DIGGER

Update

2012-01-22T06:39:00.001-06:00

Sorry it's been so long since I've updated the fitness journey. It continues rolling along. I've lost about 11 pounds and have noticed definite improvements in muscle tone and cardio. I've started a new workout as of last week and it is a definite time of adjustment! Right now I am sore but it just reminds me of the goal and the strides I've made. As of today I've been working out for 12 weeks!

Journeying along...

2011-12-23T11:39:00.002-06:00

It is hard for me to believe that I started this some seven weeks ago! It has been interesting to say the least. I have pushed myself physically in ways that I haven't in a long time, but there is still work to be done. Some of it is mental (some bad habits still need to be changed) and some of it is still in the physical side of things. I'm trying to take the small successes as they come. I have lost a few pounds and I know I've put on some muscle. My clothes fit a little better. So, we're taking it one day at a time. As more than one person has told me, this didn't happen overnight and it's not going to get fixed overnight.

I have set a goal that I would like to share with you. One year from now, myself, my workout partner and anyone else who would like to come along are going to run in a local 5k event. At this point I really don't think I could even run a hundred yards but I will run at least part if not all of this 5k!

Two challenges are coming up over the next two weeks. First is the holidays themselves. I did pretty well at Thanksgiving watching what and how much I ate and I need to do it again for Christmas and New Year. Second is an annual conference that I attend. I need to make sure that I workout while I'm there and that I eat carefully. I also need to continue to increase my water intake and that is difficult for me when traveling.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Update...

2011-12-11T08:31:00.001-06:00

I know it's been a while since I've posted anything here. The workouts continue and I am making progress. I have to keep reminding myself that this isn't going to happen overnight. I'm still working on some things like eating habits but I have made improvements. One step at a time.

A new development

2011-11-22T21:52:00.001-06:00

On Saturday I started a new workout that was designed a personal trainer who goes to church with us. I have two words to describe it.....really tiring! It is a lot more time on the treadmill plus a completely new workout routine that not only builds muscle but also keeps my heart rate up which is cardio which is fat burning. I weighed today after my workout and was shocked to see I had gained two pounds. I mentioned it to someone and discovered that you shouldn't weigh after a workout. I don't know why but I will weigh again tomorrow.

So, the journey continues. It's still a climb right now as I am trying to identify and overcome bad habits. I find that in some cases I'm having to be brutally honest with myself and sometimes that is the hardest part.

I am very thankful for the support I am receiving from family and friends. I couldn't do it without them.

New....

2011-11-19T16:06:00.001-06:00

Met with a personal trainer from church today who volunteered to help me. More on that Monday.

Down the road we go...

2011-11-16T11:53:00.003-06:00

The past two days I've gotten in 40 minutes each on the treadmill. It's been a test and one that I'm proud to have succeeded at. Honestly it started yesterday as just making up ten minutes I didn't get in on Monday. My workout partner is a huge help to me, pushing me just enough to keep me going when I need it.

I noticed this morning that my bpm were down a little bit while I was working out. A positive sign. I'm feeling really good right now. Lots more energy during the day.

First weigh in...

2011-11-15T09:02:00.001-06:00

I found a scale at the gym that will weigh me, amazing what happens when you ask...so now I will weigh once a week. I don't want to live or die by the scale so if I find that I'm obsessing about it I'll stop weighing for a while.
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Weight as of 11/15 = 417.5lbs.

I increased my time on the treadmill this morning and got in 1.62 miles.

End of week 1...

2011-11-13T14:36:00.001-06:00

So I finished my first five days in the gym. I feel really great except for some muscle spasms in my back that I've been having trouble with for a couple of months. I'm searching for some remedies.

It was fun to get back into working out. The weight machines have changed some but I've found what I will use for lifting. I'm looking forward week 2 beginning tomorrow!

2011-11-09T10:14:00.002-06:00

This was me in the summer of 1992. I weighed about 230 pounds and had just finished my sophomore year of college. Yes, you can be jealous of the shorts!

This me late last year. I weighed in excess of 400 lbs. This is where I'm beginning.

Continuing journey...

2011-11-09T10:08:00.003-06:00

Good workout this morning. Really feeling it in my arms (soreness). 20 more minutes on the treadmill then weights and then with encouragement from my workout partner I did ten more minutes on the treadmill for a total of about 1.43 miles.

It's been really interesting to get back into a weight room. There are so many more machines now that do so much and are frankly scary looking! I'm pretty sure that somewhere on the treadmill is a sequence of buttons that I could launch a rocket with!

I'm going to post a couple of pictures in my next post and let you see where I was 20 years ago and where I am now.

Day 5

2011-11-07T10:02:00.002-06:00

Today was my first real workout in probably 20 years. I got on the treadmill and I decided to see how far I could go in 20 minutes. I averaged about 2.8 miles per hour and got in just under a mile. So, my first goal is going to be working toward completing a mile in 20 minutes. I also did an upper body workout consisting of the lat pull, incline bench, and a couple of other machines. Right now, my arms are tired but it was great to feel the endorphins kick in!

I was able to push through a barrier at about the 12 minute mark on the treadmill. I really wanted to quit but I pushed and made it to 20 minutes. Haven't done that in a long, long time.

Tomorrow will be more cardio.

Day 2

2011-11-04T09:06:00.002-05:00

Didn't go to the gym today. Scheduling and it being my day off allowed Kim to be able to take the van to work. That's a rare thing for her so I let her have the van. I am doing some things around the house so it's not like I'm sitting still. I have plans that after it warms up a little I'll go for a walk. We live on a perfect street for it because it isn't a through street so there's very little traffic and it's right at a 1/4 of a mile long.

After being on the bike yesterday my legs are hurting this morning. Not as bad as I expected but it is noticeable. Monday I'm going to try the recumbent bike and see how that works for my knee. I'd really like to be able to ride comfortably.

I'm very encouraged by the comments I received here and on facebook in response to what I wrote a couple of days ago. It's a blessing to be surrounded by such a group of people.

Day 1 follow up...

2011-11-03T20:45:00.001-05:00

Leg cramps have commenced! Ben-Gay is my friend!

Day 1...

2011-11-03T10:24:00.002-05:00

Headed to the gym a little later than anticipated this morning due to some schedule changes for Kim this week. But, finally got there and got started. My goal this morning was to see what kind of cardio I was going to be able to do comfortably. For the past several months I've been having a lot of pain in my right knee and currently can't bend it very far. So, I wasn't sure if riding a stationary or recumbent bike was a possibility. I got on the bike and although there was some discomfort it wasn't anything I couldn't manage. I then went to the elliptical trainer and well, let's just say that I won't be using that and if anyone had videod me on it they could be in the running for $10,ooo! Then I went to the treadmill, that will be my choice for cardio training for the time being.

A couple of things for me to remember: 1. This will not happen quickly. I have some long held bad habits that I need to break along with some self-control that I need to learn. I will not expect to lose more than a couple of pounds a week. 2. I'm committed to sticking with this. I have to be.

A confession...

2011-11-02T16:48:00.001-05:00

So I have come to a conclusion and maybe it's been obvious to many and I know obvious to me but I've chosen to ignore it for different reasons. Those who know me personally know that I am severely overweight. As a matter of fact I've been diagnosed as morbidly obese. If you don't fit into that category then you can't really understand the emotions those words bring. That's not a knock against you but just the truth. Now, here's the confession. I have failed at treating my body as a temple like we're commanded to in the Bible. I have become addicted to food and live to eat rather than eat to live. I find myself unable to do very much physically without becoming short of breat and easily tired. I'm sure that I am right on the verge of diabetes and am a walking time bomb with the possibility of a heart attack. My body hurts in ways it never has.

You may ask, well how overweight are you? I truly think that many of the folks I went to high school and college with would be shocked unless they've seen me in the past 8 or 9 years. When I graduated from high school I weighed 230 lbs and was about 30 lbs overweight. Now I weigh in the neighborhood of 420 lbs. I've tried dieting, weight watchers, shakes, smoothies, etc. I've gone up and down on the scale losing as much as 70 lbs at one point and then putting it back on plus more. The one thing that I've not done in a long time is exercise regularly and with purpose and change my eating habits.

Well, the time has come. I have discovered that our health insurance will allow me to join a fitness center at a greatly reduced price, less than half the regular cost. I am going to use this to begin seriously working out. I'm not trying to build a bunch of muscle but trying to lose weight, get my cardio back and tone my muscles. Now I understand that words are empty so I'm going to use my blog as a diary of sorts.

I invite you to follow along if you'd like. Words of encouragement or an occasional kick in the pants are welcomed.

Tomorrow, 11/3/11 will be my first real workout in a long, long, long time. I find myself looking forward to getting started!

fire

2011-09-08T21:11:00.000-05:00

2011-09-01T12:04:00.000-05:00

Even though the calendar says that Autumn doesn't start until September 23rd, in the world of youth ministry (at least mine) Summer is over! School has started, along with high school football and so that means an end to the summer activities!

We did quite a bit this summer with camps, mission trip and service projects. I think some of our teens grew quite a bit. There were some battles about the usual things but for the most part it was a good summer.

I'm looking forward to what the school year brings.

Random...

2011-05-24T12:08:00.003-05:00

Lots of things going on right now. Camps not too far off. Two sessions, one is a Sr. session that's hosted by another church and then their is a Jr. session that's hosted by us at Lake Shore. I'm glad we don't have to go too far for camp. I do enjoy the time at camp though but I'm looking forward to the days that my kids and Kim can join me at Jr. Camp. That'll make the second week even better!
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
This will be our third year to go on a mission trip to Cherokee Home for Children in Cherokee, TX. We've had good results working with them. I'm already looking at a couple of possibilities for summer '12. Probably in the area of tornado recovery work.

Last week of school for most of the kids around here! Hard to believe, that school year went by fast! Summer is already here heat and humidity wise. Hooray...

My brother and his wife are working on adopting a little boy from Uganda. They have two children already and after a lot of prayer about it decided to follow what they felt was a calling to adopt. It's been interesting keeping up with the process of international adoption. If you'd be interested in following here's a link to my sister-in-laws blog. http://www.thefamilysheehy.blogspot.com

We're excited for them and are enjoying the journey. Can't wait to meet our new nephew when the day comes!

Summer's coming! AAAAAAAGH!

2011-04-05T11:31:00.002-05:00

Every year it rolls around, always at the same time! It lasts for three months then is gone for nine. Yes, that's right. I'm talking about summer!

Some people say that summer is when Youth Ministers earn their money. That used to be true. I remember back when I started in full time youth ministry that summer was easily my busiest time of year. However, I'm not so sure of that any more. Nowadays it's not uncommon to be busy all year. What with retreats, area wide devotionals, service projects, kids involved in extracurricular activities, etc...never mind prepping for those things!

Don't get me wrong, summer is when things tend to run together more often than not. Last year I was gone from home for four weeks in a row. It was poor scheduling on my part which made for a hard summer, and I'm not doing that again this year! This year we've spread most of it out a little bit so there is some down time in between most events.

I do love summer, except for the heat but I love the rest of the year as well. Frankly, I just love being able to do what it is that God allows me to do for a living!

Hello

2011-03-31T08:16:00.006-05:00

Allow me to reintroduce myself...my name is Dale Sheehy (pronounced: She-he and yes I've heard all the jokes,) and I am the Youth and Family Minister at the Lake Shore Dr. church of Christ in Waco, TX. I am married to an incredible woman whom I don't deserve, we have seven year old twins, a boy and a girl who are in first grade and think they're teenagers and we have one dog named Cookie who is a Blue Heeler/Golden Lab mix.

