Life's For Sharing

Whether you've seen this before or not, it's worth watching over and over. How much fun is this?



Can you imagine a group of people sharing life and Christ in such a way? Not necessarily with the dancing, but altogether. As one body. Life's For Sharing. Great slogan; fun video. Be encouraged.

(This came in the email: At the train station in Liverpool , T-Mobile did this great commercial unbeknown to the daily commuters. They practiced for 8 weeks and late one night at the station. On January 15th, 2009, with hidden cameras and 400 dancers at 11:00 a.m. their plan was put into action.)

Truth In Comedy

Maybe it's tragedy, but it's truth nonetheless.

Long Days = A Long Time

Several thoughts are running through my head at 4:45 in the morning:

1. it's been a long time since a posted
2. that's because I've been working 10 - 12 hour days the past 3 weeks
3. oh yeah, going in to the radio station between 5:30 and 6 (a.m.) then working at CellularPlus until till 6 (p.m.) and some days working the sound at ACF for band practice and what-not till 9-ish
4. I've got a lot I want to post about
5. been working on new music
6. got a new guitar
7. celebrated my 11th wedding anniversary
8. I need to lose some weight
9. I need to go get in the shower
10. I love my new job
11. God has really given me a grace for getting up so early in the morning
12. Wyoming sounds like a cool place to live
13. I love my wife
14. I love my kids
15. I love my parents
16. I love my friends
17. I love how many times I'm writing I love something
18. (but I really do love all those people)
19. I still need to go get in the shower
20. I wanted to round my list of thoughts off at 20 - so I did

Ciao

iLog 2009: Days 26 - 28

Day 26: Thursday
Since it's been a week and half since this day, I honestly don't remember much about it. What I do remember is that my wife spent most of the day cleaning, and I mean cleaning, the house to get ready for her 30th birthday party, which was to take place at the house on Friday. Well, that didn't happen, but at least we had a clean house!

Day 27: Friday
My wife's 30th birthday!

Day 28: Saturday
The day after my wife's 30th, birthday! To read more about these last two days of immersion, please go here and here.

Sometime later (I'm not making any promises as to when) I will do an iLog wrap-up. Look for it, and until then, please be encouraged!

The Wife's 30th Birth-Weekend!

My wife, Bridget, turned 30 this past Friday, and boy, did I get her good! What started out so fun but small turned into an elaborate 3 day adventure! You don't understand how hard it was to not let anything slip during the week. My friends and I tried a couple of times, but luckily, we caught ourselves and were able to give Bridge the surprisiest birthday party ever! (Yes, I made that word up.) Thank you to all the parties involved in helping to plan and participate in such a wonderful weekend. For the low down on the hoe down, check it out here.







(my beautiful bride)

Hello, March

iLog wrap up and other updates coming soon. Until then:

iLog 2009: Days 24 & 25

Day 24: Tuesday
The day started out as usual and ended deep in thought. I honestly don't remember how or why it ended there. I remember thinking that night, "why am I so thoughtful?" I don't remember any conversations or events that would have caused me to be so reflective, but there I was, late at night,...reflective.

We had dinner next door at my parents' house, because my mom is out of town and my dad, not wanting to be a bother, won't ever eat with us unless we tie him up and sit him down to eat. So, we did. And he liked it! (Didn't you?)

Yes, that paragraph revealed something interesting, didn't it? I live right next door to my parents. They live in the same house in which I grew up, and now my family and I live next door. Very cool. Many benefits: free babysitting, pool, cable TV, fun (and sometimes free) meals. This could go on and on. I'm just thankful (as is my wife) that my mom is unlike poor Ray Barone's mom on "Everybody Loves Raymond." I don't think we would've lasted too long had that been the case. Thanks, family, for loving and supporting us the way you do. We love you guys!

Day 25: Wednesday
OK, sappiness over, let's continue. I wrote this in my journal at 4:23 in the morning:

I am deep in thought. I have been since last night. At least, that's the best way for me to describe it. I do not feel sad; I do not feel depressed; I just feel ponderous. (side note: 2Nu song, anybody? Anybody?) I feel like the Holy Spirit is wanting to touch me - move me in some way, but am I hindering it? Oh, God, no! I don't wish to hinder Your spirit's move in my life. - Please, speak to me, Lord, for your child is
here, listening.
- I have read 2 Chronicles 13 & 14 and John 9:13-10:21
- Those who obey the Lord find peace. Obedience leads to peace - not necessarily with our enemies, but peace with God. Oh, Lord, teach me that I may obey your commands.

