Profoundity

moving too fast

2008-05-13T14:19:00.002-04:00

First of all, I was planning to review a new movie every week in May, and it looks like my plan has already been thwarted. I was planning to see Speed Racer last weekend, but then laziness set in. I may still see it before the week is out.

It turns out that everything in my life is getting away from me. Every time I blink, my kids are way too old, my lawn is way too long, my deadlines have passed me by, and my task list has refilled itself.

I know that this is normal for most people, but lately it is extreme. A month ago, I was living a private life in a social vacuum, and my daughter, Annie, was a sweet little girl.

Today, I have become accustomed to sharing every aspect of my life with people I don't know through myspace, facebook, blogger, and twitter. And my sweet little girl is getting ready to start middle school. Oh, and she's texting now, too. What happened?

Now, I knew all this was coming, and I suppose I should just dig in and deal with it, but what good is a blog if you can't use it to let out a little panic once in a while.

So, thanks for reading. Please pray for me. It's all just moving way too fast for me.

If you're looking for me, I'll be the one with his head buried in the sand...

in full geek mode

2008-05-05T17:32:00.002-04:00

May is here, and I could not be happier. Before I go on with my post, I am introducing the new "Jim's Movie Review" segment. There are movies that I want to see coming out every week this month, so I figured I would share my opinion after I see them.

So my first review of the month is for Iron Man:
"Oh my gosh. Iron Man. Seriously, wow, Iron Man. Oh my gosh."
I hope you enjoyed my first movie review.

So then, on with reality.

I am in full-blown geek mode. Besides the obvious geek-fest that Iron Man was, I have recently started myspacing, facebooking, and twittering, which has taught me that:
a) anything can be a verb if you add "ing", and
b) I need more friends. So, if you want to be my friend, please look for me on your favorite social networking site.

Also adding to my ultra-geekitude is the conference I just returned from. They put us in front of laptops and just let us play. It was great, except now I need to buy a few hundred dollars worth of software to get my next "geek fix".

So, in order to balance out my geeky behavior, and have forced myself outside. As much as I love technology, I can't forget about how awesome God's creation is. So even though I am outside with my laptop, I am appreciating the cool breeze and the sunny sky. I am so thankful that nothing new can ever be as cool as the stuff God invented at the dawn of time. I would break out into song, but the neighbors put up with so much as it is. It wouldn't be fair to them.

So, enjoy the Spring. Get outside. Worship God and thank him for giving us trees and bugs. And, if you are truly a geek like me, take a deep breath and then have an allergy attack. God created that too. Enjoy.

stuff I am doing

2008-04-16T10:19:00.002-04:00

Hello visitors to my blog,

I have very few complete thoughts these days, so I am struggling to find content for this blog today. So, I am taking the easy way out and providing you with a list of stuff I am, or have been, doing recently. Enjoy.

Right now (well not right now as in this second, but more like right now as in today, yesterday, last week, tomorrow, etc.) I am...

...working on the new Horizons Church website. I have never done a website before, so it is taking me a really long time. It's coming along nicely though. It should be up before May.

...listening to the new Raconteurs, R.E.M., and Gnarls Barkley albums.

...reading a book called unChristian. It has a lot of statistics, so I keep falling asleep while I'm reading it.

...trying to walk my dog every day. She's in heat, so she's not allowed out of the house without me.

...watching Lost. Mikki and I just started season 1 back in February, and we are only 3 episodes away from being caught up with the current season.

...also watching lots of DVD's. There's going to be a new movie to see in the theaters every weekend in May, so I am saving my entertainment money and just renting stuff I've missed. By the way, I didn't quite get No Country for Old Men. It just didn't change my life the way "the best movie of the 2008" should.

...praying for my brothers. They are both in the army, and it isn't an easy job. One just got back from war, the other will be going in a few months. I need them to outlive me.

...dreaming of summer vacation. We are going to visit family and go to 4 theme parks. Exhaustion is fun!