We've been in Waco since August of 2008 and love it here! I am blessed to work with a preacher who is not only a great co-worker but good friend as well. There are a good number of families at our church with children our kids age and parents around our age and that makes things fun!

I have a great group of teens to work with and a great group of elementary age kids to work with! I love 'em all!

I'm in the midst of reading Crazy Love by Francis Chan. I've actually started reading this book three times and put it down for long periods of time. Long enough that when I've picked it up again I've needed just to start all over. I'm way behind on my reading list right now. Need to start catching up.

I'm especially excited today because it's Opening Day for baseball! I am a Cardinal's fan first and foremost. Go NL! and split my loyalty for the AL between the Texas Rangers (just up the road) and the Boston Red Sox. I love to watch ball games. Love to see the chess matches that happen between managers. I'm just hoping now that the Cardinals can resign Albert Pujols when the time comes!

New Year's and NCYM...

2010-12-31T09:06:00.002-06:00

Hard to believe that it's almost 2011! The years seem to get faster and faster as I get older. Part of the game I guess. I don't know what resolutions I am going to make for the new year but I still have time.

Looking forward to next week as I'll be headed to NCYM for the third year. Back to Colorado Springs for this year's event.

Revisiting an old post...

2010-10-30T10:20:00.003-05:00

Right after the inauguration of our current President, I posted the following thoughts in an entry entitled "Starting Over..."

Maybe that's not the correct title for talking about our new President but it's what I'm going with...I watched the inauguration yesterday online (most of it anyway,) and here's a few observations:

1. I thought that former President Bush handled himself with class and dignity.

2. The people who were chanting and singing "hey, hey, hey! Goodbye!" did not. Nor did some of the media representatives from various news organizations.

3. Rick Warren's prayer was good.

4. The closing prayer was good but I didn't get the reference to the song until today. I'm frankly not all that concerned with his statement about "white getting it right."

5. President Obama's speech...it was in my opinion, typical. It neither inspired me nor depressed me. It was a speech that I would expect to hear at an inauguration.

6. Before I judge him as President, I'll wait and see what happens.

All things being equal, I'm just ready to go on and get back to work. I'm praying for President Obama and his cabinet that they will seek out and follow the will of God in their decisions. He seems to be a man of character and integrity, time will tell.

God bless our new President.

So, almost two years later, I look back at those. I look at where our country is, I look at how President Obama and his cabinet have conducted themselves and I have come to this conclusion (months ago,) President Obama has been an epic failure. He has proven that...

1. He said what he needed to say to get elected but didn't mean most of it (most politicians do that I know.)
2. He doesn't have the experience to be President, and it's definitely not a job where one needs to be doing OJT!
3. He has surrounded himself with some of the most untrustworthy people there are.

The sad thing about all of this is...that there really weren't any better choices when he was elected. The sadder thing is that there still aren't very many good choices for political office.

God, please bless Americans with wisdom during the upcoming elections and please give us some politicians that have the courage to "do the right thing."

Thinking...

2010-10-27T16:15:00.000-05:00

Several weeks ago I attended a preacher's retreat along with the preacher I work with here in Waco. Although I was only one of a couple of youth ministers in attendance I still came away feeling recharged. There was however a statement made by one of the speakers that bothered me, I don't remember the entire statement but I do remember distinctly that he mentioned "lazy youth ministers". I was really caught off guard by this statement and more than a little offended. It seemed that the speaker lumped all youth ministers into that category. What was his experience that made him believe this? I didn't quite know what to do with it but I suddenly found myself so distracted that I don't remember any more of his talk. I'll blog more about this later...

Trick golf shot....

2010-09-01T07:45:00.001-05:00

Lebron and Tiger...be jealous.

http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/blog/devil_ball_golf/post/Trick-shot-makes-both-LeBron-James-and-Tiger-Woo?urn=golf-266088

Setting the course on fire...literally!

2010-09-01T07:39:00.003-05:00

http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/blog/devil_ball_golf/post/Golfer-s-swing-sparks-25-acre-California-blaze?urn=golf-266447

Is Chivalry Dead?

2010-08-11T10:30:00.003-05:00

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Worst-date-ever-Boyfriend-bails-as-foul-ball-hi?urn=mlb-261442

Amazing Catch!

2010-08-06T10:39:00.002-05:00

This might just go down as one of the most amazing catches that I have ever seen!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYdpBNonxA4

FACE-OFF!!!

2010-08-03T09:00:00.005-05:00

This morning as I was getting dressed, Kim stuck her head in the garage door and hollered something about a scorpion being in the laundry. So, I grabbed a weapon and went out into the garage. She was standing by the washing machine looking a little distraught and said "It's in there!" and pointed at the washing machine. I peeked in and saw a scorpion trying to get out of the washing machine but having no luck. So, I used my sandal to get him out and tossed him on the garage floor. Then it was time for....

VS.

The scorpion lost...

From Walt Mueller

2010-07-30T13:52:00.002-05:00

Found a great blog post by Walt Mueller of CPYU today...wanted to share it.

http://www.learningmylines.blogspot.com/

Wipeout!

2010-07-30T13:48:00.002-05:00

If you've never seen the show Wipeout, you should. Here's the top 10 moments from the show.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/166362/wipeout-wipeouts-top-10-moments

MTV has a show I like!?!?!?!

2010-07-28T10:53:00.003-05:00

One of the things that I've become convinced of over the past couple of years is this. We adults like to say that "we remember what it was like to be a teenager." But in reality, most of us never had to deal with some of the things that teens today do. It breaks my heart some days to hear the things that teens, (yes even teens in our own youth group here at Lake Shore) are struggling with on a day to day basis. Sometimes, I don't know how they do it.

http://www.mtv.com/shows/if_you_really_knew_me/series.jhtml

There's an interesting new series on MTV. I'm normally not a fan of anything that MTV does, but this show has merit. Here's a summary of the show...

In high school, there are the students who rule the school -- like jocks, cheerleaders, and the popular kids -- and the ones who get picked on -- like nerds, emos, and outcasts. That's just high school, right? But what if you could change that?

Like a reality version of The Breakfast Club, each episode of If You Really Knew Me takes place at a different high school, and follows five students from different cliques as they go through the life-changing experience of Challenge Day, a one-day program that breaks down the walls between cliques, and completely changes the way students view their school and each other. Watch the amazing transformation each week as new students open up for the first time and try to change by revealing who they really are, behind the cliques and the labels. Is it possible to change your life, and maybe even your high school, in one day? These students are going to find out... on If You Really Knew Me.

I've only seen one episode but I'll be tuning in again. Parents, it might be something worth watching with your teens (I realize that's way out of some people's comfort zones, but give it a try!) It could lead to some interesting discussions. At the very least it'll give you a glimpse into some of the things that teens today are struggling with.

It's true....they're coming to the big screen!

2010-06-17T09:18:00.001-05:00

Friday Randomness

2010-06-11T10:08:00.002-05:00

I'm home again with the kids today. It's Kim's last day at work. They've been out this week recruiting new students for some of the Head Start centers. Lots of walking, lots of driving. My understanding is that because they receive federal funds they have to keep a certain number of students enrolled. She's looking forward to the summer break.

I'm sitting here watching (kind of) the soccer match between South Africa and Mexico. All of my soccer friends are incommunicado right now as they've staked their places in front of their television sets. I don't understand all the rules and I laugh at how some of these guys ham it up trying to get calls but for certain these players are athletes! Good luck to them all.

Random

2010-06-04T09:32:00.002-05:00

I'm home today with the kids. They finished school last week and this is Kim's last week having students in the classroom. Her official last day of school is the 11th. So now comes the fun task of bringing all of her things home and finding space for them. There may also be a move to another Headstart site next year. She'll find out for sure on the 11th.

We're also waiting to hear from the surgeon's office regarding her surgery. For those who don't know, last week I took Kim to the ER with pain on her right side. I've honestly never seen her in that much pain! It was discovered that she has gallstones and her gall bladder needs to come out. So, that's what we're waiting on. She may end up having to wait until the latter part of July after camps and our mission trip.

Brenden's last t-ball game is tomorrow...I'm a little bit excited about that! I've been helping coach this year, and it's been difficult to coach my own son. I'm proud of him, he's very good and is already able to hit a ball that's pitched to him. Could be an interesting year in Coach's pitch next Spring.

This Sunday I'll be back teaching the teens. I've spent the last quarter of Sunday mornings teaching one of our adult classes. It's something that I enjoyed and I think good for me, but I missed teaching the teens.

Summer will be busy as usual. Here we go, ready or not!

Update...

2010-05-05T09:10:00.001-05:00

Wow! Didn't realize it had been so long since I had put anything on here! I'll try to do better at updating.

Final preparations are under way for a busy summer. With three camps, VBS, mission trip, TNT, and who knows what else going on we have a lot to do!

I got this email from Amy Whittle this morning. I know a number of folks received it as well but I wanted to put it up here...

I am asking you all to pray for Sonny today and in the next few days. He is having surgery today to fix the leaks in the small intestine. If he is doing well, and can stand a longer surgery, the Dr. will go ahead and do the colon reversal. It also depends on everything being in good shape and there is enough of the intestines left to perform this surgery. The Dr. will also be able to close up the open hole because he has enough extra skin. He's getting a little tummy tuck today!!!

We ask you to pray for the success of the surgery. This will increase his healing 50x quicker! The leak and the open wound is what has been slowing him down, so we feel like this will speed things up for him. However, surgery on him is still critical due to all that he has already been through. We also ask you to pray for his healing in the next several days and that all will take well and HE WILL GET TO COME HOME!!!!

Thanks, we appreciate and need all of the prayers!

Let's keep Sonny in our prayers this morning and for the next days as he recovers. He's been in the hospital a long, long time. Keep Amy in your prayers as well, as she continues to recover.

Influences...

2010-03-20T20:23:00.002-05:00

I was reminded today of a man that I considered a friend and mentor who passed away several years ago. I received a message from someone about a house that the church he worked for had built for his widow and some things to do with it. I hadn't thought about Willie Sandlin in quite some time. Willie was one of the veterans of youth ministry who had been in the trenches for quite some time when I started my first job. I had known Willie for quite a few years by that time having heard him speak at several different youth rallies around Arkansas. I felt privileged on more than one occasion to get to sit down and pick Willie's brain and learn from him. He was a good man, and left a great legacy.

I don't know if Willie knows how much of an influence he had on me. We didn't get to talk often, usually it was two or three times a year. But, each time we did I listened as much as I could and was eager to pick up whatever he shared. I still use some of the things he taught me today.

Whether we realize it or not, we each have people that we influence, for good or bad. Someone is learning from us. What are we teaching? Are we teaching them worldly lessons or Godly lessons? Are we teaching them things that will help or hurt them spiritually? Are we teaching them things that will help them get to Heaven?

We all influence someone in our lives. I don't know who it is that I have influenced or who it is that I will influence, but I pray that I can be half the positive influence that Willie Sandlin was for me.

Random

2010-03-12T20:39:00.002-06:00

My first week teaching the adult class on Sunday mornings went well. I must admit that I was more nervous than I've been in a long, long time before teaching a class or speaking. I have no doubt that part of that nervousness was from the fact that I know the people I'm teaching. Most of them are parents of teens that I have in my youth group here at Lake Shore. We began a study of 1st and 2nd Peter. It's going to be a good class I feel like after the first week, but we'll have to make some adjustments in our class furniture arrangement and it should be even better.