The two words I got out of this morning were "obey" and "peace". Cool. I encourage you to read those passages to see what the Lord may have for you. Be encouraged.

Soli Deo Gloria

iLog 2009: Day 22 Addendum

Sunday:
We had some friends come over for lunch, because re:Think's wife had a dream she wanted to visit about with us. So, as we are eating spaghetti, she explains her dream. I'll let her tell you, so, I'm sorry, you will not hear it here. This isn't about that.

After her dream explanation, re:Think, the husband, describes a dream he had the same night. They were similar but different, and I'll let you hear it from him. This isn't about that, either.

So, Bridget starts to tell about a dream she had Saturday night as well. Since this isn't about that either, she'll have to tell you about it. All three of them sat at our table and were just so smug and "la-dee-da" about how spiritual they were that they all had a dream and I didn't. Well, that's not exactly the case. I would've shared my dream with them, but I decided to let them bask in their "spiritual superiority". (please hear the tongue in cheek here)

This is about MY dream.

I actually had three distinct dreams Saturday night, but only one do I remember in detail. Obviously, this is the dream that I shall depict for you. Actually, I need to start a couple of nights earlier, so let me esplain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up.

Bridget had an episode where she rebuked fear and immediately I hid under the covers. Apparently, fear didn't leave without one more jab, but this one was aimed at me. Fair enough, I got over it. Bridget still teases me.

So, fear comes back Saturday night. I can tell because my dream is odd and weird, and not scary, but I remember feeling afraid. I kept stabbing this seemingly nice guy who was meaning to do us harm, but he was not affected by my efforts. I end up in that half asleep/half awake state and realize that it is only a dream. Thoughts of rebuking this fear came to mind, but I was tired and really didn't want to mess with it. So, I laid there for a few minutes in this odd state of being afraid, but not really, being asleep, but not really. Doesn't make much sense, I know, but how often can one clearly describe one's dreams to other people?

Finally, something happened, I don't remember what, and I decided to take action. However, for whatever reason, I decided to bind fear. I bound fear's mouth, arms, and legs to where fear couldn't do anything but be bound in the name of Jesus Christ. I rolled over and started a different, less fearful, dream.

I find it interesting that we all had dreams of some sort of significance Saturday night. I find it funny that I had three dreams while everyone else only had one. Ha. So, to not let pride take over any more than it already has, I digress.

Be encouraged. Rebuke and bind fear in the name of Jesus. You'll sleep better.

iLog 2009: Days 19 - 23

Day 19: Thursday
A Story: Nikola Tesla visited Henry Ford at his factory, which was having some kind of difficulty. Ford asked Tesla if he could help identify the problem area. Tesla walked up to a wall of boilerplates and made a small X in chalk on one of the plates. Ford was thrilled, and told him to send an invoice.
The bill, for $10,000, arrived. Ford asked for a breakdown. Tesla sent another invoice which read: "marking a small X in chalk = $1; knowing where to put the X = $9,999".

A Testimony: Eddie and Joan paid me cash for helping with their recording software yesterday. I felt that what they paid was a little excessive, and spoke with Joan this morning about it. She simply stated it was for knowing where to put the X.

A Blessing: I went to get my guitar out of the shop today, because it needed some work. The charge was 61 cents less than what Joan paid me yesterday. I was able to pay cash for my guitar and not use our checking account. God knew what he was doing.

A Job Offer: For the last several months, a local U.S. Cellular store, Cellular Plus, has been having remote broadcasts at least once a month with our radio stations. I have been the one to actually broadcast from the store, and so I've come to know the crew there pretty well. At the last remote, I had mentioned how I had gone to part time at the station.
Today, the store manager called me, out of the blue, and offered me a part time job with the store. I was in awe; I was flattered; I was humbled. She told me a little bit about it and set up a time for me to come in tomorrow and visit with them about it. Ok. What's up, God?

