Have you ever had one?? I had one this morning in the 8:30 service. Well, my outline had a minor boo-boo in it and it just got things off to the wrong start . . . I had name dyslexia with Onesimus and Philemon’s names. MAJOR GOOF!! I picked it up as soon as it came out of my mouth and semi-recovered, but that kind of stuff drives me crazy!! It all started because I had this brain hiccup WHEN I DID MY OUTLINE THAT WE HAND OUT!!
Anyway, I am not perfect. But don’t tell my family!!
Anger, satisfaction, hope, skepticism . . . These are some of the varied responses to the execution of Saddam Hussein. Last night I heard one of his lawyers state that he hopes Bush and Americans are happy now, but Hussein wins in the end. I can imagine he refers to the “reward” he received when he made it to heaven. This lawyer accused the US of puppetting this entire procedure and producing our desired outcome. If all we wanted was Hussein dead, the CIA could have taken care of that with a mysterious illness while he was in custody. No, there is more at stake here than the pleasure of Uncle Sam.
The court that tried this man was an IRAQI court. The judges were Iraqi and the procedure was done according to THEIR civil law. In fact, the fact that he was in American custody during this procedure might have preserved his life until now. Although I obviously was not there, I challenge you to research this: This was an Iraqi action, and so it should have been.
And, as an American, I did not feel like dancing in the streets or shooting my gun up in the air (as thousands did in Iraq this morning). Yes, I feel that justice was done. But their reaction tells the tale . . . They are the ones who had to endure this despot and his rule for decades. They are the ones whose fathers, brothers, sons, and daughters were raped, brutalized, imprisoned, and murdered. If you want to know if this was just, go ask them.
It shocks me that the world AND some Americans can compare this to an old-west style of court, a “proper trial and then a proper hangin.” Why in the world would anyone question justice?? I wonder how many of the nay-sayers would have been willing to live under his rule?
Most of those who know me know that I am a computer geek (with capital EEs). This week I have attempted to use the remainder of my vacation time, and thanks to the wonders of technology (and gurus like Mr Lisenby et. al.), I have been able to do computer support and work from my house. This stuff is the coolest!!
I printed additional barcodes for the library from my office desktop to Mary’s printer (from my recliner at home), I sent my worship outlines to the copier (again, from the La-Z-Boy), and this morning I restarted the file server to take care of something for Kitty (while drinking my coffee and eating a pop-tart).
I really enjoy this stuff. It serves as a great diversion and allows me a little more freedom than I would usually have!!
Thank God for the little things!
As 2006 quickly draws to a close, I wonder how many of our goals from January we were able to accomplish?? Have I made any progress toward the things God wanted me to do this year? Are we reaching the lost? Are we reaching the next generation, or has another year gone by and the gap widened?
If we don’t ask tough questions like these, we will never get to where God wants us to be. And He has a plan for Ebenezer, and for each one of us. I believe with all my heart He wants us to reach the next generation for Him. And that will take MORE than telling them with words: We will HAVE to tell them with OUR LIVES.
We did . . . We finally made it to Easley Monday afternoon (after boating through the floods on I-20), and then the race was on: Eat lunch with mom and dad, open gifts, spend a little time there, race up to Diana’s family, spend time there, open gifts, eat supper, race back to mom and dads. Yesterday was a little slower (at least for myself and Drew): We helped my dad replace the wooden columns on the front porch with vinyl/pvc (or some type of plastic). They look good!!
Hope Santa was good to you . . . He was good to us! All that is left is the bills!!!
It is the morning of Christmas Eve . . . (Which means it is the morning of the day of the evening before Christmas, if that makes sense). Today there will be people at our church that we ONLY see at Christmas, and then maybe again at Easter. What’s up with that?? Do they think it is a good luck thing to come to church at Christmas time? Don’t get me wrong . . . I am glad they come at least those times, but HOW could they give God the back of their hands for the rest of the year? It really makes no sense at all.
Speaking of things that make no sense . . . I was in CVS a couple of days ago, and THEY ALREADY HAVE THEIR VALENTINE’S STUFF OUT!! And it was not even CHRISTMAS EVE YET!! Why not just leave it ALL OUT all year round?? Might as well . . .
