savings, nothing that will keep us going for 10 years, but enough to live on for about a year if we needed to do so.

But I started thinking about this close to $770 billion dollar bailout plan, and how much you could buy for it. Here's some figures I came up with:

- In 2007, the average home price in America was $220,000. With the bailout money, you could by 3,500,000 average price homes.

- The top of the line 2008 Honda Accord, brand new, costs $28,384. That's brand new, no negotiations. You would be able to purchase 27,147,088 top of the line 2008 Honda Accords.

- The average gallon of gas around North Alabama right now is $3.60. It takes 18 gallons to fill up my Accord. That equals $64.80 to fill up my car. Even though I don't, lets say the average person fills their car up once a week (for me its more like once every 2 weeks). That would equal $3369 a year to fill up my car once a week. With the bailout money, I could fill my car up once a week for 228,554,467 years.

- The average cost for milk across the nation is $3.81 a gallon. You could buy 202,099,737,532 gallons.

What other fun numbers can you come up with?

- According to the WFP School Feeding Program, a program that feeds orphans and needy children in Africa, it costs, according to March 2008 prices, $0.25 to feed a child per day. We could feed 308,000,000,000 with the bailout money.

Let's look at this way, as many of you think as well, if I don't pay my bills, I could go to jail. If I don't pay, then I will be punished. This is absolutely ridiculous.

Here's a number for you: I pay right at $3000 to the government every quarter. Why? Because as a minister, I'm technically "Self-employed". You can do the math. $12,000 a year to the federal government for taxes, and that's with all the great benefits we get. Since my wife is self-employed also, we pay close to 40 cents on the dollar to taxes.

Now, i don't like it, but its the law. I pay what the law asks me to pay. However, its hard to make it sometimes when almost HALF of your money goes to pay taxes. There's got to be a better way than what we're doing, especially if my taxes are going to pay for the mistakes of people making millions more dollar a year than I make.

I don't know how I feel about the bailout plan, because of all the mis-directions we're getting on it. How can we trust these guys when they've put us into this position?

Thoughts on the bailout? Thoughts on the fact that they won't meet again until THURSDAY AT NOON??

Introducing Josie "Michael Phelps" Widick

2008-09-24T08:53:00.001-05:00

So I'm on the phone with a friend I haven't spoken to in about a year, and Kristen is giving Josie a bath. She yells for me to come into the kitchen, I rush in, and this is what is going on:

5 Years Ago

2008-09-13T12:02:00.002-05:00

Five years ago, on a Saturday afternoon, September 13, I was fortunate enough to marry my best friend.

Five years has brought us much joy, happiness, and a new member of the family.

Today, we celebrate five years at one of Kristen's favorite places, the beach. Later today, we'll go and eat some shrimp and walk on the beach, but for now, we're relaxing in the Lighthouse, room 1217, watching the waves, and doing nothing but enjoying each other.

I don't have access to my pictures, so I'll post those later on in the week when I'm back at the office.

Here's to many more anniversaries. I love you, Sticky!

Vacation Time for the Widick's

2008-09-10T10:48:00.001-05:00

This will be a lengthy post, so bear with me...

Saturday morning, Kristen, Josie and I left for our first family vacation. Our first stop was from Guntersville to Franklin, TN. We stopped and celebrated a monumental birthday for my mom and Buca di Bepa, an Italian place that has tremendous food. All the family was there, and we were able to sit around one large table with a lazy susan in the middle of it. Its family style food, so we all ordered different things and shared with each other. After that, we went on to Lebanon, TN, to enjoy the afternoon with my family and have cake and ice cream.

Sunday morning, I was able to worship with my family at the Maple Hill church of Christ. Being a minister myself, I don't have many opportunities to worship with my family at their local congregations. It was a wonderful service. They have worship first, which I really enjoyed.

After worship service, Kristen and I left Josie with my parents (this was the first time we left her with anyone) and we went to the Tennessee Titans vs the Jacksonville Jaguars game. It was amazing! I never really did anything like that growing up, and my eyes actually started to tear up when the game started. Here are a few pics from the start of the game:

Here come the Titans!!

Really cool American Flag for the National Anthem sung by Martina McBride

The airforce flew planes over at the end of the national anthem. This was so cool!

We were there amongst the boos for Vince Young, and the cheers for when Kerry Collins came in. Sure, Vince stunk it up, but that's no reason to treat him the way some of the fans were at the game.