Day 20: Friday
Bridget and the fam took BoBo to meet her parents, Tam-Tam and Grandpa, in Lawton, so he can stay the weekend with them in Chickasha. He is very excited.
I went in to visit with the "powers that be" at Cellular Plus, and the deal sounds pretty sweet. Flexible hours, base hourly rate that would go up in 6 months plus commissions on contracts and computer repair, weekly pay, potential job growth. Sounds good. Plus, I get to learn how to work on computers and do cellular phone contracts, both of which would be great skills to have in today's job market. I asked for the weekend to pray about it and visit with Bridget about it.

Day 21: Saturday
Eddie introduced his new book, Animal ABCs - A Book of Whimsy, today at the public library. Bear, Popeye, and I went to the library to hear Eddie read some from his book. It was a lot of fun, and we bought a book for kids. Eddie signed it, and the guys were excited. They like "Mr. Eddie."

Bridget went over to a friend's house to sew some curtains for them, and we all wound up spending most of the morning and early afternoon over there. They are good friends. We like them.

Well, the sewing motivated Bridget, so she got some new fabric and came home and sewed new curtains for our house! They look good, too. She then went to the Miss Altus pageant with my mom and sister. The kids and I stayed home and hung out.

Day 22: Sunday
More on this day in a later post.

Day 23: Monday
After talking with my wife, parents, friends, and God, we all decided that the job at Cellular Plus would be a great opportunity for me, so I went in today and told them I would take the job. Kathy, the store manager, was excited and a couple of the other guys tried to get me to start then and there. They actually wanted some time off, I think, but for now I'll go with they just really wanted me to be there.

During this stretch of time, I've been working on music, but I've got musician's block. If that is such a thing. Still walking with God through all this. I start next Monday at Cellular Plus; I wanted to finish this month of immersion. More to come...

iLog 2009: Day 18

Wednesday

Good things today: got the first song for the CD ready on Reason (I really want version 4), helped Eddie and Joan with their recording stuff, and attended our last Life Group meeting as one, big group. Look for a sample of the song and more details over on Sounds sometime today. Came across this quote on Frank Viola's Facebook page:

"A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against
it." - G.K. Chesterton

Great thought. I know that being a living thing doesn't mean one will automatically go against the stream, but to do so, one does need to be alive. Fill me with your life, oh, God, and guide me.

Soli Deo Gloria

iLog 2009: Day 17

Tuesday

Finally, a good day of working on music. We've formulated the list for the CD, and it's taken a little while, but I finally feel comfortable working again with my music production software. For further music updates, check out Sounds From the Batcave.

In other news, had a good day overall. I had some new thoughts pop into my head concerning the radio station, so I'm currently praying through them to see if it is indeed God speaking or my flesh.

For whatever reason, my mantra right now is Joshua 24:15. From the New King James:

15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day
whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the
other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.
But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. Whom do you serve? Be encouraged.

Soli Deo Gloria

iLog 2009: Days 10 - 16

A lot has happened in the last week. I shall try to touch on highlights and see where we go from here.

Day 10: Tuesday
New furniture arrived! Back in January, Bridget went to the Ashley Furniture Home Store in Wichita Falls, TX, with a some friends and qualified for no interest payments for 3 years. Today, we sat, laid, reclined, relaxed, sniffed, hugged, and thoroughly enjoyed our new leather sofa, loveseat, and recliner for the living room, and our new lampshade-matching armless chair in the bedroom. I would love to post pics here, but we can't seem to find the camera. Besides, I wouldn't dare steal any of my wife's thunder for when she starts to blog again, as she will no doubt wish to share this with you.

Day 11: Wednesday
This time of immersing ourselves in God has really turned into a testing ground for us and even some of our friends. Much time spent in prayer interceding for others on this day.

Day 12: Thursday
Deja Vu all over again. This time, much time in prayer spent interceding on our own behalf. Several meetings with different people all day. There's a reason things are happening at this time. We don't know it all yet, so we're still walking it through with the Lord.

Day 13: Friday
LONG day. But a GOOD day. At the station by 6 a.m. A remote from a new store in town from 11 to 1. Running around collecting all the prizes for the Me and My RC Show Valentine's Day Give Away. Delivering the prizes to the winners. Remote again from the new store from 4 to 6. Pick up Bridge for our Valentine's date, drop off kids, head to our suite at the Hampton Inn by 6:45. Pick up Applebee's, eat, shower, and head to dance between 9 and 9:30. Get back to the hotel late and enjoy and evening and late morning with no kids. (SLEEP!) (Thank you Grandma and Granddad for watching the kiddos!)

