Soggy bottom alert...

We had a wet weekend. It was raining outside most of Sunday morning, and raining IN church over where the worship team usually sits. It was fun! Our set went something like this: "...my chains are gone.....(drip,drip,drip) I've been set free.....(drip,drip)..." I guess it's better than crickets chirping, but a lot more expensive to fix.

We had a baptism - which was really awesome because it was a guy who had been very vocal about his "seeker/doubter" status, but who really loved being a part of the "community" of believers. He said he felt no pressure from anyone and even allowed himself to be interviewed one Sunday morning as part of the service. Wow! Needless to say, we all rejoiced at his decision to finally make a decision - and yesterday was his baptism. (It started out as a "sprinkling" because the roof was leaking over the baptism and dripping down.)

I am still really geeked about the whole thing - though I don't know him well yet. I just think its' cool when "seekers" are drawn in by the Holy Spirit. He was not pressured into anything, was allowed to doubt, participated in our services (which are not intentionally "seeker-sensitive") and God did the rest! He had questions and doubts, and was able to ask, debate and wrestle with God in a safe environment.

I am also really proud of our people for not cramming the 4 spiritual laws down his throat!

In other weather news, the Farmer's Almanac predicts that we'll be having a "Frigid, Wet, Wild & Snowy" winter in our part of the country. Sound like fun? Mmmmmm Hmmmmm! I can hardly wait. I have a lot of weatherizing to do...

Beautiful Hot, Foggy Day Alert...

Yep, there was FOG as I drove in to work today......?????
It's georgous out there now - but FOG????????? I live in Central Illinois, not Washington!!!!

Oh, well... wish I were fishing....

It is snowing, indeed!

Happy Easter everyone. He is risen! It is also SNOWING!

This year we are celebrating Easter early due to the phases of the moon. Passover falls next month, which is actually a lot closer to when Jesus was actually crucified and rose from the dead. I am not one of those who has a problem with celebrating Easter whenever it falls - I just have a problem with the Easter Bunny.

BTW, this year I plan on making "Peeps" (chicken) Chili instead of Easter Bunny Stew. I couln't justify paying $8.99 a pound for Rabbit. In years past, I have had friends give me wild rabbit, or I have bought it MUCH cheaper. Alas, another tradition gone by the wayside....

I don't think many kids are going outside to look for eggs today - at least no in Jacksonville.

This just in....

It's cold folx -





Minus One degree Fahrenheit - negative 19 - 25 windchill. Other than that, the sky is blue and it looks gorgeous outside.

Have a nice day!

Hey, I'm famous...not really...just blah!

This just in. For those who may not know, I was asked to join a group blog thingy called Team Polycarp. My longtime buddy Jason Hughlett got some friends together and started it - basically it's a bunch of guys who blog infrequently (like me) blogging infrequently in the same space. Anywhooo, he decided to do a mock interview of the various members just for kicks. I was asked to submit mine first. You can read it here. Enjoy.



On other fronts, I've just felt kind of blah lately. Don't know why. I enjoyed the Christmas season despite the fact that neither of us (me and Beth) felt particularly festive. I haven't been much in touch with people lately either. Like I said, blah. I know I'm fighting off some kind of cold/flu thingy - but that's not it. Prayer should shed some insight - I hope so.



Weather has been freakishly warmish. It is now 9pm, we just got back from a nice long walk. It felt like April outside rather than the 6th of January. It must be George Bush's fault - you know, global warming and all. Last week it was 3 degrees outside - right now our thermometer says 52!!!

I'm sure it will freeze again soon.

Snow what?

We had our first snow yesterday afternoon. Pretty isn't it. It will all be gone soon. We went out last night and got our Christmas tree - we were just about the only people out. That should have told me something.... Anyhow, Merry Chistmas!

Beautiful work to be done...

Sooooo.....,



Guess what we didn't do this weekend..... yep- still got leaves to rake. I spent most of the weekend trying to kill Bambi. No luck.



Today was beautiful, yet chilly. We went to church and stayed in. I did manage to grab a few photos. Enjoy the fall leaves.

Lamentations...

So, a few weeks back I was joyously singing the praises of the "Fall" season. True, this is my favorite weather, and the trees get all pretty-like - colorful and what-not. However, the leaves don't stay on the trees. Makes a mess. Sigh. Sometimes I think if I didn't complain, I'd have nothing much to talk about. Sorry folks. It is kinda pretty though. Here's a couple of pictures of our "little" yellow house - one from a couple of weeks ago, and a couple from earlier today.

Before

After the fall!

It's about stinkin' time!!!!!

Well, go tell it on the mountain - Fall is finally here. Officially, "fall" began with the Autumnal Equinox on September 23rd - but weather-wise, we've been short-changed. It's just been too darn hot lately. Hopefully winter comes late and spring comes early this year.

Ah, I'm melting......

Sooooo, it's really hot out there! And humid, and muggy, and there's generally no breeze. Miserable.

This past week and a half have been pret-ty busy! I was enlisted to play bass in an "orchestra" for a play - Lil' Abner - which is being performed at "Theater in the Park" in New Salem. It's about a half hour from our home. Here's the catch, rehearsals have been late in the evening - performances have begun at 8pm! Haven't been getting home till 11:15 or later - and up at 5:40am for work each day. I haven't had two minutes to rub together. We don't have performances again until Thursday. I get one more night off - then it's four more days in a row. Don't get me wrong - I really enjoy playing - and getting paid for it (unless you count gas and food expense into the equation....). Here's the other catch - it's "IN" the park - we're playing outside - in the hot, muggy, buggy nighttime air. I may think twice before I do Theater in the Park again.

As for everything else, we are still praying about where we "fit in" with regards to a Church body. I firmly believe in the importance of being in regular fellowship. I believe that the church is and always has been God's plan to reach the world (yes, even as flawed as we are!). I will be writing more about this very soon - perhaps even on my "new" theology blog. Some folks may take me to task on some of my views on these issues - I welcome the debate. Bye for now...

Soggy day alert...

So, today was my Friday off right? A couple of things thwarted my usual plans of lounging around in my jammies and robe for 8 hours by myself. Namely:

It rained.

Also, the kids were home - no school today.

I know, I probably sound whiney and selfish - cause I am. I just can't seem to get a good day alone. Sigh. Don't get me wrong - I LOVE my family - love every minute I spend with them - but sometimes it is nice to have just a few hours of QUIET! They're BOYS for crying out loud.




We did make the best of it, however.






We had some fun last night - played hold-em with my two youngest till about midnight - since they weren't going to school the next day. Yes, you read it right - I played cards with my kids till MIDNIGHT. They're 8 and 11. My 11-year old whooped on me. He kept getting these crazy hands. Today, we slept in. Later on we'll cook some kind of dead animal and chow down. We rented some movies and bought some ice cream too! Lovely day off. And yes, I am enjoying my time off WITH my family.