Fasting for Zack

Tuesday will be a fast day for Zack. Thanks to Bryguy in Idaho who came up with the idea. Bryguy, Zack, maybe George and myself will fast from dinner to dinner Monday and Tuesday. We will also spend a great deal of time in prayer for Zack, that God would be at work in his life in a mighty way. Also that God would provide a job for Zack and that he can begin to put some of his issues in the past.

I see this as being a great encouragement to Zack. The friends which he basically abandoned are now accepting him back 100% with no strings attached. Not only that but we are making a sacrifice by fasting for him and seeking God's will for him.

May he be encouraged by this

One week to Wisconsin

We leave for Wisconsin one week from today. Things are firming up pretty well for the trip. We've got our flight and hotel. I need to take care of the rental car today (which they are paying for). Our schedule there is worked out. Salary package is negotiated (pretty good one, too) We're also meeting with a realtor to look at houses. I've also got the name of mortgage broker whom I'm going to call today and get the ball rolling there as well.

Exciting times are upon us

Funny quote from Caleb

Christa and the kids came home today. To give Christa a break, I took Caleb to Barnes and Noble to read a couple of books. i brought some Johnny Ca.sh to listen to-Caleb's favorite music.

"Ghost Riders in the Sky" came on and I told Caleb it was my favorite Johnny Cash song. Caleb asked me if ghost riders in the sky were real. I told him no. He then asked me if they were real to Johnny Cash in the place he was after he died.

Uhhhh...how do you answer that??

Remembering a Johnny Carson quote

I enjoyed a Martini tonight on our front porch while reading Anthony Trollope's "Framley Parsonage".

I hadn't had dinner yet and I remembered a famous quote by Johnny Carson...at least it was attributed to him.

He said, 'Happiness is finding an olive in the bottom of your Martini glass when you are hungry".

By they way, Martini should always be capitalized.

CHrista and the kids gone

Christa and the kids went to visit her parents in Orange County for a few days. It seems like an ideal time for them to visit for several reasons. First, if we do end up moving to Wisconsin, this might be the last time that she is there for a while. Her parents have not seen the Caleb and Regan since last June, which is an eternity for a little girl like Regan. When they last saw her, she probably wasn't even rolling over. Now she is practically walking and her vocabulary is starting to grow. her fater's health also seems to be going downhill a bit and Christa might not have many more opportunities to see him. Last, because I was unemployed at the end of last year, we didn't get to go down for either Thanksgiving or Christmas. It's good that Christa gets to spend Easter with her family.

So I'm spending time cleaning the house, watching movies that Christa probably wouldnt want to watch and organzing all of the small group material for spring quarter. A couple of days without Christa and the kids is okay, but after that it is a matter of WHERE ARE THEY???????

Bad preaching vs weak preaching

A comment was made on my post about Christian minimalism to the extent that minimalism is the result of bad preaching. I disagree. It isa not bad preaching but weak preaching.

When I think of bad preaching, I think of Fred Price, Benny Hinn and their ilk. Those who (intentionally or not) distort Scripture in order to make it say what they want it to say. On points of theology they are just plain wrong. That is bad preaching, in my view.

Weak preaching is something totally different. This i preaching which fails to challenge our lives, confront our sin or convict us of our need to be righteous. many seeker-sensistive churches fall into this. Preaching about sin is not often done and if it is done, it often gives subtle comfort that those in sin may indeed remain there.

There is a church which I am familiar with in which the application from the sermon can often be boiled down to 3 things. Read your Bible. Pray. Be in fellowship. Yes, all those things should be done and done well, but when this is the depth of the application, there is something wrong. These people may read their little devotional book, say grace before meals and get together with friends from church and think they are doing God's will. The application of Scripture to their lives never goes beyond this because the man in the pulpit never goes beyond this.