Day 14: Saturday
We leave the hotel at 11 (check out time), run a few errands, and bring lunch home for everyone. Naps are in order for the rents and the little ones. Rest of the day is spent just hanging out.

Day 15: Sunday
Release. Lunch. Conversations. Naps. Time spent in Batcave.

Day 16: Monday
At the station till noon/noon thirty. No return visit to station and no praise band practice for the church. Finally, an afternoon to spend in the Batcave. iSessions should start being posted soon over on Sounds From the Batcave.

Please note that I don't always mention the time spent in prayer and fasting. While we haven't produced much music (yet), God has been moving in mighty ways in our life. Some movements we will get to talk about, and some we will not. That has yet to be seen, but God is good. Thank you to those who have been praying with us. Your efforts have not been in vain. I will keep you posted as the rest of this month unfolds.

Soli Deo Gloria.

iLog 2009: Days 8 & 9

The month continues, and the immersing gets a little deeper each day. I was hoping for more of a dive right in type of thing, but instead we're easing our way into it. We're getting there.

Day 8: Sunday
Gathered with the church of ACF, ate lunch, napped, and worked some more in the Batcave. Seriously, I will post pics on my other blog, but I've got to take some, first. We've got the room looking extremely cool and put together the last bookcase. I can't wait to get to start using it.

Day 9: Monday
Worked at the station, the boys were dropped off later in the morning, because Princess had a doctor's appointment. The boys and I took my guitar to a local music store, because it turned out that the neck had bowed back. They are going to keep it for a week so that they can make sure everything adjusts properly with the humidity and other various things. Came home and napped. My final Musician's Friend shipment came in: my new sustain pedal for the keyboard and my new reference monitors (speakers). The speakers look sharp! The sustain pedal works! I then had to return to the station for Bids For Bargains. We then removed old furniture to make way for new that's supposed to be delivered today! I then went to praise band practice, came home, moved more furniture, delivered a chair to a buddy's house, and went to Walmart for medicine and a new rug.

Should start to have more "spiritual" things to report soon. And music. Hang with me.

iLog 2009: Week 1

My apologies as the Batcave has been down this week for some remodeling. It all started last Saturday, and I finally had it back in order...well...it's still not completely back in order. I got the computer back up and running late Wednesday night, I think. The days are starting to all run together. I'll post pictures and a more detailed update later today on Sounds From the Batcave. For here and now, let me catch you up on this first week of immersion. Honestly, it's been slow.

Day 1: Sunday
I worked the sound system for ACF like I've done every Sunday but 3 or 4 for the past 13+ months. I have to be there by 8:30 in the morning, and I usually try to spend some time with the Lord before I go, but we were up late Saturday night working on the batcave, so I believe I slept in until 8. (Wow, I used the 3 major conjunctions together in one very long sentence.)
After service and lunch, we napped until game time then headed over to some friends' house to watch the Steelers eek out a thrilling victory over the Cardinals. Good game, great fellowship.
Also, more work on the Batcave.

Day 2: Monday
Back to work at the radio station. Although I'm supposed to be part time now, I put my hour sheet together for payday on the 3rd and realized I had 78 1/2 hours in a little over 2 week time period. My check was around $60 less than what it would have been if I were still on salary. Not bad for part time work.
By the way, our tax return came in on Friday, Jan. 30th. We had prayed for the 2 weeks between filing our taxes and receiving the return over on what to spend the money. So, we've been bidding on some things on the station's Bids For Bargains program. (Bids For Bargains is where an advertiser will trade a certain value of dollars from his/her store/service for that same amount in radio advertising. The station then holds an on-air auction everyday to sell off these items. The opening bids start at half the retail value. Many people get things for up to 50% off retail value. Some items have become so popular that they go for 80-90 cents on the dollar. You're still saving money, but it's a better deal for the station.) So, anyway, we've won Bulldog Furniture open certificates (which mean they spend like cash in the store) and picked up a new dining table and chairs, and a new red leather chair for the Batcave. Since I've been typing this, I honestly don't remember on what day we picked these up, but I know it was this past week.
After spending the afternoon working more on the Batcave, I went to praise band practice up at the Plaza Theater for ACF. Came home and worked some more in the Batcave.

