We're All Crybabies!

My 3 year old daughter Emily was in a generally sour mood one recent morning. At some point she was crying over not having a tissue. Yes, we have plenty of Kleenex in our house, but she didn't happen to have one at the time. I think she had basically gotten into an emotional downward spiral of some sort, and at that point it could have been just about anything that would have set her off.

I think I tried to give her a hug first, at least I hope I did. When that didn't work though, I hate to say it, but I was having a difficult time mustering up sympathy. With all of the problems going on in the world, and with all of the blessings that you have, you are crying about a tissue? COME ON KID - you need some perspective here!

But then I couldn't help but think "Is it like that with us and God?" And if so, then does God maybe have a hard time giving us sympathy. Come on Michael! You want all of your bills paid and money left over for new "stuff"? You want perfect health instead of your child's runny nose? You want your decent paying white-collar job to be easier? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Look around you at the people who are unemployed and going through foreclosure! At those who are battling terminal illnesses! At people in other countries who are literally dying for decent living conditions and bodily nourishment! I love you, but COME ON KID - YOU NEED SOME PERSPECTIVE HERE!

I know it's OK to lay all of our requests before God, and I don't think he gets annoyed just because I ask him for things to make my already blessed life better. But I just wonder if God's response to our requests are affected by our attitudes. How much more do we want to give things to our own children, proportionately to how much we know that they appreciate them?

Faith to Stir a Nation

I read 1 Samuel 17 this morning. While I've heard/read the story of David and Goliath dozens of times before, what struck me today isn't the courage of David, or the incredible faith that inspired this courage. It was the affect it had on the entire nation of Israel.

The whole army was discouraged and at its knees in one instant, the...n in the next was at its feet, screaming and charging toward the enemy. All because of this one boy's faith and courage culminating in a single moment.

Can you imagine how incredible it would be to be used by God to affect that many people all at once, with such intensity? What kind of event would/could possibly even occur to cause that today?

Completion and Review of "The Help"

Amanda read this before me, as well as her mother, my sister, our neighbor, and every other woman in town it seems. And as you can guess by the gender of the aforementioned readers, this is a very estrogen-rich book.

The story is told from three different points of view, and all of them are women. Not only that, but 95% of the sub-characters are women too. Taking place in the deep American South of the 1960s, it delves into the life of two black maids and one white writer who attempts to write and publish a book about their lives. While the book was fiction, I can't help but wonder how much truth there is to the emotions, actions, roles, and experiences in it.

I have heard and read about the history of segregation and racism before, but it was gratefully never part of my life experiences. Black kids in my schools were treated with just as much love and respect as everybody else in the class, if not more. So while reading historical facts provides knowledge, it produced very little comprehension. While I never disbelieved the history, I have a hard time really absorbing it as a reality. But walking in their shoes, even if was only based on truth, gave me a whole new appreciation of what black people experienced during the trials and difficulties of racial desegregation.

As a whole, I loved this book. It was well written, emotionally gripping, had a positive message, a slight underlying spiritual tone (for Christianity, but against hypocrisy), and epitomized the greatest reason why I love reading - to put myself in someone else's shoes and to see what life was like for them. To gain a better understanding of different places and times. To not only use my imagination, but to expand my knowledge of people, cultures, and events.

Youth Camp 2010

Sunday through Wednesday (7/23 - 7/28), I attended our church's youth camp as a leader. Here are some highlights and a few pictures.

Every morning I automatically got up early enough (5:30 - 6:30 is my normal wake up due to car-pooling or kids) to spend some quiet time reading the Bible and writing in my journal. I found these stairs on the side of the building, so I could be by myself but not have to walk too far either.

<-- the stairs

the view from where I sat-->

On Monday morning, I had enough time to also go for a run around the entire complex, which is fairly large, very hilly, and at an altitude of 6250 feet. There is also a very long length of stairs that I jogged up, leading from the lake to our cabin. I would estimate it to be at least 5-6 stories high. Through the 3 day duration of the trip, I must have gone up and down these stairs at least a dozen times.


<-- view from the top

view from the bottom-->

On the way back from my morning jog, I ran into many of the kids heading down to the lake with Jason (another leader). I joined them, and since I was sweaty from jogging anyway I jumped in the lake from the L-shaped dock on the left and swam back to the beach. In doing so I was the first one in the water on the trip.

pictures of the docks

We had a couple of worship and speaking sessions each day. Several times they were held at this outdoor amphitheater that had a spectacular view of the lake as a backdrop, as you can see in the pictures below.