Hope you have a great Christmas, and I really hope and pray you give your relationship with God the right place in your life all year round . . . He deserves our BEST!!
Spies Like Us!! A classic Cold-War era comedy about the bunglings of the CIA to test a Star-Wars type of laser defense system, defending the continental US against a Soviet nuclear attack. How do you test such a weapon?? You send a team of spies into Russia to LAUNCH a nuke at Detriot!
How in the world does the CIA intend to pull this off? By sending the two biggest idiots they could find (portrayed by Chevy Chase and Dan Ackroyd) as decoys, enabling the real team to achieve the objective.
This John Landis movie has more guest stars than an episode of the Love Boat. If you haven’t seen it (or haven’t seen it in a while), WATCH IT!! There is even a cameo by Bob Hope, who was an INSTITUTION of the Christmas holiday for years!!!
Right now, I am staring into the light of our tree. And it looks awesome! This has been a real busy year, and we did not do the usual decoration of the front of the house. But we did put the tree up, and I am glad.
Ornaments are particularly interesting to me. There are ornaments on our tree that were mine when I was a little kid, and the same for Diana. There are ornaments that mark special achievements in the lives of our children. There are very few ornaments on our tree that do not have a special meaning.
Not to get sappy, but every time I look at that tree it brings back memories of years (now) gone by. I realize I am getting old, my kids are growing up, and I am grateful to be here and be part of their lives. Just another thing to thank God for this Christmas!!
A WORD GAME . . . Watching SportsCenter this morning, I heard Allen Iverson (NBA star just traded to the Denver Nuggets) saying that he never asked to be traded from the Sixers. He went to his general manager and said “If you are not willing to make some changes for us to win, I don’t want to play for this team anymore.” So, he did NOT ask to be traded (he emphatically stated). WHAT DOES THAT MEAN THEN??? If you don’t do something, I no longer want to play for this team! Makes no sense at all unless you see it for what it is . . . a word game.
Now, technically I never said I am disgusted with the fact that ESPN editors even PLAYED that clip. I did not say that. You see what I mean?? Many people approach life with this literal attitude, this passive-aggressive approach, that gets a message through LOUD AND CLEAR without actually “saying” it. All of my life I have encountered people like this. They even rear their heads in churches. They are everywhere!
I used to be a fan of the NBA . . . When greats like Larry Bird, Dr J, Michael Jordan, and the like were playing the game . . . When they WORKED for a living. Now, the NBA seems to be a collection of all-stars with no real working men playing the game. I guess there are a few worth watching, but for the most part, I don’t enjoy it.
And the shame of that is I LOVE basketball. It was a big part of my life for YEARS.
Yesterday Krissy and I were going through the drive-thru at our bank. I was cashing $65 in checks. I bank at one of our hometown banks, and love it . . . I know most of the tellers, and they know me. I noticed a new teller yesterday, and honestly, she took what seemed like a long time to cash those checks. When the envelope came back, I checked it as I always do. I was surprised to find $173 in it.
So, I pulled off and laughed all the way to my shopping! Serves her right, right??? NAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. I pressed the call teller button and told the other teller who answered that I think I got the wrong envelope. It was a no-brainer for me, too. I never thought about keeping it.
As they checked it out, I looked at Krissy and said, “You know why I did that??” Without blinking, she answered, “Character, dad??” She almost seemed annoyed.
Then it made me wonder if I have overtaught that one. I don’t know if she has ever been with me when that has happened before, and honestly, I can only think of one other time IN MY LIFE when a bank teller has made such a boo-boo. I went on to tell her that was not only the RIGHT thing to do, it is also what I have always seen my mom and dad do. Not only did I know it was right, I also saw it over and over again growing up.
I didn’t wonder too long after that if I have overtaught this, because I don’t believe WE CAN OVERTEACH HONESTY. And, this was just a mistake . . . I would hate for that teller to have to pull that cash out of her pocket to make her drawer balance. It just would not be right. And I would have felt so guilty if I had kept that cash.
Sometimes the right thing is the EASIEST thing to do. Thank God for those times!
The Random Thinker 