...also dreaming of standing in line to buy meat. I don't know why, but that's what I dreamt about last night. Just waiting to buy meat. Psychoanalyze that, why don't ya.

...playing video games way too late at night. I mostly play online with my brothers, and they live on the west coast.

...preparing my next series. We're going to talk about worshipping God and making him #1 all the time.

...teaching about spiritual gifts and personality types in my small group.

...complaining about everything. Darn my critical personality.

...happy that the sun is shining.

...thankful that Jesus loves me, despite how bad I treat him sometimes.

...killing time by making an extra long blog post about nothing in particular.

...singing the "Nowhere In Particular" song from Mr. Toad's Wild Ride in my head. Don't you hate when just using a word triggers a musical reaction in your head? Now I have to avoid the word "particular".

...hoping you have a great week. See you Sunday.

I have returned

2008-04-08T15:35:00.002-04:00

My blog has been neglected lately. I have been off work the past two weeks, and I have trouble remembering to blog when I am not in the office. My time off was relatively uneventful, which is just the way I like it.

While I was off, I went to Opening Day of the Detroit Tigers with my mom. She used to let us skip school to go to the game when we were kids. It was nice to bring that tradition back, though it wasn't the same without my brothers. The Tigers lost, though. They've lost every game so far. They are in the process of losing another one as I type this.

Opening Day is a big deal in Detroit. In case you've never been to Detroit, it's not a pretty city. It's full of factories and abandoned buildings. Everything's paved. The potholes can eat your car. There's still snow on the ground and the grass hasn't even considered turning green.

Except at the ballpark. Even though the sky is gray, the grass is green.

Here in Virginia, the grass is turning green and the trees are beginning to blossom. My kids have even played outside in shorts. In Detroit, everything is dead. The first sign of life we see all year is Opening Day.

When you first go through the turnstiles and see that beautiful grass, it's as if the whole city is reborn. It's a special day. I think I will be taking my kids with me next year.

I'm sure you don't have to look hard to find the spiritual parallel here. The hope, the joy, the beginning of something new and special. It's the same experience we have when Jesus comes in to our lives. That's also an experience I'm glad my mom shared with me, and something that I enjoy sharing with my kids.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2008-03-17T22:01:00.007-04:00

My family has few traditions. In fact, lack of tradition is our main tradition. Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, and birthdays are celebrated differently every year. We have a few things that are consistent, but for the most part, we are always looking for new and interesting ways to celebrate our holidays.

Except for St. Patrick's Day. This is the one day that I shake my fist in the and shout "Tradition!!" (see: Fiddler on the Roof). Since I was young, St. Patrick's Day has always been celebrated by my sorta-Irish family with a fine meal of corned beef and green stuff. In fact, with the exception of the meat, everything is green. The drinks are green. The potatoes are green. The veggies are green. Even the desserts have to be green.

No, it's not authentic, but it sure is fun. The greatest fun comes from trying to find new green things to add to what we now call the "I-Think-We're-at-Least-20%-Irish St. Patrick's Day Hootenanny." This year's addition is the Shamrock S'more.

To make your own Shamrock S'more, combine graham crackers, andes mints, and green peeps in the microwave for 10 seconds. Enjoy. Now you too can enjoy this fine Irish holiday just like me and my sorta-Irish family.

how well do we ever know anybody?

2008-03-05T13:45:00.003-05:00

I've been married for 13 years. Mikki and I are the best of friends, and we don't have anything left to hide. She accepts my many faults, and I accept the idea of being married to someone who would stoop to the level of accepting my many faults.

But recently, there was an incident...

We were watching Dumb and Dumber. I believe that Dumb and Dumber is a Top 3 Funniest Movie Ever. I quote it regularly. I know the movie backwards and forwards, and it still makes me laugh out loud. Watching that movie with Mikki was one of the highlights of my week.