Two weeks from today I'll be on my way to our spring retreat with a group of teens and adults. It's our second spring retreat and third retreat since 2009. It's going to mostly girls on the trip again this time, of course that's been the norm so far. The first retreat we did we took seven girls, two ladies and myself. This time we've got eight girls, two guys, two ladies and myself going. Our theme is Rugged Prayer, and we'll be talking about worshipping honestly. Can't wait!

I just paused to flip channels on the t.v. (I,m a chronic surfer) and I saw former Governor Jesse Ventura on something, I have a piece of advice for the Mr. Ventura, see a barber!

The kids and Kim have been on Spring Break this week. Today I stayed home with them. Brenden and I played Lego Batman on the Wii for several hours. We defeated all of the bad guys. We make quite a team!

Midweek

2010-03-03T08:43:00.004-06:00

Well, here it is. It's Wednesday and I have a ton of stuff to do! This week is actually a little bit unusual in that I'm preaching Sunday morning. I also am teaching a class at a Kids for Christ rally on Saturday. I'll be teaching 2nd-5th graders which is an interesting experience when you are used to teaching teens. This coming Sunday I'm going to begin for the first time in my almost decade of full-time youth work teach a quarter long adult class. I'll be teaching the 40's-50's class. I'm looking forward to it. I think the hardest thing will be making the switch mentally from teaching teens to teaching adults.

March is looking a little bit slower than January and February were. That's not a bad thing. One of the things that I've been looking at is "doing more with less." It's something we talked a bit about in a couple of classes at NCYM this past January. I've been taking a long, hard look at the way I do youth ministry. I've asked myself if I've become more program oriented and less substance oriented...so, one of the ways I've experimenting is to have less but do more with it. Make sense? It's still very much a work in progress and could take quite a while to see anything significant.

Monday...

2010-02-15T10:54:00.003-06:00

It's been kind of crazy lately! There's been a lot going on here in the Waco area, specifically with LSYG but I won't bore you with all of the details. I will tell you about Saturday night though.

Saturday night the youth group hosted a Sweetheart Banquet for the members of our church who are over the age of 60. We had about 44 show up and had a great time. It was something that made me proud to see the way our teens served and doted on those who attended the banquet. The food was great, and our entertainment though brief (as requested) was appropriate and humorous!

It's been my experience that often there's this disconnect between generations, especially between our teens and those who are above the age of 60. One of the reasons for this event was to get those two generations together purposefully and allow them to spend some time connecting. In my opinion, they did just that.

Thoughts for the day...

2010-02-04T09:02:00.003-06:00

Wow, where did January go? I can't believe it's February already!

I always fool myself into thinking that the year will slow down as far as events go once summer is done. For those that don't know, Summer is the busiest time of year for Youth Ministers for obvious reasons...however, that hasn't been the case so far this past fall, and this winter. We've kept up the pace during the school year, maybe not with so many overnight or out of town events but with plenty of one day events happening.

March and April are kind of wide open right now, but if things continue as they are then it'll fill up soon. The big event on the calendar right now is our Spring Retreat at the end of March.

I love the teens and kids here. They keep me energized and ready to go!

Random stuff...

2010-01-27T08:52:00.002-06:00

It's Wednesday...I have the devotional tonight. I have to fight the mindset that if I don't have something "profound" to say then it's not any good.

It's suppose to start raining tonight and we're forecasted to get several inches over the next 36 hours. I guess I'll put off golf until next week! I think the last time I played was Christmas. I need to get out on the course!

Next quarter I'm going to be teaching an adult class for the first time, at least for an entire quarter! I've taught an adult class once or twice but never for 13 weeks. It will be a new experience to say the least! I'm looking forward to it though as it should allow me to connect with some parents who tend to fly below the radar in a lot of ways.

People have asked me who I think will win the Super Bowl...first let me say that early on in the season I picked the Colts and Saints to go. As for who will win, I really think it's a toss up. I do think we could see a great game and I would personally like to see the Saints win. I can remember when I was about six years old going with a family who's son was in my class to a Saints game (Archie Manning was playing,) against the Los Angeles Rams. We sat in the top row at one of the end zones. The players were tiny!

We have a seminar coming up here at the church called, "Money Matters" with Kent Hartman from OCU. I hope it will help all of us as we look at God's Word and what he says about financial matters.

Friday...

2010-01-22T10:47:00.003-06:00

Well, here it is the end of the work week, for most folks. Tomorrow will be a hard day for us at Lake Shore Dr. church of Christ. We lost a member yesterday, Durward Boggs was in his 90's and had been for some time an Associate Minister here. If I remember correctly he had come out of retirement to do this work. Durward and his wife Blanche are loved here and I only wish that I had been given more time to get to know him.

It is truly a blessing when God places people in our lives that can with a simple word brighten our day or are willing to share their years of wisdom. One of the things that I always looked forward to when Durward was still able to attend services here was chatting with him after worship on Sunday morning. If he saw me first he would make his way over to me and the conversation would commence with him giving me some word of encouragement. I truly will remember those conversations fondly.

Tuesday....

2010-01-19T13:29:00.002-06:00

Well, here we are. I had an interesting start this morning. I set my alarm for 4:45...yes...a.m....yes...on purpose because we have to leave the house by 6:30 to get Kim and the kids to their respective schools on time. One of our goals this year is to purchase a second car. Anyhoo...my alarm went off and I got myself out of bed and headed to the shower. After I was done I noticed that my wife wasn't up. That's unusual, so I whispered to her that it was 5:00. She responded and started to get up. I made my way into the living room headed for the kitchen to turn on the coffee pot. I noticed that the clock on the dvr said 4:11...uh-oh! I quickly made my way back down the hall to tell my wife to stay in bed, but...it was too late! And, she had noticed that my time telling abilities were off. She laid back down, but I was awake! So, by the time I got to work it had already been a long day!

Random

2010-01-14T09:29:00.003-06:00

It's Thursday....week's almost done. Except that I'm taking a group to Arlington this weekend for Winterfest. Looking forward to that. It's been a couple of years since we've been. Should see from friends from Little Rock there along with some YM buddies that I haven't seen in while.

In the sports world it's been a wild week. Mark McGwire admitted he'd used steroids off and on while playing....DUH! If anyone was surprised by that then you weren't paying attention. Don't get me wrong, I'm a McGwire fan, have been since his rookie year and still am but it was obvious he was using something. I'm glad he came clean, and I can't wait to see him sitting in the dugout wearing Cardinal Red again! Go Cards!

Lane Kiffin...wow! What has happened to loyalty? I feel bad for Tennessee and for USC. Tennessee got the short end of the stick and USC...well time will tell. I don't know about you but my parents taught me that when you make a commitment to something or someone you stick with it. I've never been a fan of Kiffin and nothing's changed in that department.

Last night in our Wednesday night class we started a study based on Spiderman 3 written by Craig Detweiler. Good stuff, I've used it once before and have been waiting to teach it with my new group. Amazingly most of them had never seen the movie! Next Sunday we're starting a study of Scary, Gross and Weird stories from the Bible. Can't wait.

Profound sayings from my son...last night on the way home Hannah was working herself into a frenzy because it was lightly raining and she is afraid of thunder (there was none.) Brenden tells her, "Hannah, you don't have to be scared because God is always with you!" Made me and Kim proud!

NCYM

2010-01-08T08:19:00.003-06:00

I'm heading home today from NCYM. It's been a great week filled with wisdom from guys who have partially shaped the way that I think about and minister to teenagers. I'll blog more about this later.

I can't wait to get home and see my family! Blessing to you all.

2010-01-04T21:56:00.002-06:00

This is where I am this week. The National Conference on Youth Ministries taking place this year in St. Louis, MO. As we flew into St. Louis this afternoon we flew right past Busch Stadium home of my beloved Cardinals and then there was this bright, shiny arch thingy...don't know what that was about.

This is my second year at NCYM and I'm lovin' it. Tonight we kicked off things with Rich Little. Rich did a great job as I expected he would. Rich and I were in school together at Harding University and although we don't get to talk a lot I still consider him a friend and of course a brother in Christ.

We'll also get to hear from three guys that I've wanted to hear for years. Duffy Robbins, Walt Mueller and Mark Oestreicher. I've read numerous books written by these three men and can't wait to hear them speak.

I am truly blessed to be ministering at a church that believes in allowing it's ministers to be fed spiritually. Many congregations and for that matter many ministers forget or don't think about the fact that we need to learn too. We spend so much time ministering to others and thinking about lessons, preparing for lessons and teaching lessons that we sometimes neglect our own personal study. I've been guilty of that myself and it's not a good thing. It's times like this that I can sit back and just take in what's being said and IMO become a better Christian, man and human being. To the elders who send me, thank you.

This coming Sunday morning and night I'll be preaching to the congregation at home. I'm also looking forward to that.

I'm missing my wife and kids terribly, but I know that Friday evening I'll get to see them, that's what I'm looking forward to most this week!

End of the year...

2009-12-28T12:53:00.002-06:00

Wow, I didn't realize how lax I'd become in posting here. I'll try to do better.

I'm really excited about the end of the year. Not because of anything in particular but because it brings the excitement of the new year. I'm really looking forward to the year 2010. LSYG (Lake Shore Youth Group) will have lots of opportunities for growth in the coming year. The calendar is already filling up.

My kids will turn seven this year. Hard to believe! I can still remember the first night in the hospital after they were born. They were so tiny. Now they seem so grown up! The other day my daughter told me that I was being ridiculous because she wasn't getting the answer she wanted to a question.

Christmas was great this year. We received a Wii from Kim's sister and her husband. We have already spent many hours on it playing the games that came with it. It's going to be a fun thing to have around the house.

I hope you have a good New Year's Eve. We have a family event at church planned. I'm looking forward to ringing in the New Year with them.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-23T13:26:00.002-06:00

Merry Christmas to all of our friends wherever you are!

Veterans Day

2009-11-11T09:25:00.003-06:00

To all of our veterans and those men and women who are currently serving in our armed forces...thank you.

Things...

2009-10-27T11:48:00.002-05:00

This past week, many in the youth ministry were shocked to learn that Marko was fired from his position of president at Youth Specialties. It came out in a press release from Zondervan which now owns YS. It's a weird time, many are rallying behind Marko including me, telling him that we are praying for him and waiting to see where he lands. Some have cast Zondervan in the role of the evil empire who's only goal is to make money and it doesn't matter how they do it. Although I'm sad to hear about it and am praying for Marko, I have no doubt that he'll be okay in all of this.

This morning I went on my first field trip with the kids and their classes. We went to a dairy farm just outside of town. Very interesting, especially the five legged cow.

Rain, rain and more rain...

2009-10-21T09:28:00.003-05:00

So.....we went for several months with little or no rain. Lake Waco dropped many feet it seemed like, water holes were drying up, lawns were dying unless watered daily. If we did I am not aware that we approached the level where water rationing would occur, but it felt like we should have.

Now...the rain has come and has kept coming for weeks! We've had lots and lots of rain over the past month and a half. It's raining today as a matter of fact (although I must admit there were several days of blue skies and sunshine in advance of today. You know it's rained a lot when there are spots on the golf course that went from brown because they were dry to green because they got rain and then back to brown because water stood on them for too long...it's nuts!

I can't say that I'm not thankful for the rain. After this summer we definitely need it, but we've gotten a lot over a short period of time.

I thought things would slow down after the summer was over...silly me. I don't know that I'm as busy as I was in June, July and August but it sure feels like it! We have Trunk or Treat coming up next Wednesday then a big Family Night on the 31st. Then I've got to finish getting ready for our retreat coming up the first weekend in December. In between that I have "normal" activities going on as well. I love this job!