After the game, we drove down to Birmingham and stayed with Kristen's aunt and uncle. They grilled out for us, and we had a wonderful time. The next morning, we drove down to Gulf Shores, AL. We're staying here till Monday of next week, spending our FIFTH anniversary at the beach.

Here are some pictures of us and first few days at the beach:

Us after eating at Sea N Suds.

Mommy and Josie at the beach!

Daddy and Josie at the beach

Mommy and Josie at the pool

Daddy and Josie at the pool

Hurricane Ike is supposed to miss us, but it might rain for the next two or three days. We're about to go walk on the beach, and then off to lunch.

**Prayer Request**
We just got word today that Jenny Finley, grandmother of two kids in my youth group, and sweet Christian lady passed away. Miss Jenny was informed she had cancer around Thanksgiving, and the doctors did not give her the best prognosis. She has been a fighter, but more importantly, she has been an example of courage to so many. God bless the Finley family at this time.

259

2008-08-25T09:16:00.002-05:00

My weekly Weight Watcher meetings are on Thursday, so my offical technical weigh in is then, however, I just thought I'd report that this morning I'm down to 259, and feeling fine.

Starting weight: 266
Current weight: 259
Total loss so far: 7 pounds

Plus, I'm feeling pretty good. I'm learning what portion control is. Sure, when I was younger I could all I wanted and it would melt off, but now that I'm getting a bit older, the metabolism starts to slow down.

My true test will be vacation on September 8. We'll be at the beach for a week. Here's to a strong week!

A Conversation with an Indian

2008-08-19T09:46:00.004-05:00

I despise calling for technical support, customer service, or any other calls like that, especially since none of them speak English.

Today, I called a Linksys support line for troubleshooting with my router. They asked for my telephone number, so they could open up a case number. Here is the conversation with lady technician:

Linksys: Hello. With whom do I have the pleasure of speaking with today?

Me: Yes, my name is Lane.

L: Can you give me your home telephone number so we can open a case for you?

Me: Okay, my number is (changed so I won't get junk calls) 256-682-5710.

L: I'm sorry, can you kindly give me that number again?

Me: Sure, its 256-682-5710

L: I'm sorry, I'm having a hard time understanding your English. Can you please speak clearly and slower so I can understand?

Me: Okay. its 2....5....6....6....8....2....5....7....1....0

L: Hold one moment please

I wait for a while, wondering what is taking so long, and also wondering how she's going to help me if she can't even understand my phone number. About 3 more minutes go by, and then I hear a different voice, this time male.

Linksys: Hello Mr. Lane, I understand that you are not giving your phone number to our technician, we can not help you until you do that.

Me: I gave the lady my number 3 times. She said she couldn't understand me, and then she put me on hold.

Linksys: All right, please hold for moment again (not a mistype, that's how he said it).

I wait for a few more moments. About 5 minutes later:

Linksys: Sir, we will not be able to help you at this time, please call back when you can give us your telephone number. Is there anything else we can help you with today?

Me: (Wanting to throw my phone at the guy, but remembering who I am, and that this isn't that big of a deal...) No thank you, I'll call back later.

Olympic Confusion

2008-08-17T13:31:00.002-05:00

I'm more of a fan of the Olympics than I thought I would be. I honestly did not think I would get so into it. Of course, athletes like Michael Phelps has tremendously increased my interests, and the interests of millions of Americans. Enough so, that NBC is concerned their ratings will drop now that the swimming events are over.

Now, there are a lot of Olympic events in which I feel are merited as events: Track and Field (especially the marathon), all the racing events, the wrestling and gymnastics (even with the corrupt point systems they use). I'm amazed at the Diving, and the distance events like the 5000 meter events.

But there is one event, no matter how I look at it, that I can't understand it being an Olympic event, better yet, a sport at all. Now understandably, I'm not a horse lover. I'm not a horse hater either. I'm all for Horse Racing and the jumping events, but please some explain "Dressage" to me, and why its an Olympic event? Turn your volume down (annoying music) and watch the video below, and then weigh in.

The number is 39, no more

2008-08-15T10:23:00.002-05:00

So, I took the plunge.

I took the plunge because I've been taking a plunge, daily, for the past 4 years.