Day 3: Tuesday
Worked at station, napped, worked the Bids For Bargains store at the station till 6:30, worked on Batcave.

Day 4: Wednesday
Worked at station, lunched with friends, napped, received first shipment of new things for the Batcave. Actually, it was a new computer monitor from Newegg (thanks, Chris Provence for turning me on to that site) that I gave my parents, and I took the one they had, because it matched the other one I had in the Batcave. So now I have dual, matching monitors, again. I had that before, but one of the monitors went out, but I'm back in bidness, baby!
We attended Life Group meeting at 7, came home and worked more on the Batcave.

Day 5: Thursday
Worked at station, napped, received second shipment of new things for Batcave, this time from Musician's Friend. I started putting things back together in the Batcave.

Day 6: Friday
Worked at station, ate lunch with a buddy, did a remote from Denny's Home Furnishings, went to the Alumni Association Recognition Banquet at Western Oklahoma State College. The station's owner/manager was out of town and asked Bridget and me to go in his stead. It was a fabulous evening! We even got to hang out with some friends we normally don't get to hang out with after the banquet. Long, but good, day.

Day 7: Saturday
Worked at station till noon, went over to Eddie and Joan Wilcoxen's house and helped with some technical issues in his studio and her office. They bought my lunch for my help. I enjoy spending time with them. He is a consummate story teller, and they are just neat, neat people.
Came home and took a short nap. Picked up last two chairs for dining table out at Bulldog. Good friends came over a little after 6 and stayed until a little before midnight. Time FLEW! We had a great time of abiding and praying and seeking God. I'm sure you'll hear more about that another time.

So, the first week is over, and not a heck of a lot of immersing going on. That will change. The Batcave is in order now, so music should hopefully start to flow soon. Plus, I plan to post everyday or every other day henceforth. Gotta go get ready for service this morning. Til next time!

Soli Deo Gloria

iLog 2009: Prologue

I plan to keep a journal-like account of our time of immersion. I will call it my iLog, as in "immersion log". Apple could sue, and if they do, then I'll just change it to ILog. No big deal.

In John chapter 15, Jesus talks to his disciples about abiding. "Abide in me as I abide in you," he says. "Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches." Our time of immersion is to be a time of deep abiding. We so strongly desire to abide with Jesus that we are going to fast certain things in our life for the month of February to focus on him.

Now, the idea is that this abiding will simply become our lifestyle (as it is supposed to be). I would say that we abide with our Lord most of the time now, but we want it to become so much more. Hence, this focused time of intentional abiding, this immersion in Jesus.

Follow us during this time, if you will, and I'm sure God will take us on some great adventures. We are praying for new wisdom and insight. Some things, I'm sure God will want us to share with you; some things, may just be for us. Again, here, I will call it the iLog. Over on Sounds From the Batcave, any new music that is born of this I will talk about in the "Immersion Sessions". Why I'm not so compelled to call them the iSessions, I don't know. It's just the way the cookie crumbles.

Today, I have Bids for Bargains at the radio station, a remote immediately following, and I should hopefully be home by 1. Then, we shall spend the afternoon preparing the Batcave. Some rearranging and remodeling are in order, so that this time of immersion can be at least aesthetically pleasing.

Tonight, I've got tickets to go a "Christian rock concert," but we'll see if I make that.

Tomorrow, after an institutional church service, I think we may head over to some friends to hang out and watch some game on TV. I think the Blue Jays and Loggers are playing, or something like that.

As it all begins, I'll keep you up to date as possible. (Because I know you are glued to the edge of your seat.) We should have some fun. Be encouraged.

Soli Deo Gloria

Pre-Immersion

Immersion (from Dictionary.com):

1. an act or instance of immersing.
2. state of being immersed.
3. state of being deeply engaged or involved; absorption.
4. baptism in which the whole body of the person is submerged in the water.
5. Also called ingress. Astronomy. the entrance of a heavenly body into an eclipse by another body, an occultation, or a transit. Compare emersion (def. 1).–adjective
6. concentrating on one course of instruction, subject, or project to the exclusion of all others for several days or weeks; intensive: an immersion course in conversational French.