Zack

10 years or so ago, George, Matt, Brygy and keith led a man named Zack to Christ. George and I even got to baptize him in the bay. Several years ago Zack disappeared. Poof! Now I know why

Zack surfaced last night after about 6 years of silence. We talked for 2 hours...mostly about him and what is going on in his life. Here is not the place to detail the happenings in his life, but suffice it to say that his life is pretty messed up and much of it by his own hand (according to Zack) One of is main regrets is that he didn't reach out to his old friends, who all still care for and love him, when things wee starting to go sour. But he finally did...getting touch with George who sent his info to me and I sent it to Matt, Keith and Bryguy.

As much as is going on with Zack, he needs to know that God's grace is beginning to reassert itself in his life. All of his friends have and will accept him again with no strings attached, and the love and fellowship which will flow from that will help him to climb out of his hole.

The parable that comes to mind is The Prodigal Son. This son was not fully healed until he made his way back to home, but his healing began when he woke up in the pigsty. That is where Zack is, waking up in the pigsty and realizing that it is not the place for him. It might be a little way of a slow way back for Zack because of the damage in his life, but you are never too far gone for God to heal you of the sins of your past and to make you into who He wants you to be.

Things are heating up in Wisconsin

The ministry opportunity at Jacob's Well in Eau Claire seems to becoming better by the day. Christa had a long talk with Lori, the executive pastor's wife last night about what life in Wisconsin is like. Lori and her husband Steve moved there from Dallas in January, so they are still in the midst of some transition issues. They talked for about 90 minutes or so.

Steve and I talked to today about the salary package and it in very competitive. Actually it's a bit more than I would have expected and would let us live pretty decently out there. They are in the final stages of putting together the airline tickets, rental car and hotel for our stay out there.

God is up to good things

Tahoe trip with Caleb

Caleb and I spend the weekend at lake Tahoe sledding in the snow. My friend Chris came also and brought his son Will (nicknamed Maui and he won't let anyone call him anything else) who is about 4 months younger than Caleb.

On Caleb's first run down the sledding hill (him in front and me in back), we wiped out, flipped over and Caleb ended up with his face covered in snow. He immediately said that he was cold, wanted to go home and didn't ever want to see snow again. Well, that lasted about 3 minutes. Then it was back up the hill.

We learned earnly on that when Caleb was in the front of the sled, we would wipe out and he would have his face covered with snow (The Abominable Caleb). So we switched positions so that I got the faceful of snow every time. But we didnt wipe out again.

We ended up leaving a little earlier than maybe we wanted to on Sunday. Maui and his dad had a couple of pretty bad wpeouts back-to-back and that kinda soured him on doing anymore sleddding.

It was fun to watch them wipe out. It reminded me of the old Road Runner cartoons. When the coyote would fall off a cliff, he would get smaller and smaller until you saw just a little puff of smoke as he it bottom. So it was with Chris and Maui. They would be sledding and getting smaller and smaller down the hill when all of a sudden I'd see a little puff of snow near the bottom. Yep, they wiped out again.

I enjoy these weekend times with Caleb. We did the snow trip last year also. I want to take him camping this summer also. I wanted to do a quick backpack trip with him, but we might not be around the Sierras this summer to do that.

Getting away with the minimum

I'm starting to do some reading and studying of the prophet Malachi (the Italian one). Even at the beginning I'm running across something that Malachi dealt with in terms of Israel's religious behavior that we deal with today.

Getting away with the bare minimum and hoping that it is pleasing to God. The Israelites were bringing animals to sacrifice at the temple which were blind, lame or deficient in some obvious manner. The Pentateuch clearly states that the animals brought were to be the pick of the litter, the finest that could be had. But here they are bringing the leftovers.

Their attitude? I'm sacrificing at the temple just as I should. What's wrong with that. They didn't even know it was an issue, they were so blind. Why would God not be happy with this animal with 3 legs? At least I'm bringing it.

Fast forward 2500 years or so. How many Christians in how many churches try to get bywith the bare minimum? I'll come to church on Sunday. Pray a little during the week. Maybe drop something in the offering bucket every couple of months or so. Isn't that what God wants? The same minimalist attitude that Malachi rebuked so harshly is still prevalent among our churches today.

I got some of the letters right

In 3 weeks, the Miller family flies to Chippewa Falls Wisconsin to candidate at a church there.