If you went back over the writings of these blog pages, you would see at least 6 promises and guarantees to shed the pounds that have hindered me for so long.

But I haven't.

I've consistently stayed at the past year around 255-260 pounds. My scientifically determined healthy weight is 195. I was there 5 years ago. Now, I'm officially at 266, at least according to my official Weight Watchers weigh in last night.

How humiliating is it to get to a point where I have to pay someone to tell me I'm fat? How embarrassing is it to walk into a room where the youngest person by 20 years, and, oh yeah, the only guy? How does it affect one's budget to pay $39 a month to be a part of a group that weighs you in each week?

Turns out, not so much to all of the above. The meeting went well, and I found out what I already knew, I'm too fat and I eat too much.

My daily point allowance is 39. No more than 39 points worth of food can I eat. Let's talk about my bad days in the past and see how many points I would have had:

If I eat a breakfast sandwich from McDonalds: 9 points
If I eat the hash browns: 3 points
If I eat lunch with Jason at Five Guys: (cheeseburger) 13 points
If I eat the fries: 13 points
If I get a candy bar on the way home: 6 points
If I get dinner out with Kristen at the Italian Place in town: (with the bread sticks): 20 points

I'm already at 64 points, and I haven't added an evening snack to the mix. Now, this isn't a typical day, because most of the times, I don't even eat breakfast, and I don't eat lunch with Jason everyday, and we don't eat out every night. However, there are days when this happens in the life of a youth minister.

So here's to Weight Watchers, a program I know works for many, and praying it works for me.

I do get a weekly allowance of 35 extra points, that can be used all at one meal, or over the course of the week.

If I start exercising, I get to add so many points to my daily allowance.

Here goes nothing.

Josie "Cooing"

2008-08-13T23:55:00.002-05:00

By the way, we officially moved Josie into her room on Tuesday night. She's been sleeping in her own little bed in our room for the past two and a half months, but now she has officially moved into her own room. We've been told horror stories of parents who waited too long to do this, and the kids would have a horrible transition.

For the past few nights, she has been sleeping wonderfully. She still gets up once a night, but that's to be expected for a while, because she still needs that early 3 am feeding. But we put her down at 8:30 or 9, and she sleeps till 3, and then she sleeps again till about 7.

So here's to the first major transition in her life, hoping it will continue to go smoothly.

The Gold, The Silver, and the Bronze

2008-08-10T22:11:00.002-05:00

So Saturday morning, Kristen and I sit down to watch some of the Olympics. After such an AMAZING opening ceremony, I got really stoked about watching some of the events. We watched the US Women's Volleyball team beat China, we watched a game of Handball, which is really cool, and then we watched some of the Men's long distance cycling.

I believe, however, that I was most mesmerized by the Fencing event. I didn't understand a bit of it, but what was so amazing was that all three medals went to the Americans. As I watched the Medal Ceremony, it brought an enormous amount of Patriotism to me. Here I am, almost in tears over an event I know nothing about.

But what's even more amazing than that is that I find myself being extremely proud of anyone who wins a medal at all. Most recently I just saw a Men's Japanese swimmer win gold, and Norway's first swimming medalist ever on the Medal stand. These athletes work so hard to be as perfect as they can be to compete in these games.

It was stated in the opening ceremonies that around 80 of the 205 nations represented have never won a medal at all. The chances of winning a medal are extremely slim. Even though for most a medal is never realized, they strive for it with all their heart. Medals not being won because of a loss by less than .001 of a second. Its truly amazing

If we could learn as Christians from these athletes, I think it would be this: If we just try our hardest to be the best we can be in God's eyes, and do all we can to represent Him and His Kingdom, we have a guarantee of the prize. Why is so many can strive for something that is never guaranteed, but so many never strive for something that is promised?

Once they're in my head....

2008-08-08T13:04:00.002-05:00

...they're stuck. The first one is my favorite. How about you?

God bless my family

2008-08-04T20:32:00.002-05:00

Recently, I've been reminded how lucky I am.

- I have two very loving parents
- I have two very loving siblings
- I have two very great sibling-in-laws
- I have two very great parent-in-laws
- I have a great sister and brother in law on my wife's side
- I have a wonderful and beautiful daughter
- I have the most amazing wife

On top of this, I have a great extended family, with aunts and uncles on both sides who are all dedicated Christians.