But then Mikki informed me that she hated it. Really, really hated it. Hated it before we were married, hated it every time we watched it together, hated it even more at that specific moment. Hate. Lots of hate.

Now how am supposed to recover? I mean, you think you know someone, and then this happens! You have to understand, we're not one of those "opposites attract" couples. In college people thought we were siblings (although that may have been their way of explaining why she was hanging out with me). With the exception of me refusing to watch musicals and figure skating, and her refusal to enjoy professional wrestling and regular season basketball, we have always enjoyed the same things.

This is serious stuff. We may need counseling. It's like the whole thing's been a lie...

So here's the thing, my point was going to be that diversity is good. I tried to find a good verse to illustrate my point. Instead, I found this one first:

"No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God's approval." - 1 Corinthians 11:19

Now, I'm certain that I am using this verse out of context, so I will end by pointing out how great diversity is and such. I guess we should learn from this that we can love people who have vastly different opinions from us.

Seriously though, I don't have a great point to make here. I mostly just wanted to tell a funny story that some might relate to. Do yourself a favor and go rent your favorite movie. Watch how your spouse reacts to it. Your very future could depend on it.

Oh yeah, she never saw The Terminator either. (sigh)

unstoppableness

2008-02-27T11:19:00.003-05:00

Unstoppableness. That's my new fake word. I've spent the past month teaching the kids at Horizons about all the amazing things that God did in the Bible. We've talked about a talking donkey, a 90-year-old pregnant lady, dead being brought to life, and people walking on water. It's been fun.

And so, this week we are going to finish it up by talking about God's unstoppableness.

Unstoppableness. Once you get over the fact that it is a stupid sounding word, you have to admit that it is awesome. There is nothing that God can't do. Nothing can stop him.

Honestly, I don't think I live everyday thinking about God's unstoppableness. I can't help but think that everything depends on me. If things go bad, I curl up and whine about how hopeless things are. If things go good, well God is darn lucky to have my awesomeness around.

Deep down, I know that things don't depend on me. I am a small part of the equation. God is full of unstoppableness. Sometimes it's just hard to remember. Fortunately, God is constantly finding new ways to remind me.

Unstoppableness. Admit it, the word's growing on you now. Enjoy.

ladybug

2008-02-18T11:11:00.002-05:00

There was a ladybug on my car this morning. It's still February. Awesome...

I need spring to happen in the worst way. We've got all the windows open in the office today, and all I can think about is going outside. I would gladly do yard work today, just for the opportunity to be out.

Now, I am not a nature guy. I rarely get excited by God's Creation. Don't get me wrong, I do think it is amazing and all, but I'm generally not that affected by it.

But today is different. There are birds and bugs and motorcycles and kids playing and cool breezes and clouds that look like stuff and 42 days until Opening Day. You can't help but feel good. You can't help but be impressed that God put this all together.

Today is a great sneak preview of what's coming in 2 more months. Thanks God...

I shouldn't blog on Mondays

2008-02-11T15:48:00.000-05:00

It turns out that I have nothing interesting to say on Mondays. After all the business of the weekend, my mind is... it's... um... (sigh). I can't even come up with something funny to say. My brain is too useless to create a funny way to say how useless it is. Pathetic, really.

Prior to Sunday, I had lots of good ideas to write about. So many terribly important things to say. Now, nothing.

Oh well. This week should be pretty great, capped off by an awesome Sunday. In honor of Valentines Day, I'm going to be preaching to the kids about Jesus' love for us. Speaking of Valentines Day, there's a good chance that my wife will forget about it, so please nobody mention it to her. There's no sense in getting her hopes up. Poor girl...

Of course, the week should be great leading up to Sunday. Tomorrow we get to vote, which is pretty cool. I'm glad that our primary still means something this late in the year. Plus Thursday, besides being the holiday that we are not mentioning, is the day that the Detroit Tigers' pitchers and catchers report to spring training. I am giddy.

I hope you have a great week, and if I ever come up with something clever to write about, I'll try to update this thing again.

