I was on TV

So, we sent out this postcard inviting people to worship with us. The postcard didn't seem THAT provocative to us. Then I get this phone call from a reporter at channel 25 saying that they would like to come interview me about our church. I say okay. It was a cool time and lasted about 30 minutes. She tells me it's going to be on at the 5pm news. So, I'm sitting there with my wife and kids (8 & 6) and they lead into the story with the title, "Sex Sells!" As I'm sitting there wishing my kids weren't watching my daughter (6) says, "Daddy, your famous." I said, "No honey, now I'm infamous." My wife and I laughed our tails off.

The kids never said a word or asked me about the "s" word.

I wish we could bottle up that childlike innocence and pass it out to all the adults in the world. God please save us.

Horton Hears a Who!

Finally, an animated movie you can take your young kids to see. Horton Hears a Who! (2008) stars the voices of Jim Carrey, Steve Carell (having surpassed Carrey as hottest actor around right now) and Carol Burnett. Other than a few "stupids" and "idiots" this is a great movie for you and the kids. The animation is incredible and the story is great. Thanks Dr. Suess! They just don't write 'em like they used to.

Horton, an elephant, is a Christ-like figure who is willing to sacrifice everything to save a people (the Who's) who don't even believe he exists. He is opposed by a diabolical kangaroo that incites an angry mob to lynch Horton for stirring up things like imagination, faith and a different way of looking at life. Other themes include: just because you can't see someone it doesn't mean he doesn't exist and being different can be a good thing.

Check it out and a good time will be had by all.

Did you see the movie? Did you like it? Why? What is your take?

Be Careful When You Sneeze

Oh my gosh! I was about to sneeze and I didn't want to blow granola all over my laptop (it's hard to get the chunks out of the keyboard) so I turned my head to the side and almost broke my freakin' neck. I think I busted some discs or bulged some or something. I am really angry. I'm really not getting along with myself right now.

Good Book

Hey bro. I am highly recommending this book. It's been out a little while but I hadn't read it until now. It is an easy read and quick. It's a non-fiction about a reporter, Jeffrey Marx, who spends a season with a high school football team coached by former NFL star Joe Ehrmann. What he learns is what so many men don't know - what it means to be a man.

You don't have to be a football enthusiast or even care about sports to identify with this book. Every man should read this book. Jumping off the pages are the things that most of our fathers never taught us. And what you will discover is that being a man is about the relationships you have - nothing more, nothing less.

The reality is that we are living in a fatherless nation. The divorce rate in this country is 50%. Also, 4 out of every 10 children are born out of wedlock (7 out of 10 amongst African Americans). What does this mean? More than ever our boys (and girls) are growing up with out fathers and they have no idea what it means to be a man. Scary.

If you are a male, read this book and get to work. There's a lot of work to do.

Poisoned!

There are new develops in the untimely demise and heartless murder of Jo - the mission dog! I have just learned that 5 other dogs in casas (houses) near the mission were also poisoned and killed the same day as Jo. It's a good thing all dogs go to heaven. Poor Jo and his friends - They are dead. R.I.P.

Relationships

If you can distill humankind down to one common denominator what would it be? For me, it would be relationships. This defines us and makes us human. It sets us apart from all other life on this planet. It's a mystery and it's where soul meets soul. Really, it's all we have. Everything else can be taken from us - all our material possessions and even our body but our relationships will endure for better or for worse. I want mine to be identified in the for better category.

For too long we have measured ourselves by what we wear, what we have and what we do? Ultimately, we will be judged by who we loved and who we didn't.

This is true of our relationship with God as well. Either we had one or we didn't. Jesus once said that you can sum up all of life with this simple and complex command, "Love the Lord, your God with all your heart, all soul and all your mind." This, he said, is the greatest thing we can do with our life. Then he said, the second greatest thing we can do is to, "love our neighbor as ourself."
But you can't do the second unless you have done the first. It's just the way the cosmos were created. It's how it operates and nothing is ever going to change this fact.

This is what life is all about. It's about relationships. It's about a love affair between God and you and others. Relationships are the only thing that will last. How did I love God? How did I love myself? How did I love others? How did I relate? These are the important questions.