I'm Sorry

Let's start here.......I had lots of time over the weekend to think. Mostly because I was sick a bit. And because of travel time. So I have some things bubbling in my head. I may be posting snippets of thoughts or may save them for one post.

I need to say I'm sorry to everyone who read my last post and thought I was talking about them. Several friends either e-mailed me or referenced me in their blogs because they felt I was calling them out. By saying that "when I got check other blogs and they haven't changed in two weeks it's bothersome.", I did not mean that as a pointed statement. I was only trying to apologize for my lack of posting. Thank you to everyone who reads this. Even if you check in once a month or once a year. That's cool. I'm sorry if anyone took that line wrong. It's your blog, do what you like.

Now onward. I want to say I'm sorry.

A week or so ago I was sorting through a box in "my office" in our basement, that in all honesty is really just a storage space for boxes of junk that I've accumulated in 31 years. I was trying to get rid of stuff and consolidate. In the box were a bundle of pictures from gradeschool on. As I combed through them I began remember what was going on in my life at that point, who my friends were and what I was doing. A lot of good memories. A lot of smiles. A lot of laughter at how goofy I looked when I distinctly remembering thinking I looked smooth.

The more I thought about this the more I began thinking about people that I've run into in my life. Honestly, I've been a jerk to a lot of people. I've been selfish, cocky, stubborn, rude, petty, needy, egotistical.............and the list goes on. I've been pretty foolish in a lot of key moments in my life. There are these times when you are called on to make wise decisions and I have failed misserably.

I'm sorry.

If you have taken the brunt of any of my stupidity. I'm sorry. If you remember when I said something that is hurtful to you, please accept my appology. If I did something that angered you.....my bad.

The worst of it is, that since God is still working on me......I'm still doing dumb things. I'd like to believe that I've grown up quite a bit in the last 5 years, in the last 10 years, in the last 15 years etc. but I'm sure I still have a road to travel.

I just wanted to take a minute and humble myself before everyone and say I'm sorry.

Thinking

I know that there are only a couple people checking this regularly so it's no big deal if I don't post regularly....but when I got check other blogs and they haven't changed in two weeks it's bothersome....so here.

The reason for not posting (and honestly this isn't a real post either) is that I've just been doing a lot of thinking lately.....and I haven't completed any of the thoughts......so I don't have a ton to post.

I ordered a new R key for my laptop....and it came.....and it doesn't fit. So my R key is still broken. GREAT! I'm going to take up a collection to get a new key.

I can't plug this enough. God's blogs is a really really good book. If you get something you don't want for Christmas, return it and go get this book. Seriously. I really like it.

We're off to my parents this weekend. It looks as if my brother and his family will be joining us there at least for a day. I'm kind of stoked because he has yet to see Corban....AND he and his wife just had a new baby boy...like two weeks ago....Mason Paul Reinard. I'm stoked to see them. I don't get to see my brother enough. (so if you're reading this....I don't get to see you enough!)

Ok I'm done for now. I'll do something later. Merry Christmas to you all. May you take time to listen in this season where everyone else is running.

I'm a bad Pirate

What? A bad Pirate? Well yes. I have a new problem. I just broke the RRRRRRRRRRRRRR key on my laptop. One of the tiny tabs broke. So depending on how I hit the key depends on if it works or if it falls off. Ugh.

Good weekend. Went to a ballet that some of my students were in Sat. night. It was actually good. All Sat. was just chill time with the fam.

Sunday was work. Taught Sr. High Sunday School in N. Warren, which I dreaded when they asked me to co-teach the class back in Aug. I dreaded it just because it would be one more thing I have to teach in the week. I have been pleasantly surprised though. I'm thoroughly enjoying the class and I believe so are the students. After Sunday School in NW, we jumped in the car to make it to worship at PCC across town. Two churches just across town and two totally different personalities of churches. Very interesting. Home to take naps and then I was off to NWPC. Triumphant swing band was playing their Christmas show there. Good Christian Swing/Big Band. They played for 2 hours....and then I had youth group. Youth group was one just one of those nights........the kind that make you wonder why you bother. The kids didn't want to do anything.....including listen. Home to Mari and a movie!