My father and mother are in Cartagena, Columbia visiting with Missionaries. My father will be leading a team on a retreat for their ministry there in Columbia.

My parent-in-laws just returned from a mission trip to Timisoara, Romania.

My father is an elder and minister in the church.

My father in law is a deacon and teacher in the church.

I have a great family. Thank you God for such a great family.

Obama vs The World

2008-07-31T11:05:00.005-05:00

I'm growing weary of the political battle already. Just for the record, I am not a McCain supporter or Obama supporter. I am one of those who believe that there is no strong candidate, not even in the independent realm.

However, there is one thing that really bothers me that Obama has said:

A day after Democratic candidate Barack Obama warned that Republican rival John McCain would tell voters “he doesn’t look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills,” McCain’s campaign on Thursday accused Obama of playing racial politics.

Obama “played the race card, and he played it from the bottom of the deck,” McCain campaign manager Rick Davis said in a statement. He called Obama’s remarks “divisive, negative, shameful and wrong.”

Stumping in Missouri, Obama, the first black candidate with a shot at winning the White House, argued Wednesday that President Bush and McCain will resort to scare tactics to maintain their hold on the White House because they have little else to offer voters.

“Nobody thinks that Bush and McCain have a real answer to the challenges we face. So what they’re going to try to do is make you scared of me,” Obama said. “You know, `he’s not patriotic enough, he’s got a funny name,’ you know, `he doesn’t look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills.”‘

Please Obama, don't bring up the race card. Please. In a country already clearly divided, not just between Presidential candidates, but also in democratic nominees, do you really think this is the best thing to do?

Am I mistaken, or is Obama bringing this up, not McCain? I don't think McCain or anyone else for that matter has brought up those points.

The media circus is getting ridiculous. This could be the first president ever decided based upon blatant media bias towards a candidate. No one can deny that Obama has received much more media coverage, whether positive or negative, than McCain.

What I think this particular election is proving: The role of the President is becoming greatly diminished. The judicial system and the legislative system appear to have much more power. When neither candidate is a viable solution, what is one to do?

I know one thing: I DO NOT WANT TO VOTE FOR SOMEONE JUST TO VOTE AGAINST SOMEONE! I think that would be the worst thing I could do. I don't want to settle for the "Lesser of two evils" as so many seem to say they are doing. Both candidates are full of fluff it seems. What is a society supposed to do?

**UPDATE**
People blast Bush for having "diarrhea of the mouth", but what about Obama? Earlier today, he continued some very egotistical remarks by saying:

"I have become a symbol of the possibility of America returning to our best traditions," Obama said, a witness told the Post.

Now seriously, between McCain calling Obama an Elitist running away from his voting record, and now you have Obama being as egotistical as egotistical can be...what are we to do?

Look Who's TWO MONTHS OLD!!!

2008-07-25T20:29:00.007-05:00

Somebody's two months old! My how time flies.

Monday Music

2008-07-21T10:51:00.003-05:00

Its been a while since I've posted anything that hasn't been about Josie, much less anything at all. I've decided to try to get into more of a routine with my posting, starting out with Monday Music. Recently, I signed up for a free trial of E-Music, which at first I wasn't too sure about. There are a whole lot of Indie label artists on the site, but the more I listen, the more I like. Here's a review of who I downloaded.

1. Old Crow Medicine Show: A unique blend of country and folk music. I know, I said country and folk music. For those of you who know me, I'm not a country and folk kinda guy (barring my country/western phase of 1992). These guys are amazing. Definitely give them a looksie. Also, everyone I know seems to be jumping on their train, so I thought I'd give them a try. Good call Jason, great band.

2. Earlimart: A rock/pop group based out of LA. I don't know too much about them. Their band was named for a town in California called Earlimart. Their sound is not too rock/pop, but just enough. Give their songs a listen.

3. Chris Letcher: What happens when the Beatles go alternative? I believe you get Chris Letcher. A British Invasion guy, his music has a very edgy sound that I can't seem to turn off. Give the song "Deep Frieze" a spin and tell me you don't think of the Beatles.

4. My Morning Jacket: MMJ is a slightly older band, forming around 1998. They've been on Letterman, and featured in the movie "Elizabethtown" They've also played at Bonnaroo for about the past five years or so. An interesting sound, one that is hard to pinpoint exactly. Sometimes they sound like U2, and some songs sound like CCR.