-Jim

random thoughts

2008-02-04T10:44:00.000-05:00

Howdy. I hope that everyone had a great weekend. Here's what is in my head this fine Monday morning:

- I assume that you watched the Super Bowl, and what I want to know is, how old do you have to be before you can say, "Hey wow, it's Tom Petty!"? Seriously. Are they going to cart out Pearl Jam 20 years from now? Please can we have someone under the age of 60 programming these things?

- There were birds chirping this morning, and it sounded like Spring. I am so ready for Spring.

- My X-Box 360 broke. This is the third one that has died on me. I blame defective hardware, but some suspect that it is used too excessively.

- It wasn't on my mind before, but I realize I just used the phrase "too excessively". Is that possible? Can something be too excessive? Wouldn't that imply that there is an appropriate amount of excessiveness? Can you be just excessive enough?

- This is what I do when I don't want to answer my emails.

- I started preaching a new series in Kids Church. It's called "Freak Show". It's all about the stories in the Bible that are shocking or unbelievable. I want to teach the kids that God can do things that we think are impossible, and that he uses ordinary people like us.

- Pitchers and Catchers will soon be reporting to Spring Training. I love football season, but I'll always be a baseball fan first. I can't wait. Go Tigers!

I hope you have a great week. See you Sunday.

politics

2008-01-31T10:09:00.000-05:00

I'm really enjoying all the campaign coverage. I guess it's because there's nothing else on TV. It's like watching a reality television show (which I rarely do because they are just one notch above Jerry Springer).

Just like in a reality show, I've come to the conclusion that all the contestants must be severely flawed to even want to participate, and each is willing to sacrifice a bit of his or her humanity and decency in order to win. It's sick, but it sure is entertaining.

Anyhoo, I was watching them bicker last night, and I was thinking about how the different behaviors make me feel. For instance, sometimes certain candidates demonstrate humility, honesty, and hopefulness, which makes me think that they are perfect for the job, and have no chance of winning. Other times, they are arrogant, judgmental, and convinced that everyone else is wrong, which makes me not want to listen to anything they have to say.

I apologize, as I realize I am creating a wall 'o text here, so I'll get to the point. I'm currently reading a book called "They Like Jesus But Not the Church." It's all about how our arrogant, judgmental, everyone-else-is-wrong attitudes (see it all ties together) is keeping people away from the church. Most people think Jesus is great and respect his ideas and what he stood for, but they don't like us. Jesus demonstrated humility, honesty, and hope, which is what drew people to him. We tend to be known for what we're against and for being holier-than-thou. Sometimes I don't like us either.

Of course, none of this is meant to be a knock against any particular candidate or anything like that. Instead, I was just thinking that if the politicians, who have paid professionals monitoring how they are perceived, often come across as callous, self-serving, hate mongers, how do we come across to the people we run into everyday? Are we demonstrating hope, love, and humility? I probably don't do that as much as I should.

See you Sunday...

homesick

2008-01-17T15:03:00.000-05:00

I miss Michigan today. It's all dreary and cold and wet and snowy in Stafford, which always makes me long for home.

Now I know what you're thinking, and I too hate where this blog is going. It sounds like one of those "where I grew up is better than here, and you don't know what real snow/tornadoes/rain/heat/alien invasions/tsunamis/volcanoes/smog/hail/etc. is really like" rants. Face it, when you live in a transient area, you hear that sorta thing all the time. There's always someone who has seen a tornado, lived through a hurricane, ran from a mudslide, or lost something to frostbite.

So, I'm not going to let this be one of those rants. I will just say that today I am homesick. I miss the snow. I miss the feeling you get when your nose-hairs freeze (seriously). I miss my family and friends. I miss going to Pistons games in the winter. I miss White Castles, Little Caesars, flaming cheese, and Saunders' hot fudge cream puffs. (wow, that last part makes me a bit choked up)

That's it. Nothing funny, deep, or spiritual. Just me being depressed, homesick, and perhaps a little hungry (seriously, you have not had dessert until your have had a hot fudge cream puff).