I found this thing called LINERUNNER on a youth website, I've messed around with it but I'm pretty bad. I can't keep my lines nice and straight......however here's a video by David Crowder that is freaking amazing. Good luck wasting away your day with this!

So you have a blog too?

Two Dads and Ministry

Just catching up on some blog reading today.

My good friend and local pastor Bill talked about his daughter and communion. So perfect in her understanding of something that a lot of adults don't get.

At PURE CHURCH the pastor and his wife had a son. He writes about his experience seeing his son for the first time. Awesome.

internet monk had an interesting article on ministry. an article that is well timed in my reading of it.

Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

It's been a rollercoaster of a week. Enough said about that.

Today was the beginning of Advent but Christmas non-sense has been going on for awhile.
Everyone keeps asking what we're getting Corban or are we so excited this Christmas......and honestly, we're not. We're excited that our son is with us this Christmas, but he has no idea what all the hype is about. My guess is that come Christmas Eve (when my family traditionally opens gifts) he will see lots of fancy paper, but not get it.........so we're not getting a tree this year.......we just don't have room now that half our house has toys in it. We have three very small fake trees that we decorated with a few ornaments.....Mari put lights around some doorways.....we have ribbons too..........we put up our nativity set and read the story with him........we have decorations.....but we're not going overboard this year. And I'm pretty cool with that.

My good friend Brandon and I have been having some great conversations on AIM lately. Actually he just asks me a lot of questions about how to run a youth ministry and I make stuff up and he thinks I'm smart.......and I keep telling him I'm going to charge him a consulting fee. ANYWAY.....he's a pretty smart guy and must read a lot because he keeps sending me links to really good articles. So I finally got around to reading a good article he sent me last week. You should read it too.....particularly if you live in a city or a suburb...it's about Gentrification....you have to read it to find out what that is.

Cool thing happened this past week. I posted on my one youth group blog about a book that is really good. The book is called God's Blogs. It's written from the idea that God is going to write a blog to us. I know it's a weird premise but the book is really good. So I wrote about it on my youth blog and said that if the youth didn't know what to ask for for Christmas, they should get this book. Well I was checking the comments on that blog one morning and guess who logged a comment? The author of the book Lanny Donoho! He was searching the net and bumbled across my little youth group blog site that mentioned him and his book. So he posted to thank me for plugging the book and that he never thought it would reach anyone, but hoped the kids would like it. How cool is that? Not that he's super famous, but of all the web hits he could've got, he found my little church's youth blog?

I thought I was going to die this week. Literally. Die. More than that, I was afraid I was going to take Corban with me. So here's the story. Friday it rained like mad in the morning. A new geocache pops up not far from us. I check weather.com.....storms have passed. It's sunny. Dress Corban up and away we go. We drive out to this area called Hearts Content. It's virgin timber. REALLY BIG TREES. I can't get my arms around most of these tree and they are extremely tall. So we get there and the wind is blowing a little bit, but nothing bad. I grab C-rock and away we go down this trail. The close we get to the cache the wind starts picking up. By the time we find it and i'm signing my name it's blowing.........HARD. All of a sudden BOOM. I'm talking a loud explosion. A tree a couple hundred feet up the trail falls over. Remember these aren't like the trees lining your city streets.......then I hear another one go down....then another.........I picked up the 30 lb. little boy and began running for all I was worth the just under half mile back to the car. The problem is that as I'm running I'm realizing that there are trees that could fall on either side of the trail.....and if they go......I'm done for.............and the whole time I'm crying out to God.........and I mean I was talking/yelling/crying out loud to Him. Since you're reading this.....I obviously made it. I've been thinking back over my life and I'm not sure I can think of a time when I was more scared though. When I reached my car, my heart was going so fast and I couldn't catch my breath (most of that had to do with running that distance with and extra 30 lbs.). Had I known that was going to be the adventure I would've stayed in.

If you need something to waste time with.....I have two things for you.
1. Doodlecube......it's pretty self-explanatory.....a little hard to control, but fun.
2. Word Shoot.......just type the word underneath the guy or tank and your guy will shoot it....it never ends so you just keep typing.