5. Josh Ritter: He calls himself country, but I think he's a bit more like a Simon and Garfunkel sound. He's been around for a while as well. Check out his "The Animal Years" album.

Anyone else heard any new music lately? What else should I be checking out?

Josie at 5 weeks

2008-07-08T14:43:00.001-05:00

Here's a quick video I made of Josie

Baby Do's and Baby Don'ts

2008-07-01T13:05:00.027-05:00

Baby Do's and Don'ts: A tribute to the first few days of fatherhood
(My favorite is "Waking Baby", what's yours?)

Josie Fun

2008-06-26T10:12:00.006-05:00

Me, Josie, and Chloe hangin out on the couch.
Believe it or not, this was just after she rolled over by herself for the first time...at 4 weeks old!!
I turned her over, and she started sucking on my finger!
Somebody's sitting in daddy's chair!

The most amazing thing...

2008-06-24T14:46:00.004-05:00

As I am learning day by day, the most precious thing in the world is a child. No matter how old, a child is so priceless. It all makes sense now. The word of God becomes clearer, the sacrifice of Jesus means so much more, and the innocence of a child is something you wish you could bottle up and cherish forever.

Tomorrow, Josie turns one month old. Over the past 30 days, I have grown so much as a person. There is something special about a child. There is something deep down everyday that triggers inside of me: "This is your daughter, God has blessed you with her. Take good care of her."

I know there are many people who struggle and suffer throughout pregnancy, with many losing their children to various reasons. I stumbled across the website "Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep", and I realize more than ever how grateful I am to have my darling baby girl Josie. Another Website to check out is the "American Child Photographers Charity Guild"

God, thank you so much for her. She's a gift. She's a joy. God, bless those families who do not get to come home with their children. All over the world, many suffer the loss of a newborn. Give them peace.

Two Weeks Old, No More Sleep

2008-06-10T10:15:00.004-05:00

Well, Josie is now two weeks old. Other than the fact she thinks nighttime is playtime, all is well. Of course, we still freak out anytime anything happens that seems even remotely like its not normal, but that's to be expected I'm sure.

It was hard being away last week while I was at camp, but I was able to come home each day and see Kristen and Josie for about an hour each day during rest time. A big thanks goes out to Kristen's mom for staying with her while I was away.

Schedule wise- we're still trying to figure out a pattern for us to get some rest at night. It doesn't help that next week we'll be traveling to Impact at Lipscomb University next week. We're not sure if Kristen and Josie will be staying with me in the dorm, or at my parents house near Nashville. Either way, it'll be another challenging week. After that, however, I don't have anymore big trips planned for the summer.

Here's a few more pics of our little girl:

Josie coming home/ First day at home

2008-05-30T14:38:00.006-05:00

Well, its definitely not easier when you come home from the hospital. Josie slept all the way home from Crestwood, and then when we got home, she stayed awake from 10pm till about 6 am. Maybe tonight, she'll be a bit more cooperative. Even if we could lay down and get 2 or 3 hours, that would be great. She just loves to be held.

Here are some more pictures from the hospital and from when she came home.

Grandma Sims holding Josie

My sister, Mary Anne, her husband Kevin, and their kids Faith and John Derrick

Kristen and Josie and I, leaving the hospital to go home!

Chloe, our pug, watching over Josie, or "The thing that makes her really jealous".

Josie Layne Widick

2008-05-28T07:42:00.004-05:00

At 7:19 pm on Tuesday, May 27th, Josie Layne Widick came into the world. She weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long. She is beautiful as can be, with the Widick blue eyes, and a head full of dark hair.

I've been tagged

2008-05-23T09:02:00.002-05:00

My good friend Jason tagged me, and I've never been tagged before, so here goes:

*Maybe I should...lighten up. I get too tense.

*I love the smell of...okay, I love the smell of fried food, restaurants, etc. That's kinda sad, but I love the smell of a good restaurant as you approach it, especially a steakhouse.

*People would say that I...am sarcastic. I'm really not all that sarcastic, people just catch me at the wrong time.

*I don't understand why...people don't keep their word anymore. A commitment should be just that, a commitment.

*When I wake up in the morning...I know that I have to get up, but I can't. I attribute this to the fact that for straight years working in summer camps and teaching school that I had to get up at about 5:30. I usually hit the snooze about 4 times. I know all that is about to change though.