Enjoy your snow day, and I'll see you on Sunday.

-Jim

friday night fun

2008-01-11T23:06:00.000-05:00

Mikki is monopolizing my video games, so I have nothing to do but blog. Sad, isn't it. I seem to be caught somewhere between childhood and adulthood. I feel old and boring for sitting at home on a Friday night, but not old enough to stop me from whining about not getting my turn on the xbox. What's sad is that I'll probably have grandkids in 15-20 years, and I'll be fighting them for control of the games. They're never going to want to come to my house.

All my childishness aside, it is nice to have a family to spend time with. My kids will be teens soon, and I'm sure I'll be longing for these family nights in. It goes so quick.

I really enjoy reminding them of things that they used to think were great, like Barney and Elmo. They really hate it when I bring that up.

The last time I teased them about it, I started thinking about my spiritual growth. I've been a Christian most of my life, and I've really been following Christ since I was about 17. So spiritually, I'm about high school age now. Shouldn't I be embarrassed when I do the things I used to do when I was a young Christ-follower? How must God feel?

Imagine going to the store with your teenaged kid, and he starts eating his boogers and crying about candy. That's how God must see us when we revert to our old ways. Gosh, how he must be proud!

So there you have it, folks. In the eyes of God, I occasionally eat spiritual boogers. You have just experienced the worst metaphor ever. Thank you, and good night.

the new girl

2008-01-05T08:59:00.000-05:00

Just when I thought Christmas was over, Mikki gave me one last gift.

This is Daisy. She is a 5-month-old English bulldog. She always has her tongue out, and she snores.

Clearly, Mikki saw my list of my top 5 favorite Christmas gifts, and she wasn't happy not being #1. She just got bumped to the top of the list...

it's over

2007-12-30T18:29:00.000-05:00

Well, the greatest vacation ever is winding down. When 2008 begins, we'll be jumping in the car to go home. Right now, I'm enjoying a football game while my family is singing karaoke by the pool. Pretty great.

Oddly enough, after 9 days in Florida, today is the first day I really felt relaxed. Of course, as soon as that happened, I couldn't help but start working again. My notebook and I had a very productive afternoon today, and I've just about planned all my sermons for the next year. It's a good thing, because I didn't even have a plan for next Sunday yet.

As I am still on vacation, and therefore lack the ability to form any deep thoughts, I'll give you one more list. I wanted to do my favorite cd's of 2007, but there weren't enough good ones to list. Besides the White Stripes, there wasn't anything that I feel I can gush over.

So, here is my list of my Top 5 Favorite Movies of 2007:

5. Transformers - Perfect summer movie

4. Fantastic Four 2 - I'm a sucker for superhero movies

3. Stardust - I'll bet you never even heard of it, did you? For shame...

2. Hot Fuzz - Funny, excessive action

1. Sweeney Todd - Words can not express how much I loved this movie. And I detest musicals.

See you next Sunday.
-Jim

Merry Christmas

2007-12-24T08:21:00.000-05:00

Greetings from Orlando. My spoiled family is currently enjoying the best Christmas ever. Here's how we are celebrating the holidays:

- We're at Disney. We are getting ready to go over to the Magic Kingdom, where we will remain until after midnight so the first moments of Christmas will be spent at the park.

- My brother Paul, who just spent 15 months getting shot at in Iraq, is spending the week with us.

- The kids are getting the Wii tomorrow. It's all they wanted, and they're convinced they won't be getting it.

- We're going to go see Michigan State's bowl game. It'll be my first ever college football game.

- I get to eat my Mom's cooking for a week.

All in all, this is the best Christmas ever.

More Lists!

2007-12-18T13:14:00.000-05:00

There's something wrong with the header on this page. Now, all you can see is the monkey's forehead. It loses some of it's zazz. Oh well...

