We're on our way. After 7 years of trying, Bert has finally got me going to a Family Life "Weekend to Remember" marriage conference. Us and 8 other couples from the church are headed to Nashville. Will post about it on Monday when I get back.

OK, here it goes.
Last night we had put our 3 year old in the tub. After we scrubbed him up real good, we gave him a few minutes to play in the water. That's the whole point of taking a bath after all. At any rate, I walked down the hall and noticed water dripping on to the floor from the sink. Not sure what to make of it, I investigated. When I walked into the bathroom, there was Hunter, holding the detachable nozzle and making a "Water Fountain." At least that's what he called it.

2 inches of water all over the floor. The walls. The vanity. The commode. Everything. I could have killed him. But then again, it was funny. Had it been somebody elses kid in somebody elses house, I'd have laughed till I puked. Eventually, I laughed that way even though it was my house and my kid.

You know, I find myself in the same "hot water" with my Heavenly Father. I do stupid stuff like that all the time. Not literally, but you know what I mean. I cant help but wonder if He laughs? Granted sin is sin and He certainly cant stand it, but I wonder if he's ever amused at the messes I get myself in, like I was at the mess of my kid.

Granted, there were consequences to Hunter's actions, but the entertainment level of his disobedience at least scored a little mercy. And Scripture says that "God is rich in mercy." What started out as a pain in the butt exercise in cleaning up the bathroom turned out to be a lesson I needed. Mercy turns wrath into the chuckles of Heaven.

Fishing for Men

WOW! What an amazing past couple of days. I have been busy. It's just been one of those sets of days that comes along every now and then that are just demanding. It's not been bad, just busy.

Yesterday evening I did decide I needed just a small break. I went up to the lake for a few hours to see if the Stripers (Not strippers! Strippers remove their clothing, Stripers are big fish with a bad attitude. There were no strippers at the lake---at least to my knowledge) were running. They weren't. I made a couple hundred casts with not even the first hit. But I kept on casting. I kept thinking that any moment would be THE moment where one of those "Attack Fish" would pull my arms out of socket. THE moment, never came.

Now here's where I attempt to make a spiritual point of some sort. Jesus said that if you follow Him, He will make you a fisher of men. But I can honestly say that the times where I have relentlessly pursued a person with the same intensity that I pursued those fish last night have been few and far between. I certainly dont make a couple of hundred "casts" with the Great News of Jesus. I often give up. WAY before Jesus would have me shake the dust of my sandals, I've already moved on. At other times I give up hope and go through the motions with little or no expectations. If THE moment doesn't happen quickly, I'm prone to thinking THE moment probably isn't going to come. And so I give up and move on. I think I can do better than that. I know I'm expected to do better than that.

2 Out of 3 Aint Bad!

Well, the end of the week has finally made it. I decided to make an attempt at self-discipline and made mention of 3 things I was going to try and do as a simple exercise to achieve this end. Well, I have done decent (content not considered) on the blog. I have at least been faithful to the task. My attitude has been pretty positive as well. Given the week I've had, I'm proud of that. Have had less sleep than normal, thanks to the kids, and more work than normal. I have kept some pretty long hours this week with a number of different meetings. But all in all, I've still been upbeat and positive. I probably wont win the NCAA Spirit Award or anything. But I would've at least enjoyed having lunch with me. Now for the machine. I have not done my time on the machine. I haven't had the time. I was faithful for a few days and then just became overwhelmed with responsibilities.

Of course, the goal here isn't to become legalistic. I'm not a failure because I failed. In fact, the simple effort of making an attempt to better myself and my usefulness to the King is a victory in an of itself. I've been studying MT 15 this week and Jesus talks along similar lines there. He rebukes the Pharisees for forsaking the commandments of God in order to pursue the "traditions of men." Though not technically a tradition, the "Law of Jeff" that I established for myself the other day is not on the same page, or even the same book for that matter, as God's commands. I dont have the time right now to flesh all this out, but I know what I'm trying to say whether anybody else does or not.

All in all, a great week. Meatloaf said it best...2 out of 3 aint bad.

WOOT-OFF

Today is a woot-off. Click on the link on the left for Woot to see what a woot-off is all about. It's awesome. It's such an incredible rush. Not that I ever buy anything because I'm really not that techno savvy. It's too bad there's not an outdoor section. Maybe a shoe woot or a grocery woot. I'd buy tons I'm sure. Probably good that most of it is computer stuff that I dont know how to use. But man, its fun. Last woot off I just missed the Bag-O-Crap by less than second. Who knows, maybe today will be my big day. If nothing else, it'll transform an ordinary Thursday into something spectacular.

My Own Personal Hell. I hate this machine. It is lifeless. It asks for much and gives back so little in return. I close my eyes and exert myself, and yet when I open them again, I'm still where I started.

Boring. That is what it is. And yet I know I have got to go do my time.

Making A Habit

Well, they say it takes 20 days or so for something to become a habit. This is day 3.
Day 3 for blogging
Day 3 for excercising.
Day 3 for trying to become a little more positive in my attitude.

Not that I need the outlet for my thoughts.
Not that I'm terribly out of shape.
Not that I'm all that negative.

But I lack discipline. I'm an "in-the-moment" sort of person. I find it generally more enjoyable to let how I feel right now dictate my next move. That can't be good. So I'm taking 3 fairly simple concepts and trying to make them all a habit. Just for discipline's sake. Somewhere along the way I've heard the words "Master Thyself." I'm not sure when or where or who, but lately my heart has been hearing them again. So here we go...

(Let me just say, the excercise thing is a real drag. Maybe I'm more out of shape than I previously mentioned.)

Just a small perk of the rural pastorate.
Thanks Big AL!!!

Reconnect

I just received a phone call this evening from an old, old friend. Hadn't heard or seen anything out of him for a number of years. It was good to hear his voice. Good to hear things were going well. Good to hear he has fought through a number of life's battles and has come out on the winning end.

Just talking to him tonight made me feel really great. It got me thinking about a whole wagon load of people I have not had any contact with in quite some time. I miss them. Apparently the hustle and bustle of life has cut in on what ought to be my true priorities, namely the people and relationships that I have with those I care about.

Though its not New Years, I find myself on the verge of making a resolution. I am resolving to reconnect with old friends and restore old relationships that shouldn't have been put out to pasture.