10 Predictions for 2009

Here are my top 10 predictions for 2009

#1 - Perry Ryan and Charles Penn will both get hair plugs but only one of them will be successful - you'll have to wait and see which one.

#2 - Nell Anne will dye her hair jet black and get an eye brow pierced so she can reach out to the "raver" crowd.

#3 - Dan Waits will only work 75 hours a week instead of his usual 86.

#4 - Melody Scott will finally have enough of my stories about her and I will preach one weekend with a black eye!

#5 - Valerie will take in more stray cats and be labeled the "cat lady" in her neighborhood.

#6 - Andrew Gill will find Jesus and abandon the Louisville Cardinals.

#7 - Robert Smith will publish his first book - The Power of the Pause.

#8 - Tina King will invent a new thing that will revolutionize the church cleaning world - the 8 day week and the 30 hour day!

#9 - Sandi Froelich will confess that she has been secretly using peachtree again instead of quick books.

#10 - Justin Boyd and Miranda will find out they are pregnant with triplets... doing their part for church growth... hey isn't that what a "grow pastor" is supposed to do?

Christmas Update

Hey all - thanks to a neighbor of my in laws with unsecured wireless I can check my e-mail and post a blog. Thanks Jeffrey (whoever you are).... :)

This has been one awesome Christmas season for us. Busy as usual but great.

On Christmas eve I picked up my brother Mark and we headed to church for the Christmas Eve service. He was actually doing pretty well. Most of you know he has paranoid schizophrenia. So you never know what you're going to get. Thankfully we had a good time. He still suffers terribly but seemed to be a little bit more of "himself" than I have seen in a while. The service was awesome - lots of folks hung around afterward for coffee, hot chocolate and "goodies".

On Christmas Day I got up early and started cooking - YES I DID MOST OF THE COOKING! I fixed dressing with mushrooms, pecans, onions and of course I used broth from the giblets. I pealed and cooked potatoes and made home made mashed potatoes, I cooked the green beans and deep fried the turkey. Other folks brought some other goodies - but hey this is my blog so it's about me. Suffice it to say we had a feast.

Then we opened gifts... (actually we opened some before everyone got there) - I think everyone was pleased with what they received I know I was... the biggies for me were a new set of gouges for my lathe and a new drill press - Melody is the BOMB! Jon was pleased with his new guitar strap (a really nice hand made one that should last him for years, and a couple of gift cards to guitar center - he wants a new pedal). Nina was thrilled with her new Lee Middleton doll and an ipod. And everyone seemed to enjoy the new wii game system - it's a blast! And of course I did not get Melody anything with a cord... but I did get here some things that were shiney and smelly!

But after dinner the fun began! The princess (our grand daughter) was in the house! Man, a three year old can make things fun. She was saying things like, "I love it" and "I've always wanted one of these". And then she got on the wii. She was playing the bowling game - what a thrill to watch.

Well the next day we hit the road - we drove some nine hours to NW Illinois to visit with Melody's folks. In so many ways they are more than in-laws to me. Much more like parents. I have been so blessed with them for 30 years now. Not sure how many more years we will have them - but we know we will have them for eternity, if not here.

We did go see the movie Seven Pounds... A MUST SEE! But be warned - bring some tissues - lots of them.

We will be heading back home tomorrow and I can't wait. I love coming up here - but I love where I live. I can't wait to go pick up my drill press at Sears and try out my new "toys". I also can't wait to see Jon, Beth, Dale and Abigail. They all stayed in KY this year. It's hard to believe that the days are gone when all the kids make this trip with us. But Nina is a joy and someday she will not make the trip either - so we're just enjoying the time we have.

I hope you all had as great a Christmas as I have had. God bless you all.

What Child is This?

I found this clip on Youtube - it is just awesome! Enjoy... Merry Christmas

Transparency

I had a ton of people come up to me or e-mail me and tell me how much they appreciate my transparency. I thought I'd write about it. I have tried to be transparent for a long time and I think I generally am. I guess I have pretty much been a "here I am, take it or leave it" kind of guy most of my life", but then I got into "the ministry".

I was just amazed at how many people have tried to force me into some "preacher model". You know - the guy who stands up front and looks like he is closer to God than anyone else in the room. The guy who doesn't get real - he just gets religious! I could tell you horror stories of people trying to make me change. But I was blessed by some incredible models and some pivotal things in my earlier years.

