Favre vs. Packers on MNF. I bet the announcers are drooling over this story.
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I recently was reminded of a story I have heard before (or a version similar) of an African farmer who was successful and had started farming because he enjoyed working the land. He began to hear about people discovering diamonds around the country and he heard how wealthy they were becoming and decided that even though he was good at what he did, it wasn’t making him lots of money. He decided to sell his farm and go diamond hunting and spent the rest of his life looking for something he would never find, ending up broke and broken down and took his own life. At the same time, the guy who had bought his farm happened across a beautiful stone in one of the creeks on the property and put it on his mantle at home. A visitor stopped by one day, saw the stone on the mantle and told the owner it was a diamond. They began going over the property and found more and more stones and the farm turned out to be one of the best diamond mines in the country.

It’s a good reminder that I need to look more closely at what I have and find the beauty in it instead of seeing what I don’t have and losing focus. I know there are those of us who are guilty of not enjoying what we have while imaging things would be so much better with something else.

I’m guilty of taking for granted the beauty God has placed in my life, failing to see the diamonds laying around me. I need to remember to look through God’s eyes and not my own, I need to remember to see what he wants me to see, not what I want to look for. I can look and see what I don’t have or I can look and see the beauty and wonder God grants me each day.

Grace and peace to you.

I only caught the news snippets but apparently David Letterman admitted to having affairs with staffers on his show last night. OK, let’s here it. It’s time to point out all of his faults, all of his failings and talk about what a horrible person he is…because he sinned. Yes he did. The heathen. (I hope the sarcasm is dripping through.)

I really wonder how many people who speak well of Josh Hamilton, even after his problem in January, will want to verbally beat up Letterman. I hope self-righteousness doesn’t rear it’s ugly head but that people will simply pray for Letterman and for all of us who are sinners. I would really – really – like to hear people criticize the evil one and talk about what he is doing among us when referencing Letterman’s faults…and their own. I hope to realize Letterman is no different than me – a man, made in God’s image, tempted by satan and loved by God.
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While I’m rambling about what I don’t want to hear I’ll include all the talk about Obama’s trip to the Olympic thingy. If George Bush had gone while he was President the Republicans would be crowing like roosters talking about how wonderful it is he is bringing focus to this great land. The Republican party is beginning to disgust me. What compounds it is that many of these same people hold out their Christian values while running someone down the minute a microphone is in front of them.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m no fan of the Democrats but it is sad to see what our “leaders” do. I want a politician representing me that represents what politicians should, the best interest of the country, without grandstanding and without finding something negative to say at any moment.
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Enough griping. Here’s something to end the week on…

Jesus died for you and me. He loves you and me through our sin and died for us so that we might truly experience his glory. If you read this blog and don’t know the true love of Christ, I hope to have the opportunity to visit with you and tell you what I know about the greatest gift I have ever or will ever receive. God is alive. He loves us in ways we may never understand and he wants us to know him.

Grace and peace to you.

I think it’s safe to say we live in a society that is suffering from a “me” addiction. What’s in it for me? What do I get out of it? What about me? I have been a me-aholic and understand the desire to please self but have come to see it for what it is – a self-defeating endeavor. It’s self-defeating because everyone will reach a point where getting all you want can never be enough and it leads to emotional, spiritual and physical pain. It drives people to alcohol and drugs, it destroys marriages, leads to depression, lack of hope and even suicide. It pulls people away from God and opens the door for satan to create shame and doubt. It slowly but surely tears people to shreds. There are very good and sound reasons scripture continually calls us to deny self and to put God first and foremost in every thought and action.

I ran across the website http://www.whatsinitforhim.com that is dedicated to the idea that we need to overcome our me addiction and start asking “what’s in it for God?” The idea is that we need to take our focus off of ourselves and put it on God. It’s not the idea that we start bargaining for God like we often do for ourselves but that our actions need to glorify him. The site and ministry is new and evolving but I hope the idea behind it catches on. In my life, are the choices I am making to the benefit of God’s glory? That simple thought has the potential to create huge changes. Let us pray it is so.

Grace and peace to you.

I think I’m just about wiped out. Too little sleep can do that to a person.

The Rangers lost their last home game of the year. I’ve said it before and will say it again…they did more than anyone expected and have stayed in the hunt until the final games. It’s been a fun year. There’s nothing like going to a September game and seeing the stadium full and hearing the crowd cheer. I hope there is more of it next year.

The Cowboys play tonight. Go Panthers. OK, I really don’t care who wins and I won’t be watching. I’m having dinner and catching movie with a great friend.

A cool front (it wasn’t cold) was blowing in this morning when I left the house. I love it!

To my golfer friend, I did see Phil-the-Lefty won the tournament this weekend. All is right (or left) with the world!

What’s up with Iran? Are they provoking a fight? People are crazy.

That’s all I’ve got today.

Grace and peace to you.

3 terrorist plots thwarted yesterday. I’m glad the Feds caught up with these guys but I don’t believe they can catch all of them. Yesterday’s efforts indicate to me that we can expect more carnage and maybe sooner than any of us care to think about.