This is my last Christmas list before vacation hits. By 4pm Friday, my family will be suffering through Christmas at Disney World. Who needs Santa when you've got Mickey Mouse?

Here we go, then. These are my Top 5 TV Christmas Specials:

5. The Star Wars Christmas Special - As a registered geek/dork/dweeb/loser, I am required to make reference to this thing whenever possible, since it is obscure and only ever aired once, back in the 70's. I've seen it. I died a little inside. I don't recommend it. But it still makes my list.

4. Frosty the Snowman - The rest of my family makes fun of me for this one.

3. Charlie Brown Christmas - The scene with Schroeder playing Jingle Bells makes me laugh every year.

2. How the Grinch Stole Christmas - "You nauseate me, Mr Grinch, with a nauseous super-naus." Seriously awesome lyrics.

1. Mickey's Christmas Carol - I don't know why it's never on TV anymore. Best ever.

Merry Christmas

-Jim

My Top 5 Favorite Christmas Gifts

2007-12-10T10:54:00.000-05:00

Hey Everybody,

I had fun making my list of favorite Christmas movies last week, so this week, I am going to list the 5 greatest gifts I ever received. Enjoy!

5. A Sword. This needs no explaining. Mikki saw it at the pawn shop, and she knew I would be surprised. Ladies, just in case you don't know this, every man wants a sword. It's just awesome.

4. A Baseball Signed by the '68 World Champion Detroit Tigers. My mom bought this one. It's missing a few signatures, but at least I was able to get Al Kaline to sign it for me later that year.

3. A Big Box of Star Wars Toys. Santa brought it when I was 5. I think the box was as big as me. Awesome.

2. A Troy Aikman Christmas Ornament. I'm from Detroit, and I have never been a fan of Dallas or Aikman. But the last Christmas that my Grandma was alive, I told her that I would like to have a Christmas ornament from her. I was expecting something that would be sentimental, but instead I got Aikman. Apparently she went to the store and looked for something that would match my interests. My Grandma was an oddball and a flake, but she was also one of the most special and influential people in my life, so every year I have to explain to people why Aikman is on my tree. Now that I live in Redskin country, I make sure to stash him towards the back.

1. The Nintendo Entertainment System. Once upon a time, there were three brothers who loved to frolic and play outside. Then one Christmas, Santa delivered the Nintendo. We never saw the sun again. Best. Christmas. Ever.

The Golden Compass

2007-12-06T14:52:00.000-05:00

I know that there are many parents with questions about The Golden Compass. I have not yet read the book, but Christianity Today has a great article about it. Check it out in my links section to the right.

My Top 10 Favorite Christmas Movies

2007-12-03T16:02:00.000-05:00

I don't have anything deep or inspirational to say today. Instead, I am giving you a list of my Top 10 Favorite Christmas Movies. Please keep in mind that I did not include made for TV specials on this list, even though they are all out on DVD now. That would have been a much bigger list.

10. Fred Claus (I loved this movie, and it may move up once I start watching it every year)
9. The Grinch (Jim Carrey is awesome - purests be darned!)
8. The Santa Clause (not the sequels)
7. The Nightmare Before Christmas (Tim Burton could blow his nose, and I would pay to watch it. Awesome)
6. A Christmas Story (liked it better before TNT got a hold of it)
5. Home Alone (I liked it better before it started giving my son clever ideas)
4. Gremlins (Not usually acknowledged as a Christmas movie)
3. National Lampoons Christmas Vacation (I like movies that abuse cats)
2. Scrooged (Would be #1 if not for...)
1. Muppets Christmas Carol (I can't explain why. That's how favorites work, sometimes)

The End. Enjoy.

2 for 1

2007-11-15T11:49:00.000-05:00

Hey Everybody.