I was reminded yesterday of a dream I had several years ago. It was the type of dream which stays with you for years and years. I dreamt that I was a pastor in Cheyenne Wyoming. Right now it looks as if I might be a pastor in Chippewa Falls Wisconsin.

I got the 'CH' and the 'W' right at least

Wisconsin is encouraging

Whoever thought we might move to Chippewa Falls Wisconsin. It is now becoming a possibility. I've been interviewing with a church there called Jacob's Well for a small groups pastor position. They have about 1100 people at the church and 500 of the 800 adults are in small groups. I've interviewed with them 3 times and I am the only one they are looking at at this point. They've eliminated everyone else.

I had my first talk with the Senior Pastor today, kind of a get-to-know-you type of thing. All the official interviews are done. This talk today was to see if we were theologically compatible (we are) and to see if we can work together (I think we can). The next step is to have another talk with the execlutive pastor and his wife about moving out there, etc. After that, we candidate (go out for a visit) and see what happens.

EXciting times could be happening.

Walla Walla update

Walla Walla is still a couple of weeks away from making a decision on their small groups pastor position in terms of who to bring up there to candidate. I was originally supposed to hear 2 weeks ago byt they had a couple of meetings in which they were unable to make a decision.

And the glacier moves ever so slowly.

Vermin extinguished

Since I caught that last mouse 3 days ago, there have been no signs at all of other members of the rodentia family. We might have gotten them all. Maybe they all moved in together and I just was able to pick them off one by one.

There did seem to be 2 different species. One was a bit on the brown side and had a bit of a stumpy body. The other one was gray and had a longer body.

Just to be safe, we're going to keep the traps out for another couple of days.

Living the 3rd way

The world usually presents us with 2 ways to live.

Many people live by law. They may not charcterize it as such, but there it is. THese are people who try to live a good live. Those who live by the Golden Rule. They work hard and try to provide for their families by sheet sweat. But it is a type of law or some sort of commandment or way of living life (see Tony Robbins or Dr. Phil) for examples) that they follow.

Others live according to the flesh. Whatever feels good, do it. Go and party, live life to it's fullest, go and try to experience everything.

Christianity gives a 3rd way. Live by the Spirit. Let your life be marked by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. By living according to this we live not by law or flesh by by the Spirit

I think I'm turning into Ernest Hemingway

I've killed 6 mice in our house in the last 3 weeks, 4 of them just in the last week. Do we have an infestation? have I gotten them all?

It was obvious that we had more than one mouse because no single mouse could poop this amount. I thought it was two or three, but we keep catching them. They're either gtetting bolder or dumber. There was one on Sunday afternoon who just decided to plant himself on the kitchen floor and much on a little piece of spinach, even with all of us around there. I dropped a piece of tupperware over him, slid some newspaper under it and carried him out. Christa made me promise to throw out the tupperware as well. I had another one run through the kitchen on Sunday night and I spent a decent amount of time trying to chase him down. I saw no sign on Monday and I thought I had scared him away...maybe for good. But there he was this morning, his furry little body glued to the trap. So out he went.

The poops are getting less and less, so I am hoping that we did the last one in this morning or that any other mice start to realize that all their mouse buddies are no longer around and clear out while they still can

The beginning of a new week- with food aplenty

I hardly know where to begin with all of the food issues this week.

First, Christa is making dinner all week as an anniversary present. Tonight we are having meatloaf with potatoes. Tomorrow night is lasagna. Friday are BBq bacon cheeseburgers.

so what about Wed, Thurs and Sat??

We're going out to dinner for our anniversary on Wed. Originally we wanted to get a babysitter in Walnut Creek and go to Vic Stewart's for steak. The babysitter fell through so we got a babysitter closer to home and we'll go to Outback for steaks and red wine.

Saturday we are going to Cirque de Soleil for Christa's birthday and to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory before.

Thursday night I'm finally cashing in my Christmas present of a cooking class. I'm taking the French Steakhouse class at HomeChef from 6-9 pm. I'll be making hangar steak, scalloped potatoes and a chocolate souffle.

What week! I'll probably gain 5 pounds.