I'm looking forward to NCYM in January. It will be my second time to attend and will take place in St. Louis. Too bad it's not during baseball season. Speaking of baseball, I'm barely keeping track of the playoffs any more since the Card's and Red Sox went down in defeat. I wouldn't mind seeing Joe Torre get another ring, I would probably watch the World Series if The Dodgers somehow get there to take on the Yankees. I'm not seeing that happen right now though.

I'm preaching this Sunday. Ernie (our preacher) is taking his wife out of town for her birthday. People always know when I'm preaching on a Sunday morning...why? Because it's just about the only time I wear a tie. Wait'll they see my tie this Sunday!

Sacrifice...

2009-10-08T09:38:00.006-05:00

Some things are just not allowed when soldiers are standing in formation. One of them is 4-year-old girls.

However, there was no soldier stern enough to pry Paige Bennethum of Laureldale, Pa. from her father as he prepared to leave last July for a year-long deployment in Iraq.

Abby Bennethum captured her daughter's emotions in a photograph that she passed along to the Reading Eagle, the newspaper in Berks County, Pa. The image immediately captured many other people's emotions.

Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Brett Bennethum was preparing to depart from Fort Dix, N.J., for Iraq, leaving behind his pregnant wife and two little girls. His family was there to see him off. His commanding officer didn't have the heart to tell Paige she had to let go of her daddy.
"I didn't want to let go of him," she told NBC Philadelphia.

Sgt. Bennethum, 30, is scheduled to return home next July. Until then, he's transporting supplies across the Iraqi border. He serves with the 733rd Transportation Company based in Reading, Pa.

Abby Bennethum said she got pregnant right before her husband left for Iraq. "I've heard of deployment babies, but I never thought I'd be having one," she told the Reading Eagle. The couple's other daughter, Lena, is just 10 months old.

Staff Sgt. Bennethum got a four-day pass so he could spend some quality time with his family and they could make the two-hour trip to Fort Dix to see him off. Almost immediately upon arrival, his commanding officer ordered the soldiers to fall in.

"Gotta go," he told his family. But Paige walked up behind him in formation, grabbed his right hand and would not let go.

"I called her a couple of times, but she wouldn't budge," her mother said. She still wishes she was holding her father's hand.

"I just miss my dad right now," Paige told NBC.

This picture started showing up in a couple of places yesterday. I'm sure it's been out there for a while. I'll be honest with you, when I first saw it I really tried to avoid reading the story, but after the third time I gave up and read it. If this doesn't grab your heart nothing will.

To all of our soldiers, thank you for your service no matter where you are deployed.

To all of our soldiers families, thank you for your sacrifice as your sons, daughters, husbands, wives, mommies, daddies, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and cousins help protect our nation.

To all those who have lost loved ones, may we as a nation never forget their sacrifice.

God bless.

Faith of a child...

2009-09-17T14:06:00.000-05:00

What follows is a recent conversation that took place in our van early one morning after we dropped Kim off at work…Hannah – “Daddy, why is Mommy carrying so much stuff?” Me – “Well, she’s a teacher and sometimes teachers have a lot to carry.” Brenden – “That’s why I want to be a dentist.” Hannah – “Well, I want to be a mermaid!” Brenden – “You can’t be a mermaid!” Hannah – “Yes I can!” Brenden – “No you can’t! You don’t have fins!” Hannah – “Well I can grow some!” Brenden – “Well, we don’t live near the ocean so you can’t swim!” Hannah – “I could swim in Lake Waco and the dolphins would come and see me!”

By this time, I was laughing so hard I thought I was going to have to pull over!

Kids are funny! They can keep us entertained with their logic and their beliefs. Most children have no limits to their imaginations. At some point during our development, we lose that innocent belief in the ability to do anything we dream of. Little girls forget about being mermaids and swimming with the dolphins. Little boys forget about being superheroes or transformers. At some point they learn about a thing called reality which shatters those dreams.

Another thing that seems to change during the transition from childhood into later years is our faith. Many go from believing that God can do anything simply because he says he can to questioning whether or not God will ever make something happen.

Kids are also great teachers. Jesus knew this. In Mark 10:14-15 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. It tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

If a child trusts an adult, they will believe them. They don’t have to understand all the little things that go along with that to have faith. We need to be the same way with God. Face it; there are some things in this world, in this universe that we will never understand. We don’t need to. Jesus said that we need to have a childlike faith. Understand that God loves us; trust him to do what’s best for us. That’s childlike faith. Yes, it’s that simple.

See if you can put it into practice this week. Stop trying so hard to figure everything out and trust God. Believe that because he loves you he will take care of you. Who knows, you might even grow fins or be a superhero!

Have a great week,
Dale

The Marshmallow Test...

2009-09-16T12:44:00.000-05:00

http://vimeo.com/5239013

Enjoy! It made me laugh!

Curious?

2009-09-16T10:11:00.000-05:00

Kids are curious by nature. They want to know how something works, so they take it apart. That’s not always a bad thing, unless it’s the VCR or DVD player! They want to know why certain things happen in nature, they may ask questions like “Why is the sky blue?” or “Where does the sun go?” So many questions, so little time, usually it’s innocent and it’s the way they learn. But, what about curiosity that causes people to ask questions about God or Jesus?

Curiosity about your life may cause someone to ask you about your faith and open a door for you to share the gospel with them. Think about it for a minute, In Matthew 3:4-6 we see John the Baptist who had people from Jerusalem and Judea coming out to see him and hear what he was saying. Some of them had to be coming out of curiosity. Here was this man who wore clothing made from camel hide, ate locusts and honey and lived in the wilderness. Once they saw him, it seems many were drawn in by his message about the Messiah and repented of their sins. John took advantage of people’s curiosity.

Or in John 4:39, Jesus has a conversation with a Samaritan woman and because of his words she runs back into town telling anyone she can find about this stranger she met at the well. Despite her reputation many people come out to meet Jesus and many believe in him. They saw a change in her and it made them curious.

Curiosity about our lifestyle and our values which are different from the world’s can make people curious. It can cause them to wonder what makes us so different. Some of them may have the courage to ask you. That’s when you can share with them how God has made a difference in your life. That’s when you can share the gospel with them. Some will reject it, some will be more curious, and some will allow him to change them as well.

Don’t be afraid of curiosity. Live a life that makes people wonder about you. I dare you.

Change...

2009-09-08T09:26:00.002-05:00

On August 24th of this year, the class of 2023 started Kindergarten. (I don’t know about you but that makes me feel old!) Included in that class were six of our kindergartners who attend China Spring. All six of them are in two of the eight kindergarten classes. To the best of my knowledge these six have settled right in with only a few “bumps” along the way. It’s funny to watch my two run into school excited about seeing their friends and teachers, hearing Hannah and her “Whoo!” as she gets out of the van. I’m glad they're liking it, they have at least thirteen years of it ahead of them!

From time to time we all have to try new things. For some, that’s no problem at all. For others, it can be a situation that creates havoc in their lives! The smallest change can cause them a great deal of stress and anxiety. Others seem to just be able to “go with the flow.” Sometimes change is a choice and others it’s forced on us. Change happens.

How do you handle change? How did the people we read about in the Bible handle change? They thought they were doing really well with the Law of Moses and then along comes this man teaching a new way. He narrowed all the laws down into two; Love God and love others. What chaos this man created! He cleared out the temple with a whip! Said he was sent by God, claimed to be God! Then, to top it all off, he said that he was going to die for the sins of the world on a cross, be buried and then come back from the dead three days later! Madness! But, look at the lives that Jesus changed, twelve guys that we know as apostles, a man who was possessed by a large number of demons, a little girl who was dead, a man who had been dead for four days, a woman that no one cared about who only wanted to wash his feet with her tears, a man bent on destroying the followers of this person they called Jesus who after a face to face chat on the road to Damascus became a devoted follower (talk about change!) Me. You?

Jesus can bring great change to the life of anyone, if he’s allowed. It can cause chaos in your life, without a doubt. You may have to change the way you think, speak, and act. You may have to change the people you call friends for those you can call brothers and sisters. He can change you, if you let him.

Allow Jesus to change you.

Funny things kids say...

2009-09-03T09:50:00.002-05:00

Riding in the car with our 5 year old twins is always an interesting time...amid all the babble sometimes they say things that are really funny. Take this morning for instance, we dropped Mommy off at work and as she was walking in carrying her three bags plus a folder with paperwork, Hannah asked "Why is Mommy carrying so much stuff?" I answered that it was because she's a teacher and teachers have a lot to carry sometimes. Brenden then made the following statement, "That's why I want to be a Dentist." All I could do was laugh!

2009-08-26T09:24:00.002-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtZxT9qt1IE

Parents, this one's for you. I've seen the conversations over the past few weeks regarding the PSA video about the dangers and possible deadly results of texting while driving. I've avoided watching the video for one reason or another. Today however, I watched it. As advertised it is graphic but it also sends a clear message to drivers (especially teen drivers) that texting while driving is dangerous!

I don't know all the mathematical equations that show how much distance you cover in a certain amount of time at a certain speed but needless to say you can't do two things at once!

Watch this video for yourself first parents. Then if you have a teen or teens who are driving or soon will be decide if you want to show them this video. Warning...it is graphic.

Goings on...

2009-08-22T10:32:00.002-05:00

What a crazy week! Today is the first day this week that I don't have something going on church related in the evening! I love it but it does make for a long week, especially with two five year olds.

Thursday night we had the 2nd Annual LSYG Golf Classic. It was a great time! We had seven adults, ten teens and two "micros" my kids, show up just to play a few holes of golf on the par-3 course at the Lake Country Club. I think each group managed to play about four holes and in my humble opinion we had a blast!

Last night, we had our Back to School Bash. There was much celebrating on the part of parents who's children start school next week! Seriously though, we had a good time just getting together with church family and eating hot dogs, bratwursts, and some fantastic desserts! B and H start kindergarten Monday. Friday we got to meet their teachers and see their classrooms. I think it will be a good year for them.

Monday, monday...

2009-08-04T09:37:00.002-05:00

Weighed in last night...it was not a good week! It's totally and completely my fault though! I have slacked off on keeping up with what I'm eating and it caught up with me! Plus, we ate out quite a bit over the last two weeks. No exscuses, it's all on me. I'll just start fresh this week.

It's been a great summer for our youth program. I'm blessed to work at a great church, with a great staff and have some great teens and parents in our program! This past Saturday was the 1 year anniversary of our arrival here. Hard to believe. It's gone by fast which is always a good sign. Coming out of the situation we did, it's been refreshing.

Brenden and Hannah will start kindergarten in about three weeks. They'll be 6 years old next month. Their birthday misses the deadline for the state of Texas, but Kim and I think it's going to be a good thing that they delayed a year. They're beginning to get excited about it. It'll help that we have a number of members at our church who work for the school they'll attend and they will see them on a regular basis.

I'm in the midst of finishing planning for the fall. I know a lot of guys already have that done and have had it done for quite some time. That's just not the way I work. I get it planned in plenty of time to organize what I need to, but I just don't do a lot of long range planning. It works for me.

Update...

2009-07-28T09:16:00.002-05:00

Weighed in again last night and have lost another 1.6 pounds. This put me at 19.4 pounds. I can't wait to hit the 20 pound mark! Once again, for those wondering what I'm using, weight watchers. It's easy to do and is becoming a habit for me!

We've pretty much finished our major summer activities for the teens. It really seems like I've been gone a lot this year. Of course, three weeks is a lot, but it seems longer than that for some reason. I am tired but it's a good tired. I really believe that we accomplished many good things this summer. We still have some smaller, weekly things happening but those will be ending soon with school starting on the 24th.