I am trying to keep this blog up-to-date, so after going two weeks without blogging, this week I'm doing it twice. Unfortunately for you, the reader, I don't know if I have much more to say. Rather than give you an essay, today I will give you a list of why this weekend is awesome. Enjoy.

- Michigan vs Ohio State. Seriously, this is the most important 3 hours of my yearly calendar. I think my kids' first words were "Boo, Ohio State!" Game starts in 48 hours, 4 minutes, and 25 seconds.

- My fantasy football team has locked up a playoff spot, and I think I'm gonna win my first championship.

- It's not even lunchtime on Thursday, and I am finished with my sermon and powerpoint. That never happens.

- I am a week away from awesome leftover turkey sandwiches.

- My brother Paul is done with his 15 months in Baghdad. Our entire family can sleep well again.

- My brother Patrick is having surgery today, so he's going to be stuck on his couch for 30 days. It doesn't sound like a good thing, but it means that he's got more time to play video games with me.

- Rich is starting a new series, and it looks really interesting. Don't miss it.

- The weather is too nasty for me to rake leaves. Darn.

I could come up with more, but I won't. I hope your weekend is even better than mine. See you Sunday.

Happy Monday!

2007-11-12T11:13:00.000-05:00

Today is a great day. Why, you ask? Because it isn't yesterday. Yesterday's service was filled with technical difficulties that turned into chaos. The chaos trickled over to the Kids Church, which got the kids all wound up. The wound up kids created crowd control issues that made it difficult for me to preach well. I honestly believe it was the worst Sunday morning I've ever had as a pastor.

Of course, one of the worst mental illnesses that pastors have is that when things go great, we give all the credit to God, but when things go bad, we take all the blame on ourselves. I understand why bad things happen to good people, why God allows suffering, and why God's protection and provision does not always guaranty safety and prosperity. Yet, for some unknown reason, a computer crashes, sets up a chain reaction that we could not have planned for, and I feel like a failure. Bad things happen to good computers, too. I get that now.

It's a good thing that God can use even the worst experiences for good. I have no doubt that people God moved in peoples' hearts yesterday. I'm sure that many people received exactly what they needed from our Sunday morning service. I'll bet there were even some kids who had fun and can't wait to come back. The most flawed people can do impossible things through God, and He can work miracles in the midst of our failures. In the end, whether or not it was smooth, our kids learned that God expects us to be difference makers and world changers, and that we can't be afraid to stand up for what is right. The presentation may not have been the best, but the underlying message was.

So, happy Monday! It's a new day. I am over yesterday. I've made my peace with it. This week will be better. It has to be, unless God releases a plague of locusts in the auditorium. Either way, this Sunday will be exciting. See you there.

the awesomeness of me

2007-10-22T16:00:00.000-04:00

Forgive the title. It seems a bit prideful, which is not normal for me. I often like to brag about the fact that I am the most humble person I know.

This week I am preaching to the kids about how important we are to God. I am normally full of insecurity and self-loathing, so I am trying to get myself ready to preach about something that is really a struggle for me. Something you may not know about us pastors is that we preach the best about the things that we struggle with. My three best sermons this year, so far: everyday prayer (struggle); living for Jesus when nobody's looking (struggle); pretending things are ok when you hurt inside (ulcer/struggle).

So I am beginning the week by telling myself, I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, etc. It's going to be an interesting week, because God's going to be working on my heart as much as the kids. I am going to stand in front of 75 kids on Sunday and tell them that sometimes I feel like a complete loser. That's not going to be easy, because I might get some of them to agree with me.

Fortunately, I'm God's favorite. (Don't get jealous. You're his favorite, too.) The greatest feeling in the world is doing what God created you to do. God created me to stand in front of a bunch of kids and tell them I feel like a loser. I promise you, that is not what I dreamed I'd be doing when I was a kid, but letting God use me to touch the heart of a child is greater than anything I ever dreamed of. Take that, bullies from my 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade classes! I am the awesome now!

appreciation

2007-10-11T11:21:00.000-04:00

First of all, the reason I didn't blog last week is that I was out of town at a conference. The conference was one of the best I've ever been to, but I never had any time to update this site.