Well, we're not taking a immersion course in conversational French, but we are going to take one in conversational relationship with God. For the month of February, Bridge and I will immerse ourselves in God and in our music. We hope to grow immensely during this time, and hopefully our music will reflect that.

Over on the Sounds From the Batcave, I wrote:

Seasons change. Wisdom grows. Philosophies evolve. Passions intensify. God remains the same. Music reflects it all.

Our prayer for this time of immersion is for God to reveal himself in fresh ways, for him to draw us closer to him and each other, to gain insight and wisdom into his will for our ministry, for new and fresh music to be born (and recorded and produced), to come close to completing the CD, to set a release date, and to just walk with our Lord. Will you join us in this prayer?

I will keep you up to date on the goings on during the immersion. I'm sure there will be a lot to talk about. I hope so, anyway. Be encouraged.

Soli Deo Gloria

OK Senate Bills 472 & 308

I never really thought I'd be one to get into a fight like this, but apparently, I am. There are two new bills to be proposed in the OK senate on Monday, February 2. I first saw this story here. It intrigued me as I felt our home schooling rights were being stepped on a little bit. So I started doing a little research.

First, I found this. I felt a little better considering the Chairman of the Senate Educational Committee, State Senator John Ford said,

“Our home school community is a vital asset to this state. The way home schooling parents currently educate their children is a process that has worked fine, and I feel it is important for them to have the freedom in determining what will best serve their children’s needs.”

So, he, at least, is opposed to these two bills.

Upon further research, I discovered the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) was in action on these two bills. See here for Bill 472 and here for Bill 308.

So, where do I come in on all this? We home school our children. My wife has prayed about it since we started having children, and we pray about it before every school year. We didn't home school Bobo or Bear until we moved to Altus. We have absolutely nothing against Altus schools, we just felt the Lord was telling us it was time to teach our children at home. Again, we pray about it before every school year, because we don't want to be disobedient to God. We will put them in the public school system as soon as God doesn't want us to home school anymore. This is the Lord's will for our life in this season, so we do it.

We believe it is a parent's right and God-given duty to teach his or her child(ren). See Proverbs 22:6 and Ephesians 6:4 among others. The fact that society has created public (and even private) school systems to teach children en mass, does not change this truth. In fact, it endangers it. Read Matthew 18:6, 7 and 14. Does a worldly school system not put a stumbling block in front of our children?

Both of my parents were school teachers. My mother-in-law still is. They taught/teach with integrity and respect to the children, their parents, and God. I have nothing against the teachers. They are doing their job. We, as parents, are doing ours. If the government feels the need to control that, then we are headed for a sad day indeed. I encourage you to pray about this issue and then act as God would direct you. Read up on it yourself, and make up your own mind. Don't just take my word for it. Be encouraged.

Soli Deo Gloria.

"That Smells Stinkowith"*

I live in Oklahoma. I root for Oklahoma teams. I knew we were in trouble when we came away with zero points after two trips to the redzone. Plus, Tim Tebow is a darn good football player. And a believer. A passionate believer. However, that doesn't make all the hype about him before, during, and after the game any more tolerable for OU fans.

I didn't pay too much attention to it all. At least, I tried not to. But when all the announcers talked about was "Tebow this" or "Tebow that", then it became difficult to ignore. That particular sentiment was echoed by many Sooner fans in the days that followed the BCS Championship game. I heard plenty of, "Yeah, but did they have to keep talking about Tim Tebow?" Well, apparently they did.

The guy is good. He loves Jesus, and he's not afraid to tell you about it. If anybody deserves all the fuss about him, it's Tim Tebow. I like the guy. I don't know him personally, but I'd like to. Goodness oozes from him. Some would argue that greatness oozes from him. Victory seems to follow the guy around. For Florida and Tebow fans, you can't talk enough about him. For Oklahoma and Sam Bradford fans, you can't shut up fast enough. All the praise and hype for Tebow is sweet music for the Florida faithful and fingernails on a chalkboard for Sooner Nation.

Then, as I was pondering all of this, I was reminded about a particular passage of scripture. It comes from 2 Corinthians 2:14-16a, from the NIV:

14But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. 15For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life.

In a Roman victory procession, the Roman general would display the spoils of war, including any captives, amidst a cloud of incense burned for the gods. To the Romans, the victors, the smell was sweet, but to the captives, it was the stench of slavery and death. To the one, the smell was sweet victory, and to the other, it was bitter defeat.