Weight loss update...

2009-07-16T10:53:00.003-05:00

Monday night I weighed in for the first time in three weeks. I had lost a little over 3 and 1/2 pounds. Not what I was wanting but I'll take it for sure. At this point I've lost almost 17 pounds. It's amazing what a difference that has made in some areas. People have begun to notice it in my face and I had to take my belt up another notch the other day. That's nice!

This is an interesting journey. I never thought it would be easy to keep up with points and what I've eaten but I discovered while I was at camp that not being able to do so was really an anxiety inducing problem! I found myself really concerned with what I had eaten through the day and focused on drinking as much water as possible (the heat helped with that too!)

To all those who have offered encouragement, thumbs up, atta boys, etc...thanks. They help me very much!

Catching up...

2009-07-07T13:58:00.003-05:00

Wow, two weeks at camp have come and gone and I am tired! TIRED!!! What doesn't help is the allergy issues I am having right now. If I could get rid of this cough and the watery eyes that would be a tremendous improvement!

Camp...was camp. It had it's good moments, it's bad moments and it's great moments! Remind me to tell you the story about the counselor who was peed on by a raccoon they treed...I'm not kidding...seriously!

It's good to be back home though. Soon we'll leave for a short mission trip, then back home for a day then off to Sea World for a couple of days. Then all of the "big" summer activities will be over! Now, fall planning.

Answer to a question...

2009-06-15T10:25:00.001-05:00

Someone asked me yesterday how things are going. Here’s the answer…

This is one of those months. It’s one of those months where I have to say, “If I can just make it until…then I’ll be okay.” It’s one of those months that I’ve faced every year I’ve been in Youth Ministry. It’s one of those months that I always feel like I’m behind even if I’m not. It’s one of those months that I lean especially hard on God. This week is Vacation Bible School, on Sunday; I’ll leave with a group for camp at Lake Cisco Christian Camp. We’ll be back on Saturday and have enough time for me to do laundry, spend a few hours with my family and then the next day after morning services pack up and head back to LCCC for Junior Camp. Basically I will be running from June 15th until July 2nd. Now, let me assure you that I’m not complaining. It’s what I signed up for when I became a Youth Minister and I knew that. The only thing that bugs me about this time period is the amount of time that I’m away from my family. I’m looking forward to the time when the kids are old enough to go on all of these trips with us. That’s one way to see it, here’s another…

It’s one of those months. It’s one of those months where my relationship and trust in God will be strengthened because I’ll be ever so gently reminded that it’s his strength and endurance not mine. It’s one of those months where I’ll have the opportunity to deepen my relationship with the teens I work with, perhaps more than any other time of the year. It’s one of those months where I’ll have the opportunity to see God working in the hearts of those same teenagers and the effects that will result from that. It’s one of those months where I can have a great time at VBS and camp singing silly songs, playing silly games, studying the Bible together and seeing God all around us. It’s one of those months where I may be able to minister to a teenager or a parent(s) on a deeper level than ever before. It’s why I became a Youth Minister. It’s one of those months that will make me appreciate my wife more. It’s one of those months that I will look forward to hearing two little voices yell “Daddy!” when I come home.

It all depends on how you look at it. I choose the latter.

This month, though already just about halfway over still has so much to offer. I’m looking forward to all of it. Hope you are too. Oh and then there’s July, that’s when our mission trip is!

Tuesday....

2009-06-02T14:10:00.002-05:00

It's been a bad day today! I gained a couple of pounds this week. Not horrible but disappointing all the same. Time to crack down and get back to drinking more water and walking more.

What's made it really bad today is that I took a fall, walking across the church parking lot. How I fell is not important, but I hurt myself. I have pulled a muscle in my lower left side and it hurts to do many things, even getting up out of a chair hurts!

On a good note, Brenden's t-ball team won the first game of their tournament last night! They beat the Longhorns who had gone undefeated in the regular season. They play tonight and then tomorrow night. I have a feeling that come Thursday we'll have a tired little boy on our hands!

WW week 3

2009-05-26T12:13:00.002-05:00

Well, the holiday weekend snuck up on me. Okay, it's not like I didn't see it coming. I didn't lose any weight this week and actually put on .(point) 6 pounds. Not terrible, certainly not the end of the world and it just means that I need to get back on the program.

We had a great weekend in Oklahoma with family. Kim's sister, her husband and their infant son came for a visit from the great state of Washington! It was our first chance to meet our new nephew and for his cousins to meet him. B and H did great with him and even got to hold him for a little bit.

Back to work this week. VBS approaches quickly followed by two weeks of camp. Sometime before that I've got to paint the high school room too!

WW week 2

2009-05-20T08:53:00.002-05:00

Another good weigh Monday night as I completed week two of my WW adventures! I lost another 4.8 pounds for a total of 13.4 in two weeks! It's really a great mental boost to step on the scale and see the lower numbers. I have to remind myself that it's a journey that will last for some time, actually the rest of my life because even after reaching the goal I have to be able to maintain it.

It's been rather amazing to look at some of the foods I'm accustomed to and have enjoyed eating either at home or in some of our favorite restaurants and see exactly how bad they are for me. It's also been amazing to discover that many foods that are good for me are just as enjoyable, if not more as the ones that I shouldn't eat! So many healthy foods make great meals, and are easy to fix. It just takes effort. I still find myself battling some bad habits from time to time but I know that soon, it will be easier.

Baseball...

2009-05-15T15:05:00.002-05:00

Got to do one of my favorite things (a thing that if I had a lot more money I would do a lot more often!) Ernie and I drove up to Arlington and went to a Texas Ranger's day game. It's nice living just two hours (at the most) from the stadium!

The Rangers were playing the Seattle Mariners which was great for me for two reasons
1. Ichiro Suzuki
2. Ken Griffey Jr.

We were able to see Ichiro but Griffey was no where to be found...that was disappointing as I fully expect this to be his last year playing ball.

The sun was unbearably hot and it was humid! Came home a little bit sunburned but I would do it again in a heartbeat!

Weight loss...week 1

2009-05-12T09:32:00.001-05:00

Last night I had my first weigh in since joining Weight Watchers. I've fought it for a long time but finally at the urging of my wife and some friends I decided to act on what I've known for a long time. I need to lose weight, a lot of it! I easily fall into the category of Morbidly Obese and it scares me. So, I have joined Weight Watchers.

The first week results - I lost 8.6 pounds! I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised. I knew that I had lost a few pounds but didn't expect it to be more than four.

Being in Youth Ministry requires me to be active and I have gotten to the point that it has become difficult for me to do many things with my teens. That's not fair to them. It's also not fair to my family. So, I have begun the journey. Let's see where it goes!

Things in my head...

2009-05-11T13:38:00.002-05:00

I haven't been posting a lot lately as is obvious if you scroll down and check the dates on the last two entries, and I don't know why. I know I've had this feeling that I don't have anything really important to say at the moment. I also just haven't had the desire lately, again don't know why.

There are a lot of things happening here, summer is coming and I'm getting ready for it. June and July are pretty full of events. I try very hard to leave August open so that families can take vacations if they'd like to before school starts again. One question I've been thinking about lately is "how much is enough?" I think that question comes from two places...
1. Growing up in the time when youth ministry was about activities more than anything else.
2. Being told that part of the reason I was let go from my last position was I wasn't "doing enough with the teens."

Regardless, there is a lot going on right now both professionally and personally. It's a good thing though.

Random Monday thoughts...

2009-04-27T10:58:00.002-05:00

Wow, I didn't realize it had been this long since I blogged anything. We're gearing up for summer activities here and it's starting to get busy. June is going to be packed with VBS, two camps and Thursday night activities. The Thursday night stuff will continue through July and on into August.

In July we're going to the Cherokee Children's Home for our mission trip. It's going to be short but I think very worthwhile.

We're right in the middle of t-ball. So far the Red Sox are 2-1. This week we're supposed to travel to Crawford to play but if the weather forecast holds out then I don't think we'll be going!

Hannah continues with her tap and ballet and is enjoying it very much. She has a recital on the 31st of May, should be exciting!

I have to brag on our teens here at Lake Shore. Recently several have taken on the task of getting the youth group to sit together during church. Not everyone participates but so far they are occupying about two rows of pews during worship on Sundays. This wasn't my idea but it was the idea of a couple of young ladies who are becoming leaders for our group. It's exciting to see the things that are happening in our youth ministry right now. I'm so blessed to be where I'm at!

Next time you take something for granted...

2009-04-14T10:59:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting here as I write this waiting on Kim to get off work. From my vantage point I can see the playground at the Head start she works at. There is a little boy crawling across the playground. He's not crawling because of a game; he's crawling because he can't walk. He's four years old. Late last year he was in a car wreck and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Now he is learning to walk, talk and many other things over again. His movements are slow and unsteady; he wears a helmet in case he falls to protect his head. He has a wheelchair which he spends a good deal of time in. I'm sitting here watching him thinking, "what if that were me?” Would I have the will power, the intestinal fortitude to start over? Would I crawl wherever I needed or wanted to go? Would I use a wheelchair? Or, would I wallow in self-pity? Would I crawl to get somewhere or would I be too embarrassed? Seeing this little boy crawl makes me think how blessed I truly am. I have two legs that work, I can speak well, and I don't have to use a wheelchair for anything. I take it for granted. I don't think to thank God for those things. I get up, move around freely and never think anything about it. I'm selfish. I want to get up when I choose to, not when others want me too. I grumble and complain sometimes when they do.
What about you? What do you take for granted? What do you complain about doing that others just wish they could do? What makes us feel embarrassed or out of sorts? Anything?

God has blessed most of us richly in very many ways. Sure, we don’t all have the same abilities (that would be boring,) but we all are good at something. That’s what makes us unique.

So, here’s my challenge for all of us. The next time we want to gripe about something, the next time we want to complain because we have to get up and move. Think about the little boy who crawls because he can’t walk, and be thankful you can.

Spring time...

2009-04-09T08:48:00.002-05:00

I realize Spring sprung a couple of weeks ago, but this past Sunday for some of us Spring really arrived in the form of Baseball! I love the sound of a ball striking a mitt, or a bat connecting with a fastball. I love the smell of popcorn, peanuts and hot dogs. I love the atmosphere that is electric at a MLB ball game! It's my favorite time of year! So, Go Cards! Go Rangers!

This week...

2009-04-09T08:47:00.000-05:00

This week many people in the world will remember and celebrate the death and resurrection of Christ. It is an event that some scoff at. There are theories that try to refute this event from many different quarters. One says that Jesus never actually died on the cross but simply passed out, later regained consciousness and walked out of the tomb. Another theory is that his disciples stole the body and moved it somewhere else. There are others that say the women went to the wrong tomb, that thieves stole the body and even that the religious leaders stole the body of Jesus. I’m not going to take the time here, nor do I have the space to dispute these claims. One thing I do know is that Jesus made appearances to numerous people after his resurrection. 1 Corinthians 15:6 says that “he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time.” Not bad for a dead man. What was the affect of his resurrection and appearances? It made those who believed in him bold. They went from hiding out in fear to preaching the gospel of Christ with excitement and confidence. Why? Because unlike any other religious leader before (or after) him, Jesus had died and then come back from the dead, just as he said he would. These Christians went out into the world, and they couldn’t contain what they knew to be true. They had to share it! It was too good not to! They had such a great desire to share it that many of them died for it. But, despite all of the attempts of the religious leaders to quiet him and his followers, despite all the ridicule that some had hurled at him and those that preached about him. In spite of all the doubt, and failures of some who claimed to be followers, the message of Christ and his resurrection spread and continues to do so today.