*I lost my will power to...stop eating fried foods. I gave up caffeine about 3 months ago, and haven't caved, but I can't stop eating fried foods. Maybe there's some sort of pill.

*Life is wonderful with...the knowledge that no matter what, I'm going to have my little girl in my arms by next Tuesday.

*My past made me...that my future can be so much better.

*I get annoyed when...(there's a lot of things that could go here, but I'll list just a few) people leave their shopping carts in the middle of the parking lot. I get annoyed when people at Walmart won't move out of the middle of the aisle. I get annoyed when I see cars with small babies and children not in car seats.

*Parties are not...something I frequent anymore.

*Dogs are...awesome. Even though they do some stupid stuff (like chewing on our curio cabinet), they are loyal and happy and eager to please.

*Cats are...the spawn of satan.

*Tomorrow I am going to...play golf.

*I have a low tolerance for...whiners.

*I'm totally terrified of...aliens.

*I wonder why I thought my life would be...I really don't get this question, so I'm going to pass.

*Never in my life...have I broken a bone.

*High school was something that...made me realize that some people just get down right spoiled in life. I had to earn everything I accomplished or received, but some people just expect everything handed to them.

*When I'm nervous...I couldn't tell you the last time I was nervous, until now, and that's about how the birth of my child will be.

*Take my advice...mayonnaise is two parts evil, one part disgusting.

*Making my bed is...something I never did, until I got married, and now I do it to make Kristen happy, or when I want something.

*I'm almost always...drinking some sort of beverage.

*I'm addicted to...I don't have an answer to this right now. I used to be addicted to Diet Dr. Pepper, drinking about 7 cans a day. Now, I guess I'm addicted to the tv show LOST.

*I want someone...to explain to me why we can't drill for oil in Anwar. I understand conservation, but I also understand civil unrest.

I'm supposed to tag someone else, but I don't think anyone else who reads my blog actually has a blog, except maybe Keith or John or Jonathan. We'll see if they respond. Thanks Jason.

Baby is.....still not here.

2008-05-22T16:12:00.002-05:00

The doctor decided today wasn't the day, but that we should wait until Tuesday of next week to induce.

We went into the doctor's office, and were surprised when he said they would be doing another ultrasound. They wanted to check the fluid level (which sounds like something you do to a car, not a mother and child). While he was searching for the parts to measure the baby, he couldn't locate the femur. It wasn't because there's not one, its because her foot was stuck so far up Kristen's ribs, that he couldn't get to it. He said he hasn't had this much trouble measuring a child in a while. Great, our child is already being complicated!

The big news (no pun intended...read on) is that the estimated weight right now of our "little" ladybug is 9 POUNDS!!! He also said she's pretty long, but he couldn't get an accurate read on that.

So, we sit for a few more days, but if nothing happens, we know she'll be here by Tuesday sometime!

Maybe baby?

2008-05-22T10:17:00.002-05:00

We go to the doctor in about 5 minutes. There's a slight chance baby may come today. If so, I'll let everyone know, but more than likely she'll wait till Tuesday to arrive.

And by the way, we think we've picked out a name, but we're going to wait and reveal the name when ladybug arrives.

Pray for us!

I'll be a dad, by Tuesday, May 27

2008-05-19T18:44:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone. Just to bring you up to speed on how things are going with Kristen and ladybug. We went to the doctor today, and he told us today that regardless of things are going or will happen, we will be parents by the 27th.

Kristen has developed preeclampsyia, which is not a good thing, but our doctor has told us both that nothing is wrong, and everything should go just fine. The only way to relieve the high blood pressure is to get the placenta out of Kristen, and the only way to do that is to get the baby out of Kristen.

So, to make a long story short. We go back to the doctor on Thursday. If her body isn't ready to have the baby yet, we will go in on late Monday night to start the induction process. Lord willing, we'll have our little girl here with us by Tuesday sometime. Prayers would definitely be appreciated through this time.

On a side note, we are definitely displeased with Target, and feel we should warn a few of you about their policies. They have a new policy that if you do not have a gift receipt or original receipt, you can only return up to $20 worth of items, twice a year. We received about 17 crib sheets, so needless to say, we took some back. After I had reached $20 worth of returns, the guy told me "I'm going to swipe your driver's license again, and after $20 more, you won't be able to return anything else for a year".