#1 - I grew up poor. Not always, but there were times when we had it pretty rough. I can remember a local church bringing us "Christmas" one year. I guess we were somebody's "share the joy project". Although I was pretty young - I still remember the hot wheel track I played with for hours.

#2 - I remember having to use food stamps. Melody and I were the proud parents of a baby girl (Beth) and the economy of the early 80's was in the tank. We got food stamps for 3 months. I can remember going to the next town to shop so I would not run into anyone I knew.

#3 - I worked in the public sector at a Carpet Mill in Dalton Ga for about three years. I know 1st hand what most people have to face every day. I have not forgotten what it's like in the real world.

#4 - I have failed miserably a number of times. And while I was blessed to learn from them - I have also never tried to cover them up. I really am a huge monument to God's grace.

#5 - I literally get sick when I see men and women of God who I know good and well have "issues" just like me and everyone else, who publicly act like they have it all together.

#6 - I read God's word and see it filled with the stories of great men and women of God who had real struggles, real failures, real hurts, and real forgiveness.

I want to live my life helping people see God's grace - what better way can I do this than show them the grace I myself have found. And in my thinking this only happens when we are transparent.

So, thanks for the kudos - but I'm just doing what I was encouraged to do years ago. I'm just preaching what I know. I don't know much - but I do know this. Where sin abounds - God's grace abounds more.

Thank you Jesus for loving me. I'm still amazed every day that I get to share what you have done for me with others. Lord, help me not blow it!

I GOT SPAMMED!

UGGGHHHH!

A big thanks to Andrew for giving me a quick "heads up". Evidently some meathead posted a comment that was a link to some porn site... (I took his word for it and just deleted it).

I also set it up so you have to do the "word verification" thing - sorry about that.

Oh well, such is life.

Have a great day and SPAMMERS - STAY OFF MY BLOG!!!!!

Random thoughts

OK - I've been really, really busy so I've been remiss in blogging - sorry about that - :)

So here are just some random thoughts ....

1 - I'm pumped about this weeks sermon - we're talking about forgiving yourself - getting past the past.

2 - I'm working on a funeral sermon for a suicide victim - How do you make sense of something so senseless?

3 - I'm excited about some new woodworking projects... I love my lathe!

4 - Christmas is just 7 days away - The kids and the "princess" will be at the house - I love being a dad, a husband, and a grandpa!

5 - It's nice that my sewer is not plugged now - uggghhh - thanks Donnie and Dale!

6 - Only 83 more days till granddaughter #2 is born - at least that's what the Doctor is telling Beth.

7 - I'm thrilled that I get to help folks remember that Jesus is really what Christmas is about!

Good stuff from Perry Noble

One of the blogs I try to read every day is Perry Noble's. Over the last few days he has posted a great four part article. "Four arguments you just can't win" I think anyone in church leadership would benefit from reading them - so here are the links....

#1

#2

#3

#4

Have a great weekend!

Why I don't like cats.

Here is just one example of why I don't like cats.....

Who are you working for?

My wife loves the movie Dave (OK - I like it too). It's about a guy who looks like the president and then when the president has a stroke he steps in to help the power brokers stay in power. It stars Kevin Klein and Sigourney Weaver (what a strange name). Anyway at one point in the movie he makes a speech and tells how "he had forgotten who he was hired to work for and that it was a temp job at that".

So how often do we forget the same thing? As a pastor there is a constant temptation to forget who you work for. I don't work for the one who praises everything I do or for the critic who constantly wants me to do things differently. I work for God.

I don't work for me either. When I slip into that mold I wind up seeking the praise of men instead of pleasing God. And believe me - those things are more often than not mutually exclusive.

So what about you? As a Christ follower - you work for God. More specifically we all are to work with God - but you know what I mean. Are you finding yourself working for others? Are you looking around to see who's watching? When you praise are you singing to the crowd or to an "audience of one"?

Dave got it right! He understood he worked for the people (as a president should). And he realized too that it was only temporary. You and I have a temp job too. It will only last a few years - let's all make sure we get the job done right!

Let's remember who we work for.

101 Class

OK - it's 7:35 AM on a Saturday morning and I'm up and pumped! Today I get to teach my 101 class. That's the class I teach for folks who are new to HCC. It will go from 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM (give or take - and depending on the Cat's schedule - LOL) It will be comprised of folks who are considering becoming members or have recently joined. I love this class. It's long, and I still have to preach tonight and tomorrow - but I love it. Here's some reasons why.