This week the world (at least a good portion of it) will celebrate the risen Savior, Jesus Christ. There are of course still those who don’t believe that he is alive. There are certainly those who haven’t heard the message yet, and there are those who for one reason or another will leave the faith. What do you believe? I choose to believe that there is an empty tomb somewhere around Jerusalem that once held the body of my Savior and that after he’d been dead and buried for three days, he came back to life and walked out of it. In some people’s eyes that makes me a fool. I’m okay with that. How about you? Will you tell someone else about it?

Monday...

2009-04-06T10:19:00.002-05:00

Today, there is sadness in my heart...a young man who was in my youth group in Little Rock, AR was killed Friday night in a car accident. He was in his mid 20's with so much life ahead of him. Honestly I had lost touch with Matthew and don't know where he was in his life or the circumstances behind the accident that claimed his life. I do however know that he has left behind a mother, father, stepfather, stepmother, brother and stepsister who are all missing him. My thoughts and prayers this morning are with the McMillans, the Otts, and all of Matthew's friends who are grieving. Life is short, and uncertain and sometimes made even shorter for reasons we can't explain. We'll miss you Matthew.

The weekend to come...

2009-03-26T13:28:00.003-05:00

Saturday
9:00 am - opening ceremonies for CSYAA baseball season.
10:00 - Kim will take Hannah to her ballet class.
1:00 - team pictures
2:00 first game
I'm thinking Brenden will be worn out Saturday night.

Sunday I will be teaching Bible class, again normal but then I will also be preaching that morning and that night. When there is a 5th Sunday in a month, our preacher gets one of those Sundays off.

I'm still looking forward to it! Can't wait to watch a bunch of five and six year olds playing t-ball.

The weekend...

2009-03-23T10:22:00.003-05:00

I took seven teenage girls and four other adults on a retreat this weekend. Initially we had some guys signed up but for various reasons they dropped out. We had a fantastic weekend! It was one of if not the best retreat I've ever done, and it wasn't because of anything that I did! I truly saw God in these girls this weekend, they welcomed each other, played games, studied together, and just had fun! They welcomed two visitors in as if they'd known them for years! I was very proud of them!

I stayed up way too late both nights, but I'll catch up sometime...maybe! I'm looking forward to our next retreat in the fall.

The weekend to come...

2009-03-19T13:14:00.002-05:00

Friday afternoon, I'll be heading a couple of hours south of here with seven teens and four other adults for my first retreat with this group. I'm really looking forward to it! It's been several years since I've led a retreat and as I've prepared for this I've remembered how much I love retreats. Just to get away from the busyness and hectic pace we live in our society is nice. The only downside for me is that Kim and the kids can't come along.

Our theme is leap before you look. We're talking about faith and I'm going to challenge them this weekend to spend some quality time alone with God trying to listen to him and looking for how he will reveal himself over the weekend.

See you Monday!

Getting caught up...

2009-03-17T14:50:00.002-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all seven of my faithful readers out there! I know it's been a little bit since I posted anything, nothings been going on to keep me from blogging I just haven't done it.

This weekend I have a retreat with some of our youth group and a few adult chaperone's going along. It's the first retreat I've led in several years and I'm really looking forward to it. We're going to be talking about faith and our theme is "Leap Before You Look!" Can't wait!

Saturday evening we had a visit from a young man selling vacuum cleaners. It was interesting to say the least. It took two hours for him to show us all the things this wonderful machine could do and then of course came the sales pitch, followed by "No" from yours truly. It's not that I didn't want to buy one of his machines but not for over $2,000.00! I did feel kind of bad for the guy, he's a student, working this job almost every day, and plays semi-pro football.

We finally got some much needed rain here in Waco! For about four days we had good steady rain that lasted for long periods of time. It had been months since we'd seen any significant rainfall and it was nice. What is nicer though is the sunshine and mild temps that have followed it.

I still have reading to catch up on and other things I've gotten behind in, but I'm working on it steadily. It's nice to see a to do list dwindle down.

Monday...

2009-03-09T12:56:00.002-05:00

It's Monday...yes it is. Nothing bad has happened today but it is just really feeling like Monday since the time change! I'll adjust.

This past weekend I took a group of 2nd-5th graders to a kid's rally not far from here. It was the first time in my decade of Youth Ministry that I've taken a group that age anywhere. We had a lot of fun and the church hosting did a fantastic job all the way around!

Brenden has his first t-ball practice tomorrow night and I won't be able to see it due to an event at church! Oh well, there will be others. He's pretty fired up about playing. He's raring to go!

Two weeks from last Friday I'll be taking our youth group on our first retreat together. I'm looking forward to the weekend. It's sometimes a very good thing to get away from the t.v. and other distractions. It never ceases to amaze me at the connections that can be made with God in that setting.

From the files of the bizarre but true...

2009-03-03T12:09:00.001-06:00

McNugget 911...

FORT PIERCE — Told McDonald’s was out of Chicken McNuggets after paying for a 10-piece, a local woman called 911.

Three times.

"This is an emergency, If I would have known they didn't have McNuggets, I wouldn't have given my money, and now she wants to give me a McDouble, but I don't want one,” Latreasa L. Goodman later told police. “This is an emergency."

The McNugget meltdown happened last week at a McDonald’s in the 600 block of North U.S. 1 and ended with Goodman, 27, getting a notice to appear on a misuse of 911 charge, according to a recently released police report.

Goodman told investigators she tried to get a refund for the 10-piece McNuggets, but the cashier told her all sales are final. "I called 911 because I couldn't get a refund, and I wanted my McNuggets," Goodman told police.

The cashier told police she offered Goodman, of the 2400 block of South 25th Street, a larger portion of food for the same price to make up for it, but said Goodman got “irate,” the report states.

Goodman reportedly yelled, "I don't want a McDouble and small fry," the cashier told investigators.

Dispatchers for 911 told police Goodman called the emergency number three times and on each occasion was told an officer was en route.

“Goodman maintained the attitude ‘this is an emergency, my McNuggets are an emergency,’” the report states.

McNuggets, introduced to the McDonald’s national menu in 1983, are sold in more than 100 countries and, unlike the McDouble, are often dunked in barbecue or hot mustard sauce.
Goodman’s 10-piece selection has 460 calories and 29 grams of fat.

Switch...

2009-03-03T09:10:00.002-06:00

This morning I'm teaching the weekly Ladies Bible Class that meets on Tuesday mornings during the school year. I'm filling in for our preacher who's out of town. It's always an interesting event for me to teach a group of adults. I've been teaching teens and pre-teens for so long that sometimes my brain has a little trouble making the necessary adjustments and for at least the first few minutes I find myself teaching like I would a group of teens. I filled in a couple of weeks ago and they were very nice to me. We'll see what happens today.

Opening day is almost here! I'm so looking forward to the beginning of Baseball! One thing I'm liking about living here in Waco is that we have two really good college teams here as well. McLennan Community College (MCC) which is just right down the road has a very good team as does Baylor which is a little farther. I'm going to try and take at least Brenden but maybe Kim and Hannah also to a couple of Baylor games. I'll probably "sneak" away from the office once or twice to catch at least part of an MCC game.

Then to top it off we've got MLB just 1 and 1/2 hours north of us in the form of the Texas Rangers. I absolutely love the Ballpark at Arlington. It has to be one of the prettiest stadiums I've ever been to. Also 3 hours south of us are the Houston Astros so I'm kind of surrounded by baseball here. That's good for me!

Brenden's first t-ball practice is tonight. We'll get to meet his coach and other teammates. I hope he has a good coach and one that believes in "winning isn't everything" especially when it comes to five year olds.

2009-02-27T11:58:00.002-06:00

Yesterday the kiddos had a good day at school (they've been having a rough time lately with some behavior issues,) so I thought I would treat them to a McFlurry. It was in the 80's yesterday so it was perfect! After that, they spent about 30 minutes on the playland. A great time was had by all!

Great column about Athletes being role models...

2009-02-25T13:17:00.004-06:00

Found this on Curt Schilling's blog and it led to a link at ESPN and Rick Reilly's column. Great column, as an Elway fan and a Dad, I thought I'd share it.

Life of Reilly
Hey, pro, don't want to be a role model? It's not your choice.
by Rick Reilly

Courtesy Christopher Hamlet
Jake meets John Elway.

This is a story I want to tell ALL athletes who think that what they do, how they act, the little kindnesses they give or withhold from fans don't matter.

It'll take only a minute.

My wife, Cynthia, was adopted. At 36, she found half her biological family on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in Montana. Turns out she had four half brothers, one named Lil Bob, who was as big as a tree.

Lil Bob, a bar owner, could pick a man up with one hand and throw him out the front door. He was gregarious and funny and always seemed to have his son, Jake, hanging onto one of his huge legs. Unfortunately, he was also a full-blown alcoholic. Many were the days that started and ended with a quart of Jack Daniel's, although you could never tell.

In size and in heart, Lil Bob was one of Montana's biggest Broncos fans. His hero was John Elway. He joked that he wanted to be buried in an Elway jersey, with pallbearers in Elway jerseys, and an Elway football in his huge hand. His one regret was dropping out of school in eighth grade, ending his football career. His one dream was to take Jake to a Broncos game. Sometimes on the reservation, the dreams come small.

Last March, Lil Bob's liver failed. One awful hospital day, Jake, now 13, walked up to the bed, took his dad's head in his hands, put his mouth to his forehead and told him he couldn't go yet. Told him he needed him to stay and take him to a Broncos game. Stay and watch him grow up and play for the Broncos.

Lil Bob's death, a few days later, seemed to send Jake into that shapeless, black sinkhole where boys go when their best friend is gone for reasons they can't understand. "I tried to talk to him, but he was closed to it," says Jake's mom, Lona Burns. "He started doing bad in school. Kids picked on him. Every day I fought him just to go. His grades dropped. He didn't even care about going to football practice, didn't want to play."

Worse yet, since the day Lil Bob died, Jake hadn't cried.

And then, this past October, one of Lil Bob's best friends — a restaurant owner named Christopher Hamlet — decided to make good on an unfulfilled dream: He bought two plane tickets, packed up Jake and flew to Denver. Jake was finally going to a Broncos game.

As locals, Cynthia and I took them to lunch at one of Elway's restaurants so Jake could see all the jerseys and photos. The kid was so excited he hardly ate. And that was before a certain Hall of Fame QB walked in, all keg-chested and pigeon-toed. Immediately, Jake turned into an ice sculpture. We introduced them, and it took a few seconds before Jake could even stick out his hand.

Apparently, 13-year-olds are not used to meeting gods.

Elway took the time to sign Jake's football and pose for a picture. He even made us all go outside, where the light was better. Then, as we said goodbye — Jake's feet floating a foot off the ground — Elway turned and said, out of nowhere, "Hey, why don't you guys come by the box today?"
And the next thing Jake knew, he was in John Elway's luxury box at the game, asking him any question he wanted, all with a grin that threatened to split his happy head in half.

Then Elway said, "Comin' to dinner?"

And suddenly Jake was having his lettuce wedge cut for him by the legend, who tousled the kid's cowlick. Like a dad might.

Halfway through the night, a guy came out of the bathroom and said, "Are you guys with that kid? Because he's in there talking to his mom on the phone, crying. Is he OK?"

Yes, Jake would be OK.

"Jake came back a changed boy," his mom says. He started climbing out of that hole. He started making A's again. Started loving football again. He told his mom, "When I make it to the NFL, I'm going to buy you a big house in Denver so you can come to my games."