As a believer, the message about Christ and his love and forgiveness smells sweet to me. But, I know for some, it stinks; they don't want to hear it. Even though it is a good message, a message of hope and mercy, there are some who don't want any of it. They would just as soon you shut up about it as to keep on and on about how good Jesus is.

Any of this making sense? Are you connecting the dots yet? I'm not saying that Tim Tebow is Jesus, nor am I calling Sooner fans unbelievers. But the illustration can be drawn. Losing to the Gators, and all the hooplah about Tebow, have put a practical case in point for me concerning this passage of scripture. Even though the Sooners lost, I sure am glad to be on the victorious side of Christ and smell that sweet aroma of his glory. Be encouraged.

Soli Deo Gloria

*(You might check the spelling on that word, but Star Wars fans will recognize that one from the mouth of Jar Jar Binks in Episode I)

Developing Thoughts

• a lesson from the BCS
• the battle for the body
• homeschooling bills in the OK House
• fresh focus and vision
• thoughts from inauguration day

These are just a few of the thoughts swimming around in my head. I have some of them on paper. I plan to post soon. As soon as I will make the time. Walking through a valley that includes some self employment is a 24 hour endeavor.

A New Attitude

Breakthrough this morning! God always knows what you need. He knew what I needed, and he provided in a big, big way. Again, after hearing it, it may not be something completely new to you, as it is not new to me, but perhaps you'll see it in a different light, as I have.

Lately, I've been struggling. Mightily. If you've read any of my posts on any of my blogs, you know how I feel about worship. Worship is a lifestyle. It is a daily laying down of one's wants and desires to please the one, true God. Your life should be an act of worship before the Lord. However, in today's Amercian-ized, super-sized, mega-mall church, worship has become little more than singing some songs with a cool rock or pop band at weekly gatherings. We even call it "worship music". During the service, music is the "worship time". When, in actuality, giving of your time and resources, hearing the scriptures, praying for one another, and other "events" that take place during a "service", are all worshipful acts. So, music is not the end-all worship time. Here's my struggle:

Music is what I do. It's what Bridge and I do. It's who we are. It's what we believe is to be our tool to reach out to the church and to the lost and hurting. Music is a major thread of our life's garment. We want to make music that enhances a person's personal time of prayer and "worship". We want to create events or gatherings where music, prayer, healing, prophecy, teaching, and the move of the Spirit are regular, normal, and welcomed elements. (Kingdom Crossings - read the definition under the blog title)

Sunday mornings have been tough. We talk about worship being a lifestyle, but we push for more "worship" during the music. "Worship the Lord!" "Close your eyes and worship!" Both Bridge and I have had a hard time with this lately. We have felt like the emphasis is misplaced. It has made it difficult to really get "into it". Now, you'll have to understand that music as worship isn't all that seems out of place. There are other issues at hand here, some of which I have discussed earlier, and some of which we will discuss later. (None of these issues, for clarification, deal with our particular church on a specific level - all of our issues concern the American church as a whole, and therefore do not reflect any displeasure with any one person or persons at our particular church.) This touch of God, however, deals with the music.

I run the sound for our particular church. This morning, I was asked to lead in prayer before the praise team started rehearsing. I prayed for things that I have heard before, and know, but God had me take special note afterward of what I had prayed. I prayed for the music to become an extension of our life. I prayed that our lifestyle would reflect our attitude toward our God, and that this music would be an extension of that. After the prayer, I wrote this down:

We want our music to be an extension of our heart - an extension and expression

It was like God was saying, "Live a life of worship, and let your music become an extension of your life, and an expression of your heart. Let your life reflect your attitude toward me and my attitude toward you. Then, let your music reflect that."

I sang and expressed my heart with a lot more vigor this morning than I have in a long time. I didn't feel like I was "worshiping", but I was simply expressing what was in my heart for the Lord. It made singing the songs a lot easier. Maybe you already do that. Maybe you don't. Maybe you should. If you have trouble "worshiping" on Sunday mornings or Saturday nights, then try looking at it as an extension of your life and an expression of your heart. Don't let the semantics get in your way like I did. I won't anymore. I have a new attitude.

Soli Deo Gloria