The thing is, these items were Target brand, on our registry, we just received too many of them. Anyone else have an issue with Target? I love shopping there, and its a great store, but the policy is a bit much, in my opinion.

There's a rainbow in the clouds

2008-05-19T08:50:00.002-05:00

So the bed rest thing is pretty hard for Kristen. She's always been a go-getter. She wants to get up and clean or cook or exercise or anything else BUT sit or lay down and rest. Yesterday she got some severe cabin fever. We offset that by putting away some new things from a shower we had in Hartselle, and then she watched the Princess Diaries 2, which is much better than the first one.

She didn't get to go to church yesterday, and I honestly believe it is the first time since we've been married that she's missed a church service. Even if she's been sick, she hasn't missed. Thank God for a woman who sees the importance of a family going to church together.

Yesterday was also the day of the annual baccalaureate service for Guntersville high school. I went by myself, so Kristen could stay home and rest. I stopped and got some milk and bananas, and then a cheeseburger from Burger King for Kristen. As I was coming across the causeway, I saw the most beautiful rainbow I think I've ever seen. It was a complete rainbow, which I hardly ever see, and it was a good small size rainbow so you could actually see all the intricate details of it.

Kristen has this thing for rainbows. She somehow thinks its biblical that when a rainbow appears, that God is letting you know His promise for you is still coming (insert sarcasm, its very BIBLICAL!!), and I got her up and took her out on the porch to see it.

That's God's way of letting us know that He's still watching over us. To top it off, last night was a full moon, and there's all sorts of wives' tails about how babies come on the full moon.

God's watching over us, I know He is.

Kristen and Ladybug UPDATE

2008-05-15T14:07:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone. We went to the doctor on Monday, and Kristen's blood pressure was a bit too high for the doctor's comfort. He put her on bed rest, and she has spent the better part of the week on the couch or in the LazyBoy Recliner. She did get out to go to class last night at church, but that's about it.

We had to go back to the doctor today, and thankfully, her blood pressure has come down to an acceptable rate. However, the doctor is not happy with how the baby is positioned at this stage, so he's keeping her on strict bed rest until the baby comes. If you guys know Kristen, this is so extremely hard for her.

We're not, nor is the doctor, expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen. This is all merely precautionary, so please pray for us as we enter these last few days of pregnancy.

On a side note, we are accepting name suggestions, so if you have one, please let us know what you think!

Kristen and Ladybug Widick at 37 1/2 weeks

2008-05-12T09:35:00.005-05:00

Thursday we hit our 37 week point of pregnancy. We are so excited, and ready to meet our little girl face to face. She's officially full term now, so she can come anytime and she'd be as healthy as could be. Of course, we're waiting for God to work in His time, but its okay to be a bit anxious.

Yesterday, we snapped some shots of Kristen in Ladybug's nursery. Here is Kristen at 37 weeks, 3 days:

We go today for our weekly check up! Doctor says now that the baby may not come until due date, but we'll maybe find a bit more out today!

In other news, I think its a joke that Parvati won on Survivor over Amanda. I'm glad Jason Castro is finally out on American Idol, and Lost's last two episodes have been outstanding.

American Idol Rock N Roll Hall of Fame Week

2008-05-06T19:51:00.002-05:00

In lieu of Jason's absence, I shall be blogging for him on American Idol. I'll be doing a live blog.

David Cook- I called it. I knew the judges would say it was just average. It sounded like him, but he didn't do much different to the ole Duran Duran song. I loved it, but the judges seem to want more from David. I guess when you're the best, they expect the best.

Syesha- Really, you're the most talented girl left? Proud Mary would not be proud. The judges seem to be split. I agree with Simon's bad shriek version. But seriously, how can she be the only girl left?

Jason Castro- He never seems to know many of the songs on the list. Bob Marley wanna be sings a Bob Marley song. I Shot The Sheriff, well, I didn't care for it that much, but that's just cause I can't stand Jason's voice. I will give him props for doing a challenging song, but I didn't like it. And I agree with what my wife asked..."Why does he have his guitar?" He didn't strum it at all. I don't think it matters what the judges say, the teen girls are going to vote him through. Jason is a dope.

David Archuleta- "Stand By Me", safe song for David A. Should be good. And it is. As Randy says, "If you can sing good, you can sing any song good" or something like that. I don't really care for the background singers. David A could sing the phone book and it would sound good. I am sick of the "Who Me?" look, however.