And I ask myself: Why did Elway do all that? Maybe because his late father, Jack, was his best friend, too? Maybe because his own son, Jack, went away to college last fall? Or maybe because that's how he is. In my 26 years of knowing Elway, I've never seen him turn down an autograph request, a picture request, a "Can I just tell you something?" request.

A lot of athletes don't want the burden that comes with being a role model. But what I want to tell them is: You don't get to choose. You don't get to tell 13-year-old boys with holes in their hearts who can help them heal.

I know it's a hassle, but it matters. Because you never know when you might just lead a kid out to where the light is better.

Is it Monday?

2009-02-25T12:56:00.002-06:00

It was an interesting morning today. While getting ready this morning my glasses broke. If you've ever had that happen you know that causes all sorts of problems...
1. My wife had to drop me off at work because I couldn't see to drive.
2. As a result of that we had to leave earlier which means we were rushing this morning.
3. By 8:00 a.m. or so I had a raging headache from not wearing my glasses.
4. I realized exactly how bad my eyesight is, it's really bad!
5. I tried to prepare for the possibility of teaching class without my glasses, huge font for my notes, large print Bible.
6. I managed to find an optical place that could sauter(sp?) the frames back together. Thankfully, it cost me $10 instead of a lot more for an eye exam and new frames.
7. I now have an eye that's twitching, I assume from going several hours without glasses.

I'm reading several books right now. I finally picked up a copy of Mark Oestreicher's Youth Ministry 3.0. I'm just getting started with it. I'm also reading Unleashing God's Word in Youth Ministry by Barry Shafer. I'm about halfway through with this book. I've found it to be very well written and very practical. The third book I'm working on is When Church Kids Go Bad by Les Christie. I've also just started this book.

One of the things I have been a little lax in lately is my reading. I'm trying to change that and get back to it. Reading has always been something I've enjoyed to do.

Found out some news today about a couple of friends. They are expecting again (they have a young daughter,) and today found out they are having twins! The first thing I told them was "welcome to my world!" I'm really excited for them.

Another recent happening is that both of my parents joined facebook. I had been on for about a year. I never, ever thought they would join facebook! It's a little weird to me to know they're both on there. But, it's a good way to keep up.

Are you ready for the time change? It happens Sunday, March 8th! I actually don't like "springing forward" except for the time of year it signals. Don't forget!

25 Things About Facebook...

2009-02-17T13:10:00.001-06:00

Saw this on Gman's blog, absolutely true and funny!

25 Things I hate about Facebook...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVA047JAQsk&feature=player_embedded

50 Random about President Obama...

2009-02-16T08:43:00.002-06:00

In honor of President's Day here are 50 random facts about or current President, enjoy...

Barack Obama: The 50 facts you might not know http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/uselection2008/barackobama/3401168/Barack-Obama-The-50-facts-you-might-not-know.html
• He collects Spider-Man and Conan the Barbarian comics
• He was known as "O'Bomber" at high school for his skill at basketball
• His name means "one who is blessed" in Swahili
• His favorite meal is wife Michelle's shrimp linguini
• He won a Grammy in 2006 for the audio version of his memoir, Dreams From My Father
• He is left-handed – the sixth post-war president to be left-handed
• He has read every Harry Potter book
• He owns a set of red boxing gloves autographed by Muhammad Ali
• He worked in a Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop as a teenager and now can't stand ice cream
• His favorite snacks are chocolate-peanut protein bars
• He ate dog meat, snake meat, and roasted grasshopper while living in Indonesia
• He can speak Spanish
• While on the campaign trail he refused to watch CNN and had sports channels on instead
• His favorite drink is black forest berry iced tea
• He promised Michelle he would quit smoking before running for president – he didn't
• He kept a pet ape called Tata while in Indonesia
• He can bench press an impressive 200lbs
• He was known as Barry until university when he asked to be addressed by his full name
• His favorite book is Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
• He visited Wokingham, Berks, in 1996 for the stag party of his half-sister's fiancé, but left when a stripper arrived
• His desk in his Senate office once belonged to Robert Kennedy
• He and Michelle made $4.2 million last year, with much coming from sales of his books
• His favorite films are Casablanca and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
• He carries a tiny Madonna and child statue and a bracelet belonging to a soldier in Iraq for good luck
• He applied to appear in a black pin-up calendar while at Harvard but was rejected by the all-female committee.
• His favorite music includes Miles Davis, Bob Dylan, Bach and The Fugees
• He took Michelle to see the Spike Lee film Do The Right Thing on their first date
• He enjoys playing Scrabble and poker
• He doesn't drink coffee and rarely drinks alcohol
• He would have liked to have been an architect if he were not a politician
• As a teenager he took drugs including marijuana and cocaine
• His daughters' ambitions are to go to Yale before becoming an actress (Malia, 10) and to sing and dance (Sasha, 7)
• He hates the youth trend for trousers which sag beneath the backside
• He repaid his student loan only four years ago after signing his book deal
• His house in Chicago has four fire places
• Daughter Malia's godmother is Jesse Jackson's daughter Santita
• He says his worst habit is constantly checking his BlackBerry
• He uses an Apple Mac laptop
• He drives a Ford Escape Hybrid, having ditched his gas-guzzling Chrysler 300
• He wears $1,500 Hart Schaffner Marx suits
• He owns four identical pairs of black size 11 shoes
• He has his hair cut once a week by his Chicago barber, Zariff, who charges $21
• His favorite fictional television programs are Mash and The Wire
• He was given the code name "Renegade" by his Secret Service handlers • He was nicknamed "Bear" by his late grandmother
• He plans to install a basketball court in the White House grounds
• His favorite artist is Pablo Picasso •
His specialty as a cook is chili
• He has said many of his friends in Indonesia were "street urchins"
• He keeps on his desk a carving of a wooden hand holding an egg, a Kenyan symbol of the fragility of life
• His late father was a senior economist for the Kenyan government

Heroes...

2009-02-09T07:51:00.003-06:00

A friend of mine, Derek Tang wrote this on his facebook page. I thought it had some great thoughts in it. Derek's a bit deeper thinker than me and sometimes puts into words the things that both of us may be thinking much better than I. I thought I would share it with you...

Heroes...

Sources tell SI Alex Rodriguez tested positive for steroids in 2003
In 2003, when he won the American League home run title and the AL Most Valuable Player award as a shortstop for the Texas Rangers, Alex Rodriguez tested positive for two anabolic steroids, four sources have independently told Sports Illustrated.Rodriguez's name appears on a list of 104 players who tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball's '03 survey testing, SI's sources say. As part of a joint agreement with the MLB Players Association, the testing was conducted to determine if it was necessary to impose mandatory random drug testing across the major leagues in 2004.

Phelps admits 'bad judgment' after marijuana-pipe photo
Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps admitted to "regrettable" behavior Sunday and vowed it wouldn't happen again after a British newspaper published a photograph of the swimmer smoking from a bong."I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment," the record-setting American athlete said in a statement issued Sunday."I'm 23 years old, and despite the successes I have had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner that people have come to expect from me," Phelps said. "For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public -- it will not happen again."

One week ago, the sporting world in this country basked in the high of a thrilling (if slightly controversial) finish to the Super Bowl, the showpiece event of the most popular league in the country and even felt the euphoria from continents away of another classic showdown between the two biggest giants in the men's tennis world at the Australian Open final - itself one of the four showpiece events of the tennis world.Today, two startling revelations in that one short week have rocked the same world and reminded us once again that the very foundations upon which we as sports fans erect this pedestal we place superlative athletes upon are nothing more than the humanity which we all essentially suffer from. This very same humanity that has the potential to achieve some amazing heights also has the propensity to cause us to experience some abysmal depths.

I am one such sports fan. Almost by impulse, one of the first stations I look for at home or on the road is ESPN. If it's not ESPN, it's Fox Soccer that my television set spends inordinate time on. I have ridden the rollercoaster of emotion that comes with living vicariously through the efforts of particular athletes or teams. Some of my best memories involve championship-winning moments that I had nothing to do with other than sharing a bond with millions thanks to the wonders of television technology.It disappoints me to hear of these stories.

Swimming is largely seen as an activity more than a sport in this country, but it's undeniable that its popularity surged in the wake of Phelps' superhuman achievements in the pool at the Beijing Olympics. Now it seems that his oversized diet are now destined to be nothing more than fodder for late-night talk show hosts and comedians. The now-famous pictures showing Phelps' fingertips extending just far enough to win him a gold in one of the all-time closest finishes in any Olympic sport have since been replaced with pictures of Phelps' fingers involved in another far different activity.This isn't a question about the merits (or lack thereof) of marijuana use and the issue of its legality. That's another debate for another day. The bottom line is that for where he was, what he was doing was in fact against the law. If nothing else, it's set a poor example for the many people who looked up to him, even before what he achieved in Beijing. At least he's accepted responsibility for his actions and taken ownership of his missteps."Bad judgement," "inappropriate," "I'm sorry."

All the right words were there. Sponsorships have been revoked and suspensions issued. The cynic in me is forced to wonder just how much of this was motivated by a self-protection instinct rather than actual contrition, and now that the fallout has begun, was that a failed instinct?Regarding A-Rod, I am not a Yankees fan, and I am most certainly not a moneyball fan. The amount of money thrown around in baseball nowadays (heck, in pro sports in general nowadays) and the amount of attention centered around what the Yankees do in baseball disgust me. This really has nothing to do with my reaction to his news, though.As a fan of baseball in general, I couldn't help but look at A-Rod ply his trade and admire one of the sweetest swings in baseball today. An effortless, fluid motion that wasn't forced or hesitant. A swing that connected for 500 homeruns faster than anyone in the sport had ever done so in their careers.A swing, it now seems, that has been at least partially-enhanced by the use of steroids. A huge dark cloud in an already gloomy time for baseball.

Now, I firmly believe that there is no drug yet produced by mankind that allows a baseball hitter to slow down time enough so that they can judge the flight of a piece of equipment smaller than a foot in diameter flying at them from 20 yards away at speeds sometimes approaching 90-100 mph and adjust their swing quickly enough so that the point of contact between the bat and the ball does enough to send the ball out of reach of opposing players sometimes more than 400 feet away. If that sounds overly technical, that's really a pretty simplistic view of the batting function.

With that being said, physical strength DOES become a factor. This is where steroid use does provide an unfair advantage. Unnecessary, even: If 2003 marks just the one time that A-Rod has tested positive for steroid use, the numbers over his career prior to then reflect that he didn't need a power boost. However, we'll likely never know if this reported test in 2003 was the only time, before or after. This is why it's not just one isolated test result. It's a test result that will hang over him for his entire career.

I still want to believe that athletes are capable of heroism. That when I choose to consider the achievements of any particular athlete or team that excels in their sport, I can rest assured that I am backing true champions in every sense of the word. Everybody wants to believe that. Everybody wants to believe in something bigger than themselves. Something they can adopt as their own. Why else do millions the world over invest so much time, money, effort, cheers, and tears in sports?But then I get weeks like these, when it all comes crashing back down. And I'm reminded once again of just how human they all are. Just like me. They just happen to be able to do certain things a heck of a lot better than 99% of the rest of us. That, however, does not issue them a free pass to be exempt from the consequences of their actions, be they legal or in the eyes of public opinion.

And at the end of the day, there's really only one hero whom I tend to get distracted from. One hero who doesn't need performance-enhancing drugs, endorsements, big-money contracts, entourages, and agents. A hero who laid his life down for me and for everyone else. A hero in the truest sense of the word. I can only wish the ones we lift up as role models and heroes in today's world could meet that standard, but there's a reason why that's a divine standard. All I can hope for is that we have more examples of people who strive daily in that direction - starting with me.