I get to know some folks that I would otherwise not get to given our size congregation.

I spend a few hours with people that are excted about being a part of something.

I get to share our vision - I love doing that!

I get to answer questions and this helps me make sure we're still on track.

I get to have donuts - MIKE'S DONUTS - and they are awesome!

I get to tell our story - how we got here in just 11 years.

I get to to tell folks about my family.

I get to tell folks about Jesus.

If you've never taken this class - why not sign up next time - I'd love to see you too.

This kicked my butt!

There are many times when I read God's word that it really just hits me in the mouth! This is one such verse.

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. Mat 6:14-15 (NIV)

Wow! Being the fallen being that I am this smacked me in the face. And I got to thinking about just how well do I forgive? And then I realize as a minister I have this professional level of forgiveness - but is it real? Here's what I mean. As a pastor I "have to be forgiving" - at least on the surface. I don't have the luxury of unloading on people who tick me off. I don't have the luxury of publicly holding grudges. I don't have the luxury of ignoring people who I might really want to.

But what about the "real me" - not the guy on the stage - but the guy in the mirror? How well am I doing there? To be honest I really do try to be forgiving. And most of the time I do pretty well. But there have been times when I hung on way too long. There have been people that have hurt me deeply and I have given in to the wicked side in me that wants them to suffer for what they have done. Of course I'm willing to let God handle the suffering all I ask is that I get a front row seat so I can see it. Yes, that's sick.

As I have been working on this new series - Christmas is Forgiving - it brought this thought again to me. Just how much like Jesus am I when it comes to forgiving others. While the easy answer is - I'm doing great. But then I wonder.

What about you?

Be careful who you hang up on!

Most of you reading this have probably signed up on a "no call list" so people you don't know, selling stuff you don't want, can't call you at supper time. I did as soon as it came out.

But still I get a call once in a while - usually from political or non-profit organizations. And sometimes I'll give them a hearing and sometimes I just politely tell them I'm tapped out. But what happens when you get the really persistent ones? You know the ones who say, "I understand you can't afford $1,000.00 a week pledge - but what about $500.00 a week? No - how about $2.00? Can we count on you for anything? Etc. Etc. Etc.

Well - call me rude - but sometimes I actually hang up on them. Yes, I said it - I hang up.

Well this morning I'm reading Yahoo news and I read this really funny story about a US Representative (R) who hung up on our President Elect. And she did it twice because she thought it was a prank call. You can read the story here if you like... It is funny.

So here's something to think about.

How often do we hang up on God? How many times does he want to talk with us and we hang up? An issue comes up in life and we blow it off as just the normal junk of life and don't pray about it, while God is waiting to talk to us about it. How many times do we let other things "beep in" on our line when we should not take that call but stay connected with our Heavenly Father? Have we ever been guilty of putting Jesus on some "no call" list?

Be careful who you hang up on!

Weekend Update

Wow what a great weekend - here's a recap.

Thursday - slept in, watched football - had dinner w/ the family (including Beth, Dale, and Abigail) - we were celebrating Beth's 27th birthday - seems like yesterday Melody and I were two clueless kids putting our new born in the car and thinking, "what do we do now?" Thursday was a great day!

Friday - slept in - headed to my brother's house in Flemingsburg (our annual Thanksgiving get together with his family). Pigged out - I MEAN PIGGED OUT! Headed home a little before midnight and heard what seemed like a UK pre-game on the radio. What's up with a Midnight tip-off? Anyway listened to the first half on the way back to G-town. Tried to get the 2nd half on TV - Yes it was on - but not on a channel I get - so I went up into my office and listened on the computer - pretty cool. And they found a way to win - GO CATS!

Saturday - slept in (I see a pattern here - sweeet!). Watched some football in the afternoon and grazed on left overs. About 6:30 Tim King came over to watch the UK - TN game - Rodney Quinton joined us about 7:00 (A huge Tennessee fan). It got ugly! Thought I'd have to kill him! At 10:30 watched the UK - WV game - I think they are making progress - I also think Michael Porter needs to hang it up as a point guard!

Sunday - slept in (till 9:00) - went to the 10:45 service, saw my birthday girl (Beth) singing in the praise team - cried a little - enjoyed a great message by Paul Curtis. Went to Golden Coral with the family. Came home intending to nap a little and wound up making a hospital call with my wife. And then went shopping.

All in all - a great weekend - hope yours was just as good.