Special thanks to Phil and Gentry for leading worship the whole time!

Packing up to head home.

Bryan was gracious (and patient) enough to be in charge of the packing and trailer towing.

On the way home we stopped at a park to eat a brown bagged lunch.









As you can see in the pictures below, the park had dozens of geese and squirrels mooching food from sympathetic and easily entertained people like us.

<-- aggressive geese

friendly, but fenced in squirrels-->

The kids seemed to have a great time and many responded favorably to the messages and encouragement that was presented to them. It was also truly an enriching, rewarding, challenging, and humbling experience for me as a leader.

Day by Day

The available work at my company has slowed down dramatically lately. There are numerous people that I have talked to who are coming off of projects but are not sure if there is anything new for them to do. As for me, I am on a project until at least September, maybe later.

One thing that God has been showing me lately though, primarily during the occasional quiet times spent with Him in the morning, is to focus on living one day at a time.

With that focus comes the realization that at this moment in time I have a house to live in and food to eat. I have a job to go to and my family and I are pretty healthy (aside from an occasional cold). Both cars are currently running and the bills are getting paid. I am blessed beyond what most of the world experiences, and certainly well beyond what I deserve.

This day is the day that the Lord has made.
I will rejoice and be glad in it.

Work Witnessing

The bad news is that I only logged in less than half a day at work today. The good news is that for the other half I was a) participating in a weekly discussion/prayer meeting with a couple of co-workers in the morning, b) playing 3-on-3 full-court basketball during lunch (and a little beyond), and finally c) having a >3 hour discussion with a co-worker about almost every possible aspect of Christian apologetics after lunch.

He was visiting our facility from San Jose, trying to get some work done in the same closed lab as me. For the most part we had the room to ourselves, although we were interrupted briefly a few times by other co-workers coming in and out.

I have actually talked to him for quite a long time before, over a year ago I think, maybe even two. Nothing came out of it before that I was aware of. He already believes in God, but is skeptical about everything, and I mean everything else regarding not only Christianity, but all religions. In fact, he's even skeptical that there is a supernatural, spiritual world period. Especially one that occasionally crosses over and has an effect on the physical one (miracles, etc).

He's a really good thinker though, and while it made for a long and difficult discussion, I love that kind of deep rooted questioning and doubting. Not only because it challenges me and makes me think deeply about my own faith and what I believe, but also because it reminds me of myself before I became a Christian (and still sometimes now too).

Like the previous discussion, maybe nothing significant will arise in my friend's heart/mind/spirit out of this one either. But maybe some of the ideas/words from before softened his heart, if only just a little bit. And maybe this one warmed it up some too, just a little bit more. Of course, only God knows, but it wouldn't surprise me if He is just working on my friend's heart a little at a time - slowly, but surely.

I don't know the ultimate outcome yet. But whatever it may be, I can take satisfaction in just representing my faith honorably and hopefully convincingly. And as far as work goes, it's a good thing that I clocked in extra hours last week, because it looks like I'll need them now:-(

Too Busy to Bond with Thy Neighbor?

I was talking briefly this evening to my neighbor Joe, across the street. I ran out of room in my green waste disposal bin and after filling his up too, he offered to take the remainder of my tree clippings to the dumpster at his business.

When I dropped off the two big yard bags later, he was sitting outside letting his two little white dogs enjoy the fresh air. I thanked him and chatted for a minute before heading back home. But before I could turn around, he asked me if I wanted a beer and/or a cigar.

I politely declined, explaining that while that sounded good, Amanda and I were going to try to exercise (to a P90-X video). The kids were in bed, and time is of the essence. It's already a serious battle to get our butts in gear. But the longer we delay, the harder it is to get motivated. I thanked him for the offer though, and suggested maybe some other time.

After I went in the house though, I thought "Life is so darned busy, and it's so hard to just stop and bond with people. I should have taken the opportunity to spend some time with him." Exercising together is really important to me too though. One idea would have been to ask him if he wants to meet outside in an hour or so. Or I could have asked him if he was going to walk the dogs again before bed so we could hang out then.

Anyway, I'm really glad that Amanda and I worked out. We pushed through the whole hour and it felt great and rewarding. I'm just bummed that I had to sacrifice the opportunity to spend some time with my neighbor to do it. I do, however, pray that the opportunity will arise again soon, perhaps under better circumstances next time. Or maybe I'll make the effort/invite next time.