I got a call yesterday from the secretary of an organization I belong to. “Would you send me the information on that new member we just inducted?” I am membership chairman so I keep that information on new members.
As I typed the information in an e-mail I noticed that the new member had the same birth year as me. But I thought she was in her mid to late 60’s, possibly even 70. Which makes me aware of how different “60” can be, depending on its bearer. Continue reading Birthday
I just discovered a great computer tool called Note Scraps. It’s a product made my Logos Bible Software, but Note Scraps is an application for anyone who needs a place to keep random thoughts or data.
Note Scraps is deceivingly simple. You can’t format anything. There are no nested menus. The FAQ page is short. The learning curve is about 5 minutes long.
You can download a fully functioning sample for free. You can post 10 different notes in that version. For $20 you can get the fully functioning version and store all the notes you want.
I like Note Scraps because it gives me a place to put random information, reminders, and thoughts. If you saw my littered desk, you’d understand why this is needed. When I need to find a note, all I have to do is just remember any one word in it. Note Scraps will search the whole data base for anything with that word. Voila!
If you become a pilgrim, you cannot live in isolation from others; you cannot ‘purposefully separate from others on the journey.’ As part of personal transformation, you become a member of community.
Radical autonomy, subjectively driven lives, and consumer choice lead in a predictable direction: toward cultural fragmentation.
My sermon last Sunday was about the otherliness of the Samaritan in Jesus’ parable. In the sermon we examined the mandate we have from Jesus to look out for the needs of others. I like what Diana Butler Bass says in this regard. “You cannot live in isolation from others…”
Truly, to be a disciple of Jesus means being connected to the people around us. It means giving them attention and putting their needs above our own. This is difficult to do because everything in our culture is dedicated to “radical autonomy” and living unaware of the people we rub elbows with.
I think that such unselfish attention is extraordinary in this world, and it also gives people who care about others an extraordinary advantage. But you have to be willing to put others first.
This week I get to speak twice at public gatherings. One speech will be to people who give care to loved ones who are suffering from serious illness. The other will be to new members of the Chamber of Commerce.
I like opportunities like this for two reasons. The first is that I consider it a be a honor to be asked to speak in these contexts. Disciples of Jesus should be in the marketplace–being partners with community members in the community’s work. It is also a trust, hard won and easily lost. Continue reading Public Speaking
I’ve had “Blue” on sale for a few weeks now. First I went to Craigslist.com. Merced now has its own page there. Pretty cool.
I got a nibble or two at Craigslist, but no bites. Then I put “For Sale” signs in Blue’s windows as he sat in front of the house. (I’m assuming that Blue is male.) I’ve gotten several nibbles since then.
I had lunch with friends today. I met them months ago through business connections, but the relationship grew beyond that to friendly regard. We don’t get together very often, so it was pleasant to do so today.
One of Bev’s co-workers invited us to come hear him play at a local night spot. The band was going to play reggae music. We had been intending to do that for the past several months, so this was a good excuse and motivation to do so.
We got there about 10:00. The band was really good, and it was fun watching the crowd dancing and having fun. I knew fairly quickly that this was a place I want to return to.
Adam Moore has been really busy making additions and changes to the LifeSpring Church website. And the site is becoming much more dynamic and interesting.
The newest change is the addition of an archive and subscription section where you can download recent editions of our Sunday newsletter, Currents. If you want to be on the e-mailing list for Currents, use the subscription menu. You’ll then be automatically added to our weekly mailing.
Coming soon is a podcasting link where sermon audio will be stored. You’ll be able to find the last month’s sermons for downloading to your iPod.
We think these additions will give guests to our site a good sampling of what LifeSpring is like. On the site guests may get our newsletter, hear the sermons, or even read what other LifeSpringers are saying. It’s a good introduction.
We got back Saturday night from Santa Rosa where we got to enjoying being together with our family. Normally we only get to be with one or the other, but not both.
Angela flew out to California on a Tuesday night redeye flight from Nashville. She spent a few days with Jonathan, Dani, and boys, and then she came home with me and Bev today, Saturday. We get to keep her until week’s end when we take her back to the Oakland airport.
Family is a pleasure, and we always relish the rare moments when we’re all together. Those moments are especially wonderful because of our lovely children.
I got a letter from AAA recently announcing that I was quickly using up my free tows. It was a sobering moment.
Last week I went out to start my Honda, and nothing happened. Fortunately Bev was home for vacation, so I didn’t have to rent a car. I knew that I was going to have to make a change in vehicles, a thought I didn’t relish.
I e-mailed a friend of mine and told him that I needed to buy a car and what my budget was. He referred me to one of his salesmen who then showed me their used car stock in that price range. I wasn’t thrilled by the choices.
MonoLogue 