This is one of those moments where I really wonder what God is thinking. I do believe he will use any situation for his glory but this is one of those deals where I cannot think out-of-the-box enough to imagine how he will use terrorists activities. Just for the record, I’m all for sending a legion of angels down to put a whooping on the terrorists but go back to what I have stated before; I want to worship a God who thinks bigger than me and sees more than me. I’ve offered my opinions plenty of times and occasionally I was aligned with him enough that I got what I wanted but I think these terrorists issues are going to take a bigger view and mind than what I can offer God. Still, I might mention to him the legion of angels idea…
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It kills me to see the Rangers lose to the A’s. OK, it hasn’t killed me but I rather see them close out the year beating teams they should beat. I wonder if they are interested in listening to my ideas?
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The Cowboys play Monday. My only interest is that Marion Barber is one of my fantasy football running backs. Get well Marion!
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It’s a sports weekend at our house and I can’t be in 2 places at once. I hate weekends like this because I don’t want to miss either child doing their thing.
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God is so good. Wednesday night, we sang In Christ Alone, a song I have come to love and cherish. My hope is not in people, not in things but in Christ alone. Anyone/anything else will fail me. Christ will not.

Grace and peace to you.

What’s up with all the Romo bashing? He’s got a great win-loss record overall. His stats to date give him the 3rd best QB historical rating. He comes out and plays every week in what has to be one of the most dysfunctional organizations in football. Give him Aikman’s offense and I bet he does really well but give him a blindside offensive tackle who has to trip people, receivers who are nutcases or battling to stay off the development squad and coaches who are picked by a non-football guy who wants it to be all about him and I think Romo does well.

Is he a superstar? No. No doubt he has to win in December and January to reach that level but run through the names of the most previous Cowboy quarterbacks and tell me who you want. Quincy Carter? I think he was the last QB to lead them to a playoff game before Romo.

I’ll take my chances with Romo until Jerry brings in the next Staubach/Aikman.
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I taught the youth class last night using the song The Motions by Matthew West as the topic. I love that song and I hope I did a good job sharing what God can do with people who are broken to his will.

I love the line “I don’t want to have to spend my whole life asking, what if I had given everything?” I don’t do a good job giving God everything every day. I still get caught up focusing on me but I have great joy when I can feel that I am turning my life, my thoughts, my decisions and my actions over to God.

I hope you will listen to the song if you have never heard it. There is power in the breaking and the pain that come with giving yourself over to God and realizing he is all there is, he is all that counts, he is everything you need or should want. The pain isn’t always fun but the growing closer to God that comes from it is not just fun, it is pure joy.

Grace and peace to you.

Crazy title, huh?

I stole today’s post from Beverly Ross’ blog.

The more estranged our relationship with God, the greater our emotional expectations of people. The greater our emotional expectations of people, the more difficult life is; the greater emotional pain we live in, the more difficult we are to live with. (by Rod Pruitt)

There’s not much I can add to that other to suggest re-reading with a spin of the closer we are to God, the less we rely on people and the greater our joy.

Grace and peace to you.

Romans 15:7

I heard a comment yesterday that I have come to have a dim view of. “They will have to earn my respect.” You can also substitute “trust” for “respect” and I have the same dim view of what that means.

Respect and trust is given, not earned. We have developed this notion that we have to earn respect/trust/money/salvation but God has showed time and time again these things are given.

If respect and the rest are to be earned, what is the standard? The answer is whatever each individual wants the standard to be and all that does is put each individual in the position of being judge and jury. However, if respect and the rest are to be given, what is the standard? Simply to give.

The guy I work for can quit paying me at any time he wants. There is nothing I do to earn my position, my status or my salary. Sure, he may have given me those things because of what I have done but he chooses to give. I think I have worked hard enough to earn a bazillion dollars but he chooses what to give me. There is a parable in the Bible that tells a story similar to what I’m saying. One guy worked all day, another just a short time and they both got paid the same. The owner of the field is the decider of what to give.

I have been guilty of being the judge on what someone needs to do to earn my trust and respect. I hope going forward I will simply accept people as children of God, even when they hurt me in their actions, knowing that there is nothing I can do to earn my forgiveness or to earn my salvation. It was given to me freely. Why should I give less?

Grace and peace to you.

I hate sinus headaches.

Johnny Knox looks like the real deal. He’s the speedster running down the sidelines for the Chicago Bears catching touchdown passes and formerly of ACU.

I don’t hate the Cowboys, I just don’t care for the Cowboys and it must be Jerry. I like Romo, Roy Williams, Witten, Barber, Felix Jones, Brookings, Ware and Jason Garrett. I thought losing the home opener at JerryWorld was humorous but didn’t really care if they lost or won. I don’t dislike Jerry (being that I don’t know him), I just don’t care for some of the decisions I see and it affects how I feel about the team I think.

There was something I kept seeing last night that irritates me. It’s nothing new but when defensive players make a tackle and then act like it just saved the game winning score as they go running down the field or dancing around. Guys, you get paid to make tackles! I wish they had to do some walk of shame every time they get beat if they are going to boogie down every time they tackle someone. Or maybe they should have to watch all their little celebrations with the final score flashing in the background. They may be great guys but their actions irritate me when they do that.

The Horns made it a little too close against Tech but still won. Mack kept it in perspective after the game saying he wanted them to play perfect at the end of the season, not the beginning. Still, I bet he wishes they were playing a little closer to perfect. 🙂

I went to the Rangers game Saturday night after playing catch in the outfield with my son and catching a Mercy Me concert before the game. It was a thrilling ending to a season that is quickly coming to a close. While they aren’t mathematically eliminated yet, they lost yesterday and it pretty well put the final nail in the coffin for the year. That said, I’ve never had more anticipation for next year. The stadium was packed Saturday night and the roar of the crowd when Andrus turned the double play was electric.

I get the privilege of teaching the youth class Wednesday night and I’m using the song “The Motions” by Matthew West as the springboard for the lesson. If you haven’t heard the song, go to his web site or YouTube and listen to it. Great stuff.

Grace and peace to you.