As for what I got out of this conference:
- Christians should be environmentalists. (I already felt this way, but I didn't know that other people didn't)
- Due to the schedule I keep on Sunday mornings (Kids Church and whatnot), I spend less time in church services than people who only show up on Christmas and Easter.
- I drink too much bottled water. I child dies every 30 seconds from lack of clean water.
- If I take away the time I spend preparing for sermons, my Bible reading time is pretty weak.
- You can stand in an airport and tell who is trying to be a "cutting edge" pastor. They are usually 35-45, and dressed like they are in the 8th grade. It's sad.

Anyhow, the purpose of today's post is that this Sunday is Pastor Appreciation Day. Please don't think I am bringing it up because I am a pastor. I hate being the center of attention, and I am always uncomfortable when people make a fuss about me. I like to think that I am pretty humble (though I guess I seem less humble when I point out how humble I am).

I wanted to take this opportunity to appreciate the pastors that I get to work with. I have only been here a little over 4 years now, but I often wonder how I ever lived without these guys. If you only know Rich, Jay, and Andy from seeing them on stage on Sunday mornings, you are really missing out.

Rich is the reason I took this job. The first time I met him, I went away feeling like I would be doing a disservice to God if I didn't soak up every bit of knowledge that Rich could teach me. I am proud to say that I am infinitely better at what I do because he's invested time into my life. Plus, we disagree a lot (politics, traditions, etc.), and I love to argue. He's never stopped liking me because of my views, and he's swayed my opinion more often than I'm proud of.

Jay is my free therapist. The sky could actually be falling, and he could make me feel good about it. I do some of my best creative work with Jay, and I appreciate that he is always looking for new ways to get out of the box. Plus, he never uses his position as leverage to get his way. That's important, because as I said, I love to argue. Nothing worse than having an argument end with the "Senior Pastor Trump Card". I don't think he even remembers he has it in his pocket.

Andy is like my roommate. We've been sharing a small office for a couple of years. I think we can hear each other think sometimes. He's a good roommate, for the most part, although he talks really loud when he's on the phone and sometimes he puts on headphones and sings along to whatever he's listening to. Still, he's way better at this job than I am, so it's good to have someone within arms reach to ask questions. Andy is by far the friendliest person I've ever met, and he is everyone's best friend.

So, since I am usually grumpy and complainy, things are going to be awkward now. I'm not sure if I've ever said anything nice to these guys before. But, I didn't want another Pastor Appreciation Day to go by without letting everyone know how lucky we are to have these guys leading our church each day.

Stay Awesome

-Jim

good things

2007-09-28T10:09:00.000-04:00

I think my last post was a bit of a downer. I've decided that this post is only going to be about good things.

So, here's a list of the great things that happened this week:

- my TV is fixed

- Halo 3

- I planned my next sermon series. It's called "Disguises", and it is all about the things we hide from the world. It's going to give me an opportunity to teach the kids about self-esteem and being themselves. It also gives me an excuse to bring in my Mr. Potatohead collection.

- new Foo Fighters CD

- I won my fantasy football game last Sunday

- my brother lost his fantasy game (it doesn't sound positive, but he's my division rival)

- my parents are visiting this weekend, and they're bringing me Detroit Tigers bobbleheads (I love new toys)

- I was really sick this week, but now I feel awesome

- most of the new shows I watched this week were great

- I started working an extra day this week, which isn't fun, but I got more done, and I don't feel so rushed

- our Preschool class performed on Sunday, and they were even cuter than I expected

- my daughter, Annie, was selected to be the director of her schools news show. My son, Jimmy, started Cub Scouts.

- the Detroit Lions can only get better

- the Michigan Wolverines upset Penn State

- God forgave me for numerous infractions

So, it was a good week. I hope yours was too.

Keep on truckin'.