ROUND TWO:

David Cook: The Who? Good choice I would think. He's able to do any rock song, and make it his own. By far the most talented singer left. Great song for David. I love it. The judges should love it too. And...they do! If he doesn't win, the show is rigged.

Syesha: Sam Cook's "A Change Is Gonna Come" She relies on her big notes, her big voice. But she looks so angry. I do like her hair better down than frizzed out, but I don't like the song. You're the only girl left, pick a girl rock n roll song. I guess she sang it well, but I didn't like it. You can tell the judges are pushing for a Syesha/Jason bottom two. And Paula gets weirder each week. I agree with Randy, not Simon and Paula. Stop the cryfest.

Jason Castro: If we can get to him, what will he sing? Well, it can't get any worse than the first one. What's he gonna sing? Bob Dylan???? OH NO!!! Of all the songs you could have chosen...WHAT??? He just forgot the words???? What a disgrace. You have no business being up there. None, at all. Bye bye Jason. You just gave Syesha a free pass. I can't wait for this to end. That was atrocious. I agree with Simon. Surely looks won't get him through.

David Archuleta: Elvis Presley's Love Me Tender should be a good one for David. Put this guy after that Jason Castro performance, well, just not fair at all. Wow. You knocked it out of the park David. He does have some quirky facial expressions though. Faded a bit at the end, but still great.

Best Performance tonight: David Archuleta
Sure to go through: David Cook
Worst: Jason Castro

Bottom Two prediction: Jason Castro and Syesha

Going home: Jason Castro

Your thoughts?

Obstacles

2008-05-01T09:42:00.002-05:00

How do you overcome the obstacles in your life?

When you meet a challenge that is too difficult, too daunting, too much, do you deal with it, or let it deal with you?

Lucille Ball was told she'd never be an actress. Michael Jordan was cut from his basketball team. Thomas Edison was told he should go into a career where he could use his good personality, because he'd never make it as an inventor. Abraham Lincoln failed at just about everything he tried. Walt Disney was fired from a newspaper saying he had no creativity.

I think they were all able to overcome their obstacles.

Jim Abbott was a major league baseball pitcher from around 1989-1998. He played for the Angels, the Yankees, the White Sox, and the Brewers. There are more pitchers in the major league than any other position, but its still an elite position. Jim Abbott may just another pitcher to some, but to me, he's an inspiration.

You see, Jim Abott only had one hand. He was born without a right hand. When preparing to pitch the ball, Abbott would rest a right-handed thrower's glove on the end of his right forearm. After releasing the ball, he would quickly slip his hand into the glove, usually in time to field any balls that a two-handed pitcher would be able to field. Then he would remove the glove by securing it between his right forearm and torso, slip his hand out of the glove, and remove the ball from the glove, usually in time to throw out the runner, and sometimes even starting double plays. During international play, Cuba once decided to repeatedly bunt against him, hoping that he wouldn't be able to manage, which proved to be an unsuccessful strategy.

Obstacles seem to slow us down quite a bit. We have too much on our plate to devote time to God. We don't have time for prayer, because by the time we get everything else done, we want to sleep. We don't have time for Bible study, because we have a million other things to read and study throughout the day. We don't have time for church, because our jobs overtake our time, and school projects mount up for the teens. Its hard to remain a Christian all the time, because of all the pressure in the world to be everything but Christian.

In Matthew 4, Jesus met an obstacle to his devotion to God in the form of Satan. While trying to devote weeks to God through fasting and prayer and meditation, Jesus was met head on by Satan, tempting him in the three categories of sin: Lust of the eyes, Lust of the flesh, and pride of self. As easy as it would have been to cave into these temptations, or obstacles, in the state of mind that a human body would be in after 40 days of fasting, Jesus met these obstacles in a strong manner, pushing them down, and telling Satan to leave him alone.

Yet, we struggle with finding time to talk to God, or to listen to Him.

Dear God, please help us meet our obstacles in life with strength. Help us to understand that the more obstacles we let run our lives, the less strength we'll have to encounter them. Thank you for the obstacles you place in our lives, so that we'll be able to grow stronger from them. Thank you for your example of Jesus, and how he daily overcame obstacles, proving that you can be a Christian and still have obstacles placed in front of you.

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