Shot of my life...almost.

2009-02-08T17:16:00.003-06:00

170 yd. 7-iron to within two and 1/2 feet of the pin. This was left for birdie...and I was so nervous about the greens being fast that I missed the putt!

Wednesday nights...

2009-02-05T08:42:00.002-06:00

Wednesday nights are an interesting time...I try very hard to make them different from Sunday mornings but often times at least feel like I have failed in that regard. Right now we're using the "Jesus Said It" curriculum from Group. I think it's well done and easy to use. After that, then it's time to try something new. I'm trying really hard to "think outside the box."

Catching up...

2009-02-03T14:12:00.002-06:00

It's been a crazy few days. Super bowl party, teen event, family stuff, etc...there were quite a few items on my to do list over the past week or so and the list didn't seem to shrink any no matter how much I seemed to accomplish.

However, now I have whittled away most of my to do list so that I'm pretty much caught up. I'm looking forward to playing golf Thursday with Ernie (our preacher) and a couple of others from church. Out of the three churches I've worked for this is the first one where the preacher has been a golfer! I think every time I've played in the past six months Ernie has been along as well. I've truly enjoyed getting on the course with him. I have to say that I've come to have great respect for him as a minister and consider him a good friend.

Hannah has recently started tap and ballet. I questioned my wife's desire to have her do this since it's been my opinion that Hannah is not the most gifted person in the area of rhythmic movements. She has trouble walking across a smooth floor sometimes! But, we'll see how it goes when she has her recital in May. I can't wait.

We're starting to look for t-ball for Brenden. He seems to have a lot of natural athletic ability! I'm really looking forward to seeing him play on a team.

Friday...

2009-01-30T07:50:00.005-06:00

The day before the weekend...this is really my day off this week. Tomorrow, I have a teen event with our group in the afternoon. I'm not complaining, it's what I love to do. I'm curious about something with our group though and tomorrow may answer some questions. We'll see. I have a feeling Monday will be a brainstorming day for me.

Sunday, big Superbowl party planned (at someone else's home!) We're having a family devo before the game. We've invited all of the families in our church with children still at home. I have no idea how man will show up but we'll take whoever does and have a great time! Had the Steeler's played anyone else (besides the Cowboys) I would have been rooting for them, but I will be cheering for Arizona to win. I hope it's a good game and not a blowout by either team!

2009-01-28T12:35:00.002-06:00

One of the blogs I read daily is by Terry Rush, the preacher for the Memorial Drive Church of Christ in Tulsa, OK. Although I don't always agree with Mr. Rush I still consider him a brother in Christ and a man who makes me think with his words. Plus, he's a Cardinals fan which makes him even better! His words today caused me to really think...I wanted to share them with you here. Thanks Terry!

MAINSTREAM OR MAIN STREET?
A well-known figure among us warned me years ago I need to maintain a position in the middle of the road so people won't shoot at me. He wanted me to shift to the center of mainstream. I think that's an odd request noting the walk of Jesus seemed to fail to align upon this man's vision. We love to quote the verse advising against men-pleasers yet rail against those who don't please us.Mainstream isn't in the Word. Yet, it is carefully sought by a host of claiming believers. Lukewarm is in the Word and we all know how that goes. Mediocrity and safety have become two of mainstream's icons. Don't look out of step. By all means don't become the C word; controversial.Staying out of trouble is the goal of mainstream. Not too radical and not too anemic Baby Bear's porridge seems to fit in the church; just right. If we get communion just right, worship just right, and baptism just right mainstream regards us as in like Flynn. Dying for others, teaching others, giving to others, standing up for the whole truth, rescuing the injured, and freeing the imprisoned; this is optional to mainstream while central to Main Street.I don't like trouble. I'm too big of a chicken to want it. Yet our Jesus certainly called us to Main Street where the weird, the disoriented, the poor, and the imprisoned walk. His was not a ballot cast by church attendance but rather a ditch where the wounded met the Healer. He has requested and required we do the same.I find in the church blind roosters and hens whose feet and hands are lethargic with disinterest. They aren't in trouble; they are safe. The church has atrophied and can't help but decline. The trouble with this pattern is the mainstream Church of Christ has taken on characteristics of cowardice entirely different from what the Christ expects of us.Main Street; that's where we want to set our sights. Live or die, we will try to walk in his shoes with the understanding we will take substantial hits. Jesus is not the agreeable politician many in churches wish to make him. He turned his back on mainstream and they ripped it with whips. If we think we will escape ridicule and attack we may be hiding in the stream rather than marching on the street.

Monday morning...a day late...

2009-01-27T09:47:00.002-06:00

I didn't blog yesterday, obviously for those who keep up so I'll catch up today.

The weekend was a long one. We hosted an area wide teen event Sunday night. Except for lunch with my family I was at the building from 8:30 am until 9:30 pm. Let's just say that I slept well that night!

My calendar continues to fill up with events. I know that many already have their calendars planned out months before the end of the previous year. I'm not one of those people! I usually have most of it on there before the end of the year but there are always events that I don't even think about until January rolls around. That's just the way I've always done it and it seems to work!

I'm waffling on what to do next quarter on Sunday mornings. I had decided what I wanted to teach about in the jr. high and high school classes but may change my mind. I love being phlegmatic!

Brenden lost his first tooth last week. The tooth fairy was very good to him, leaving $3! He used it to buy his first set of Legos. He purchased a Rescue Chopper complete with pilot and person to be rescued!

Lots to do this week, I have planning for our retreat to accomplish, lessons to finish, a bulletin to put together, etc... I love it!

Thursday...

2009-01-22T09:03:00.003-06:00

Kim and I have a new nephew! Cale Trulson was born this morning in Washington State to Kim's little sister Karen and her husband Kevin. We're pretty excited for them. I had the honor of marrying Karen and Kevin last in September of 2007. They'll make great parents!

Starting over...

2009-01-21T13:12:00.002-06:00

Maybe that's not the correct title for talking about our new President but it's what I'm going with...I watched the inauguration yesterday online (most of it anyway,) and here's a few observations:

1. I thought that former President Bush handled himself with class and dignity.

2. The people who were chanting and singing "hey, hey, hey! Goodbye!" did not. Nor did some of the media representatives from various news organizations.

3. Rick Warren's prayer was good.

4. The closing prayer was good but I didn't get the reference to the song until today. I'm frankly not all that concerned with his statement about "white getting it right."

5. President Obama's speech...it was in my opinion, typical. It neither inspired me nor depressed me. It was a speech that I would expect to hear at an inauguration.

6. Before I judge him as President, I'll wait and see what happens.

All things being equal, I'm just ready to go on and get back to work. I'm praying for President Obama and his cabinet that they will seek out and follow the will of God in their decisions. He seems to be a man of character and integrity, time will tell.

God bless our new President.

Monday...

2009-01-19T09:54:00.002-06:00

Hope yours is off to a good start, mine is! We were able to go up on Saturday to Arlington and see some old friends from Little Rock who were at Winterfest. We weren't able to get registered in time this year. We ran into some of our old group and sponsors from Louisiana. It was nice to catch up. At lunch we went with our friends from Little Rock to a local mall and managed to eat amid all the chaos around us. An interesting thing happened while we were in Build-A-Bear with our kids. The fire alarm went off, then quit. About two minutes later it came back on and they announced that the mall was being evacuated. That was controlled chaos to say the least. No one was running around screaming or seemed to be panicking. We happened to be done so we just headed for our van. Brenden was duly impressed by the arrival of the Arlington Fire Department in massive numbers around the mall.

Yesterday was a great day of worship, for the first Sunday in what seems like a while I didn't have any leadership role to play during worship service so I was able to sit with my family the whole service. Ernie had a couple of really good sermons yesterday and last night. Please keep Ernie in your prayers today as he is having some tests run.

At the end of February we're going to have our first retreat for the youth group. I always enjoy retreats and the time away from the busyness that they give us. I try very hard to take away the electronic media and toys that seem to distract us at every turn. They are good times for us to focus on God and to listen for his voice.

It's shaping up to be a busy week, lots of things to do and get ready for. We're hosting an area wide event Sunday afternoon, then the next weekend is our REACHOUT on Saturday. The next day we're having a family devo at someones home and a Super Bowl party. Then the weekend after that it's time for another area wide event but at someone else's church. Busy!

2009-01-15T08:59:00.003-06:00

By SUSANNAH CAHALAN

HOLD THE PHONE! A teen in California recently clocked 14,500 text messages in one month. Do you think that's a lot? Greg Hardesty didn't LOL when he got his teen daughter's cellphone statement. All he could think was "OMG!"

The California man's 13-year-old daughter, Reina, racked up an astonishing 14,528 text messages in one month. The online AT&T statement ran 440 pages. "First, I laughed. I thought, 'That's insane, that's impossible,' " the 45-year-old dad said. "And I immediately whipped out the calculator to see if it was humanly possible." He found it was - barely.
It works out to 484 text messages a day, or one every two minutes of every waking hour.
"Then I thought maybe AT&T made some mistake on the bill," said Hardesty, of Silverado Canyon.

The reporter for the Orange County Register grilled his daughter on her texting habit - by text message, of course. "Who are you texting, anyway? Your entire school?" he asked.
"Well, a lot of my friends have unlimited texting. I just text them pretty much all the time," she explained. She messages a core of "four obsessive texters" - all girls between the ages of 12 and 13 - on her LG phone.

Reina had a karaoke birthday party, and while other people were singing, she was texting her best friend sitting right next to her. She even texted her friends to brag about the high number of text messages she had logged when her parents got the statement. Her texting soared last month because "it was winter break and I was bored," Reina told her parents. Luckily, Hardesty has a phone plan that allows unlimited texting for $30 a month. Otherwise, he estimates, he would have owed AT&T $2,905.60 at a rate of 20 cents per message. The average number of monthly texts for a 13- to 17-year-old teen is 1,742, according to a Nielsen study of cellphone usage.

Hardesty admits he himself punches in 900 messages a month - 700 more than average for his age group, according to Nielsen. Hardesty and his ex-wife have since placed restrictions on Reina's cellphone use, ruling she cannot text after dinner.

Okay, so I'm kind of new to the texting thing. I've only really been using it for about a year and a half now but WOW!!! I remember hearing or seeing somewhere that teens would rather text than talk on their phones. It's not hard to see nowadays. Just look around and you can find pretty much anyone texting nowadays, even many adults. It doesn't even surprise me anymore to see someone texting during worship services.

Post NCYM...

2009-01-13T14:39:00.003-06:00

Second day back in the office after being gone a week to NCYM. This was my first year to attend NCYM and I am grateful to the elders here at Lake Shore Dr. for allowing me to attend. I was truly refreshed and challenged by this past week.

I was able to hear speakers that I've never heard and some that I haven't heard in a long time. Men like Tony Campolo, Mike Cope, Chris Seidman, Patrick Meade, and Doug Kinnaman. The last one mentioned there wrote the book entitled "Un-Christian." It's still on my need to read list. I was also able to attend some great classes taught by people who have been in Youth Ministry much longer than I have and thankfully are willing to share the lessons they've learned.

I got to see some friends that I haven't seen in a long time (15 years in one case.) Some were from college, others from different places I've worked. I also made some new friends. The fellowship was what this past week was all about to me. Spending time with people who share the same interest (reaching teens for Christ) and encouraging each other. I am looking forward already to 2010 in St. Louis.

Back at last...

2009-01-12T12:34:00.002-06:00

I'm back in the office this week after being in Colorado last week! I'll talk more about it tomorrow, but it's good to be back!